Ruma

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Ruma

Other Names: Dead Pan

Inventor: Mr Punga, 1930s

Ranks: Four

Sowing: Single laps

Region: Belgium

Ruma (from Malay rumah = "house") was created by Mr. Punga in the 1930s. The game was described in 1942 in a book on recreational mathematics written by the Belgian Maurice Kraitchik (*1882-1957) who was at this time assistant professor at the New School of Social Research in New York City (USA). His book was based on articles published during the 1930s in the Belgian journal Sphinx of which he was the editor-in-chief, but the exact date of the first publication of Ruma has not yet been researched. The game has been marketed in the USA as Dead Pan in 1956 by Selchow & Righter. Ruma is a predecessor of Pass It On.

Quote

"Just like eating Peanuts - when you play Dead Pan, you keep coming back for more. Another Winner following on the heels of Scrabble. Novel in appearance, new in method of play and easy - so easy to learn. Nothing to do but drop Marbles into the beautiful plastic trays - but it's a real Challenge to WIN."

Selchow and Righter (1956)

Rules

The game can be played by 2-4 players. If four players participate, each controls one row. In the two-person game, a player controls two rows opposite each other. In the three-person game one player owns the two rows opposite each other while his opponents have just one row. The latter players should form a coalition against the player who controls two rows.

Towards the board center and parallel to each row, there is a furrow to store the penalty balls. The ruma in the corners are stores, in which the captures are collected. Each player owns the ruma to his right.

Every row has six holes called pockets.

At the beginning, there are two, three or four red counters called balls in each pocket. Two are for beginners, four are recommended for experts.

Two-player Board

On his turn a player picks up the contents of one of his pockets and distributes the balls, one at a time, anticlockwise into the ensuing pockets and ruma, both his own ones and those of his opponent(s).

The last ball may not be dropped into an empty pocket. A move which would end in an empty pocket is not permitted.

A player must move if he can, but passes if he has nothing to play with. For each pass, he receives a penalty ball that is put into the row's corresponding furrow.

A player loses if he receives 12 penalty balls. He wins when he completely empties his row, but has less than 12 penalty points. Draws cannot occur.

Two-Person Ruma ends after one of the two winning conditions is achieved. The rules are not clear about what would happen in three- or four player games, when one player loses, because he has collected 12 penalty points. Perhaps he must continue to play until a winner is found.

References

Kraitchik, M. 

Mathematical Recreations. W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., New York (USA) 1942, 282-283.

© Wikimanqala.
By: Ralf Gering
Under the CC by-sa 2.5 license.