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Publish hipposcrocodiles rules from repository GAMEHELP.wiki
Publish hipposcrocodiles rules from repository GAMEHELP.wiki
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==Goal==
==Goal==


'''Hippos & Crocodiles''' is an abstract strategy game for 2 players designed by Néstor Romeral Andrés. The goal is to place animal pieces onto the board. If you cannot place a piece on your turn, you lose immediately; the last player to place a piece wins!
'''Hippos & Crocodiles''' is a 2-player spatial abstract strategy game designed by Néstor Romeral Andrés. Players take turns placing polyomino animal pieces onto the grid. If you cannot place an animal on your turn, you lose immediately; the last player to legally place a piece wins!


==Setup==
==Components==


* One player controls the '''Hippos''' (brown) and has 8 hippo pieces in reserve.
{| class="wikitable"
* The other player controls the '''Crocodiles''' (olive green) and has 8 crocodile pieces in reserve.
! Component !! Icon !! Description
* The game is played on one of four maps (table option '''Map'''; choose '''Random''' to have one of the four picked at random when the game starts):
|-
** '''Square''': 14×14 grid (196 squares), the default.
| '''Hippos''' || [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_hippo.png|28px|middle]] || 8 brown hippo pieces (each occupies 10 squares: a 3×3 body plus 1 snout cell).
** '''Rectangle''': 20×10 grid (200 squares).
|-
** '''Lagoon''': a meandering lagoon, 19 rows of 11 squares each, drifting right, centre, left, centre and right again from top to bottom (209 squares).
| '''Crocodiles''' || [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_crocodile.png|28px|middle]] || 8 olive-green crocodile pieces (each occupies 10 squares: a central 6-square spine with two leg pairs extending to width 3).
** '''Pool''': the round pool board, 16×16 grid with the corners cut off (208 squares).
|-
* Animals can only cover squares of the map: nothing may stick out over its edge.
| '''Trunks''' || [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_trunk.png|28px|middle]] || Optional 3×1 wooden log obstacles that block placement.
|-
| '''Maps''' || [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_map_square.png|28px|middle]] [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_map_rectangle.png|28px|middle]] [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_map_lagoon.png|28px|middle]] [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_map_pool.png|28px|middle]] || 4 distinct aquatic terrains: Square (14×14, 196 cells), Rectangle (20×10, 200 cells), Lagoon (209 cells), and Pool (208 cells).
|}


==Animal distribution==
==Setup==


Table option '''Animal distribution''':
* One player controls the [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_hippo.png|20px|middle]] '''Hippos''' (8 pieces); the other controls the [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_crocodile.png|20px|middle]] '''Crocodiles''' (8 pieces).
* '''Random''' (default): who plays the Hippos and who plays the Crocodiles is decided at random.
* The game takes place on the chosen map (Square [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_map_square.png|20px|middle]], Rectangle [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_map_rectangle.png|20px|middle]], Lagoon [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_map_lagoon.png|20px|middle]], or Pool [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_map_pool.png|20px|middle]]).
* '''First player plays Hippos''' / '''First player plays Crocodiles''': the player who starts gets that animal. When you start a rematch from the end of a game, BGA rotates the starting player, so the animals swap automatically (with '''Random''' the animals are drawn again).
* Pieces must remain entirely within grid boundaries and cannot overhang the map edge.
* '''Trunks (optional variant)''': If enabled, 4 log obstacles [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_trunk.png|20px|middle]] (3×1 squares) are placed before the first animal (either placed alternately by players or placed randomly). No piece may overlap a trunk.


==Difficulty==
==Your turn==


Table option '''Difficulty''':
On your turn, place one of your remaining animal pieces onto the board:
* '''Easy''' (default): the cells where the centre of the animal can go are highlighted on the board for its current direction.
* '''Hard''': no highlights and no counts. Place the animal where you think it fits; a spot that does not fit is shown in red and cannot be confirmed. If you cannot find a place for your animal, press '''Surrender''' (red button, with a confirmation): you lose the game immediately. In Easy mode there is no Surrender button: the game ends by itself when you have no legal move.


==Trunks (optional)==
# '''Pick position''': Tap any highlighted legal square on the board to preview your animal's pivot there.
# '''Rotate orientation''': Turn your piece into any of the 4 cardinal directions (0°, 90°, 180°, 270°) by clicking the grey '''↻ Rotate''' button in the action bar, pressing '''R''' on your keyboard, or tapping the preview piece directly.
# '''Confirm placement''': Click the blue '''Confirm''' button to lock in your move. Animals cannot overlap existing animals, trunks [[File:Hipposcrocodiles_trunk.png|20px|middle]], or the board edge.


Trunks are brown rectangles of 3×1 squares that act as obstacles: no animal can be placed on top of them. They can be placed horizontally or vertically, must fit completely inside the map and cannot overlap another trunk. The more trunks, the shorter the game. Table option '''Trunks''':
===Difficulty options===
* '''Off''': no trunks (default).
* '''Easy (default)''': All valid legal pivot cells are highlighted on the board for the current orientation.
* '''On - players place 2 each''': before the first animal, the players take turns placing trunks, the first player starting, until each has placed 2. Tap a square, press the grey '''↻ Rotate''' button in the Action Bar (or '''R''') to switch between horizontal and vertical, then '''Confirm'''.
* '''Hard''': No highlights are shown. If no legal placements remain, click the red '''Surrender''' button to concede.
* '''On - randomly placed''': 4 trunks are placed at random before the game, never touching each other, so that both players can still move.
 
