Gomoku also known as Five in a Row is played on a 15x15 Go board with the objective of connecting 5 pieces in a row. Play Gomoku online against other players.
Connecting to server...
Turn Timer: --
Player X Total Time: --
Player O Total Time: --
Gomoku is a two player strategy board game where the objective is to be the first player to connect five stones in a line either horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.
The game is typically played on a 15x15 grid although you can play on a Go board which has a standard size of 19x19 with stones placed on the intersections of the vertical and horizontal lines.
While the rules are simple, there is much depth to the game as players need to balance both building their own winning lines while blocking their opponents attempts to win.
Gomoku comes from Japanese which translates to "five points" or "five pieces" which expalins why it is commonly known as "five in a row."
Let's go over how to play Gomoku starting with what you need, the objective of the game, the rules on how to play as well as some tips on how to win.
Gomoku is played on a grid typically of size 15x15 or 19x19 which is counted as the number of intersections horizontally and vertically. Many play Gomoku on a Go (Baduk) board as they are typically 19x19 in size. If you do not have a board available, you can play on paper by making a grid of these dimensions. The board size on Gomokufive is 15x15 which is typically what you will find on online boards.
If you are using a Go set to play Gomoku you can use the stones as the pieces for the player as you will need two different colors. You can really use anything to mark your moves as long as you can differentiate between the difference pieces for each player.
Start with an empty board or grid to begin play. The player with the black stones traditionally goes first. Start by placing a stone on any empty intersection of the grid on the board. The next player will place a stone on an empty intersection of the board and this will alternate back and forth until the game ends.
The first player to complete a continuous line of five stones either horizontally, vertically or diagonally wins the game. If there are no continuous lines of five and all of the spaces have been used on the board then the game results in a draw between the two players.
That completes the rules to Gomoku, if you want to test you skills online against real players, start a game above.
A strong advantage is given to the player who goes first in Gomoku.
There are various Gomoku variants that have been created to address balancing issues as well as introduce strategic elements into the game. Some of the popular variants include Renju, Pente, Connect6, Caro (or Gomoku with blocking rule) and Ninuki-Renju / Wu.
To address the advantage that is given to the first player, the Swap2 opening protocol is used especially in competitive Gomoku tournaments. The game starts off in a similar fashion with the first player placing a black stone anywhere on the board. The second player now has a few options which include playing normally, swaping stones so they are now black or placing two more stones so there are now two black and one white stone on the board and offering the choice of colors to player one.