In this instructable, I will show you how to make Figure 8 Mancala. It takes a classic coffee table game and puts a fun, inventive twist on it. The special rules are in the last step.

Supplies

For this project, you will need:

2x 1' by 3' by 1" Boards

52x Vase Filler beads. It doesn't matter what color the beads are for gameplay, so I just used different colors for the aesthetic. You can get these a dollar stores very cheaply. Of course, the pieces can be made out of whatever else you want.

Tools:

Pencil

Compass

Paper

Rubber Cement

Drill or Drill press

Step 1: Make a Template for the Holes

This is where your compass, pencil, and paper will come in handy.

This doesn't all have to be done on the same piece of paper if you don't have a big enough one.

First, we need to make the houses. Measure 11 holes which are 2.5" in diameter onto the paper.

Second, we will make the holes to turn the board into a figure 8. These are decorative, so you can skip these if you want. These should be 4.5" in diameter.

Third, we need to make the stores. These are a little bit harder to measure. Mark 2 x's 2 inches apart. Use these x's as the center points for two more 2.5" diameter circles. Connect these circles together at their widest points (see the picture for how they should look). You will need to make two of these.

Cut out all of the circles.

Step 2: Mark the Board

The first thing you want to do is measure where the middle of your top board is lengthwise and draw a line down it.

Center the 2 4.5" circles, the 2 stores, and one of the houses all on this center line like in the picture.

Arrange the rest of the houses in the pattern above so that they are about evenly spaced.

We tried to plot where each of these go with measurements, but found that if you eyeball it will be pretty good and take a lot less time.

Glue these circles in place.

Step 3: Drilling Time

Drill the paper circles out.

Step 4: Glue the Boards Together

Take your two boards and glue them together.

Step 5: Cut the Triangles

Cut a triangle on each side of the middle hole. The triangles should be 3x3x4.25"

Step 6: Finished and Rules

Finished!

The rules for this specific version of mancala are relatively straight forward.

See the diagram above for the flow of play. It works like normal kalah mancala (the normal version played in Europe/North America) with the exception of the center hole. Both players use the center hole as one of their holes. This adds the fun mechanism of being able to steal the other player's pieces on "their" side of the board, but be careful, your opponent can do the same to you.