==Animals==
 
Each animal occupies exactly 10 squares on the board:
* '''Hippo''': A 3×3 square body with a single protruding snout cell.
* '''Crocodile''': A central spine of 6 squares with two pairs of legs extending out to width 3.
 
==Your turn==
 
{| class="wikitable"
! # !! Action !! Description
|-
| 1 || '''Pick placement''' || Tap one of the highlighted squares on the board to preview your animal there. Animals can be placed in any of the 4 cardinal orientations (0°, 90°, 180°, 270°). The marked circle is the pivot: it stays on the same square when you rotate.
|-
| 2 || '''Rotate''' || Press the grey '''↻ Rotate''' button in the Action Bar (it also works before you pick a square: the highlighted squares follow the new orientation), or tap the previewed animal itself, to turn it a quarter turn clockwise. Orientations that do not fit are skipped in Easy mode. For a trunk, the same button switches between horizontal and vertical.
|-
| 3 || '''Confirm''' || Click '''Confirm''' to lock in your move, or '''Cancel''' to pick again. Animals cannot overlap each other or a trunk, or extend beyond the map.
|}


==Controls==
==End of the game==


* '''Tap / click''' a highlighted square to preview your animal there.
* The game ends immediately when the active player cannot legally place any of their remaining animal pieces onto the board.
* '''↻ Rotate''' (grey button in the Action Bar, before Confirm) or a tap on the previewed animal: turn it a quarter turn clockwise.
* That player loses, and the last player who successfully placed an animal wins the game!
* '''R''' rotates clockwise, '''Shift+R''' rotates back (keyboard).
* '''W''', '''A''', '''S''', '''D''' point the animal's head up, left, down or right.
* '''Confirm''' locks in the move, '''Cancel''' takes the preview back.
* With a mouse, move the pointer over a highlighted square to see a transparent preview of your animal with its pivot on that square.


==Game end==
==Controls on BGA==


* When an active player cannot place any of their remaining animals legally onto the board, that player loses immediately.
* '''Placement''': Tap or click a highlighted square to preview your piece.
* The other player is declared the winner!
* '''Rotation''': Click '''↻ Rotate''' in the action bar, press '''R''' (or '''Shift+R''' to reverse), or use keys '''W''', '''A''', '''S''', '''D''' to point up, left, down, or right.
* '''Confirm / Cancel''': Click blue '''Confirm''' to play the piece, or red '''Cancel''' to clear your staged preview.

Revision as of 11:33, 2 November 2026

Goal

Hippos & Crocodiles is a 2-player spatial abstract strategy game designed by Néstor Romeral Andrés. Players take turns placing polyomino animal pieces onto the grid. If you cannot place an animal on your turn, you lose immediately; the last player to legally place a piece wins!

Components

Component Icon Description
Hippos 8 brown hippo pieces (each occupies 10 squares: a 3×3 body plus 1 snout cell).
Crocodiles 8 olive-green crocodile pieces (each occupies 10 squares: a central 6-square spine with two leg pairs extending to width 3).
Trunks Optional 3×1 wooden log obstacles that block placement.
Maps 4 distinct aquatic terrains: Square (14×14, 196 cells), Rectangle (20×10, 200 cells), Lagoon (209 cells), and Pool (208 cells).

Setup

  • One player controls the Hippos (8 pieces); the other controls the Crocodiles (8 pieces).
  • The game takes place on the chosen map (Square , Rectangle , Lagoon , or Pool ).
  • Pieces must remain entirely within grid boundaries and cannot overhang the map edge.
  • Trunks (optional variant): If enabled, 4 log obstacles (3×1 squares) are placed before the first animal (either placed alternately by players or placed randomly). No piece may overlap a trunk.

Your turn

On your turn, place one of your remaining animal pieces onto the board:

  1. Pick position: Tap any highlighted legal square on the board to preview your animal's pivot there.
  2. Rotate orientation: Turn your piece into any of the 4 cardinal directions (0°, 90°, 180°, 270°) by clicking the grey ↻ Rotate button in the action bar, pressing R on your keyboard, or tapping the preview piece directly.
  3. Confirm placement: Click the blue Confirm button to lock in your move. Animals cannot overlap existing animals, trunks , or the board edge.

Difficulty options

  • Easy (default): All valid legal pivot cells are highlighted on the board for the current orientation.
  • Hard: No highlights are shown. If no legal placements remain, click the red Surrender button to concede.

End of the game

  • The game ends immediately when the active player cannot legally place any of their remaining animal pieces onto the board.
  • That player loses, and the last player who successfully placed an animal wins the game!

Controls on BGA

  • Placement: Tap or click a highlighted square to preview your piece.
  • Rotation: Click ↻ Rotate in the action bar, press R (or Shift+R to reverse), or use keys W, A, S, D to point up, left, down, or right.
  • Confirm / Cancel: Click blue Confirm to play the piece, or red Cancel to clear your staged preview.
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