Four Treasures - Doubles

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TARA - FOUR TREASURES

Doubles

This variant is exactly the same as the singles game, except for the rules below.

4 Players

A match comprises four games, each player taking turns to start. The partnership with most points after four games wins the match.

You now play in pairs. Each player sits opposite their partner with the empty board set squarely between them.

Each player is now limited to playing just in the first four rows of the board nearest themselves. Because there are seven rows, it means that the row furthest away from each player (the fourth and middle row) will become a shared row between each partnership, figs. 1a & b. Note: enemy shared rows will cross each other on the central hill.
Play continues clockwise.
When you build on the shared row, you still link to your partner's ringforts in your partner's area.

fig. 1a: The Red territories meet in the middle shared row.

fig. 1b: The Blue territories meet in the middle shared row.

If one partner besieges an enemy ringfort which is within their partner's area, the partner must complete the capture on their next turn.

The first player to not have a turn calls "OUT". The other three players then just have one more turn each before the game ends.
Note: it is possible for a doubles game to finish without completely filling the board, although extremely rare.

The game is scored the same as singles; you win or lose as a team.
However, if both partnerships have the same number of bridges and the same territory (there must be an odd number of vacant hills left) the game is drawn and each partnership scores just 1 point.