How to Play Senet - Sticks, Walls, and House 26
Both sides start on the first row. The live board enforces one reconstructed set: sticks from 1 to 5, walls of two, a mandatory stop on 26, and water that can send a piece back.
You start already mixed
Light starts on 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and dark on 2, 4, 6, 8, 10. The path folds across three rows of ten: 1–10 left to right, 11–20 back the other way, 21–30 left to right again. The first legal 1 is often a swap, not a simple advance.
Four sticks, never a zero
Each throw uses four sticks. Marked faces add to 1–4; four blanks score 5. There is no blank throw that skips your turn. Spend the whole number on one piece. You pass only when that number has no legal landing — a wall in the way, no exact hit on 26, or water with nowhere to return.
A pair is a wall; a singleton can swap
Two or more consecutive enemy pieces block landing and passing. A single enemy piece swaps with you when you land on it, except on houses 15 and 26, which are safe. Your own pieces never stack. That wall is the main weapon of this reconstruction, and the live board will not let you walk through it.
House 26, water, extra turns
Pieces still on 1–25 cannot skip 26. House 27 is water: that piece goes to 15 if 15 is free of your own stone and of a protected enemy. A throw of 1, 4, or 5 that actually moves grants another turn. Get all five pieces off on exact remaining counts to win.
One reconstructed set, enforced
Egypt left boards and pictures, not one agreed law. This site uses a Kendall-family reconstruction so two players — and the AI — share the same complete game. Illegal skips never happen here. Open the board, pass a device, or send a room link.
Rules FAQ
- Is this the only historical way to play senet?
- No. Other reconstructions exist, and ancient play may have differed by period. This page keeps one complete Kendall-family set because it is playable, widely taught, and fair when two people meet online.
- Do four blank sticks pass the turn?
- No. Four blanks score 5, the longest step. You pass only when that 5 — or any other total — has no legal square.
- When do I get another turn?
- After a real move on a throw of 1, 4, or 5. A lucky throw with nothing legal still passes. The bonus comes from the sticks, not from landing on squares numbered 1, 4, or 5.
- Can I skip house 26 with a large throw?
- No. The board refuses it. From 26 you then need an exact remaining count to visit 27–30 or to leave.
- Can I play with a friend on this site?
- Yes. Open a room from the game page and share the invite link, or pass one device. Four AI levels are there when you want to practice walls and the stop on 26 alone.
Try it on a live board
Play one game just to feel the first-row swaps, then another watching whether a wall on the middle row matters more than a lonely leader. The AI will not let you skip 26 by accident.