Go: How does the game end?

[RocketManJames]

I tried playing Go for the first time in my life on Yahoo, and I simply don't get how the game ends. My friend who also has never played before also had no clue.

The only way for the game to finish was for us to both pass a few times in a row. We did this because after a gazillion moves, we had no idea what we were doing and kept filling up the empty spots.

All I could find on the net was that the game is over after 'boundaries were well defined'... but, say you are beginners and playing on Yahoo, how would you know when this was the case?

-RMJ

[ScottHoward v3.1]

it ends with me throwing the board across the room

[LuckayLuck]

I'm gonna let Neil S field this one (or someone else who can explain "well defined boundries" better than I)

[kokiri]

It's tricky to explain at first, but once you get the hang of it it becomes obvious. Simple answer: the game is over when you and your opponent agree on whether each spot on the board is alive, dead or someone's territory.


When the game nears the end, the board should contain 1) regions of either colour's territory, possibly containing 2) captured stones within them, then also 3) some neutral spots between the two territories and 4) some as-yet unfinished borders. For example in this diagram:



there is some white territory in the top-left, and on the bottom (the latter containing one captured stone);
black regions on the left and right;
a neutral spot in the middle (although consider what happens if black plays there);
and an open border in the botton right corner.

At this point you can either play to seal the borders, or try to invade into the territories to make a new live group.

Once the boundries are all sealed off, your only option left is invading to capture stones or make a live group. As you get more experienced, you will be able to see where it is/isn't possible, but at first you might as well try and see.

Like this:


Black 1 is in the 'neutral' spot between the two walls, which turns out not to be neutral and white has to defend
Black 3 seals off the final boundry, and white again has to defend.
Black 5 is an attempted invasion into white's area, which doesn't work.


Then, as a beginner, it's worth filling any remaining neutral spots between the two colours' walls. At that point, every spot on the board should either:
be filled with a live stone,
be empty and lying within a territory of one side or
a dead stone lying within the other side's territory.

Then you can both pass and score the game.

I hope that this is useful - the diagrams come from http://senseis.xmp.net/?ExampleGame which might be a helpful example, perhaps.

[RocketManJames]

[ QUOTE ]


there is some white territory in the top-left, and on the bottom (the latter containing one captured stone);
black regions on the left and right;
a neutral spot in the middle (although consider what happens if black plays there);
and an open border in the botton right corner.


[/ QUOTE ]

Hmmm... that was helpful, but I'm still quite confused. In the image above, how come black has a region on the right? I think I get that white has the upper-left region, and also the middle bottom region. I think I also get why black has the left region. But, the right side seems to have these gaps, so the boundary is ill-defined by black's pieces. So, how come black gets the right region?

So, one thing that is still weird to me is...

See how black has this diagonal wall across the board? How come that's not considered him taking the entire board? Seems that his pieces that form the diagonal wall with the help of the game board boundaries form 2 regions, left of the diagonal wall and right of the diagonal wall. So, in a weird sense, white's stones are commpletely engulfed by black.

I know that's obviously not right, but I'm having a difficult time visualizing why regions are as they are, etc. When I played with my friend on that Yahoo site, we kept filling in the inner spots and eventually giant regions got captured and stones were cleared out, which confused the heck out of us.

Any more insight?

-RMJ

[ScottHoward v3.1]

[ QUOTE ]


Hmmm... that was helpful, but I'm still quite confused.

[/ QUOTE ]
jusyt throw the borad across the room yo

[antidan444]

[ QUOTE ]
it ends with me throwing the board across the room

[/ QUOTE ]

So, about move 7, amirite?

(Don't worry, I throw mine across the room before move 3. I've done three tutorials now and I still don't have the slightest clue.)

[BobOjedaFan]

Go never ends actually. There is your answer.

[Neil S]

It ends when there are no more places on the board that can be played profitably, thus forcing players to pass.

[LuckayLuck]

[ QUOTE ]
It ends when there are no more places on the board that can be played profitably, thus forcing players to pass.

[/ QUOTE ]

to expand on this:


at some point in your go career, you're going to realize when a territory is "solidly yours" (it's when you have or can easily make two eyes, but I'll pass on the technical explanation on the eye thing for now). Now, when an opponent plays a stone in your solid territory which does not jeopardize it, you don't have to answer it, you can just pass.

This means that you "capture" the stone if your opponent then passes, meaning you get +1 point. This is why people won't place stones in your territory.

If you do place a stone in your territory along with your opponent, then you get +1 point for capturing the opponent's stone, but -1 point for making your territory smaller with your own stone, so if you kept placing stones in your territory alongside your opponent, then you'd breakeven.


basically, when you think you have a solid territory and your opponent keeps putting stones in it, then you get free points, and should welcome it. Learn when you have a solid territory, let your opponent place stones in it, and just keep passing for free points