How to Play Clobber
Clobber is a young game with an old feel: two colours of stones, one kind of move, and a finish that comes when someone runs out of options.
The board
A 5×6 board filled with thirty stones in a checkerboard: fifteen white, fifteen black. White moves first.
Moving
- Pick one of your stones that is orthogonally adjacent to an enemy stone.
- Move it onto that enemy stone, which is removed from the board. That is the whole move.
- You may never move onto an empty square or onto your own stone.
Ending
The player who cannot move on their turn loses. There are no draws.
Playing on kawu
Tap a stone, then the enemy stone to clobber. The line under the board counts how many moves each side has left. Hint shows the hard computer's move. Play either colour against three levels, or two players on one device.
Next: Clobber strategy.
Frequently asked questions
Can I move a stone into an empty square?
No. Every move must clobber: your stone moves only onto an adjacent enemy stone, which is removed. Empty squares are permanent gaps.
Why does the board start full?
So that every stone touches enemies at the start and the game is entirely about which stones you leave with moves. Clobber was invented in 2001 by Albert, Grossman and Nowakowski for exactly this kind of combinatorial play.
Last updated 2026-10-21