81 blocks are placed on the board such that no two of the same color are orthogonally adjacent (diagonally adjacent is OK). There are 9 blocks in 9 different colors.

Players alternate turns taking blocks from the board according to the following rules:

1) Blocks may only be taken if they have at least 2 adjacent sides exposed (i.e. they are on a corner)
2) You must always take at least one block on your turn (You may not pass)

~ you may take as many blocks as you like on a turn, as long as they are all the same color

~ You are not required to take all of the available blocks of that color. You may opt to leave one or more behind

3) A block may not be taken if it would divide the remaining blocks into two separate groups (counting orthogonal connections only)

The blocks you collect are organized on a color table. The amount and location of the blocks on the color table matter for winning.

WINNING THE GAME

A player wins the game immediately if they achieve either of the following:

1) Collect all 9 blocks of one color
2) Collect at least 7 blocks of each of three colors that are adjacent on the color table

If neither player is able to accomplish either of these, the winner is the player with the majority of majorities (5 or more pieces in each of 5 or more colors).

(The color table does not "wrap around" - the two ends are NOT considered adjacent.)

13 COLOR VARIANT

In the expanded 13-color version, a player wins the game immediately if they achieve either of the following:

1) Collect all 13 blocks of one color
2) Collect at least 10 blocks of each of three colors that are adjacent on the color table

If neither player is able to accomplish either of these, the winner is the player with the majority of majorities (7 or more pieces in each of 7 or more colors).

HEXAGONAL VARIANT

The hexagonal variant is also 13 colors, but the pieces are arranged in a hexagon instead of a square. All the rules are the same, except that you may only take pieces if they have at least three adjacent sides exposed, not two.