Mist

The féth fíada conceals the Tuatha Dė Danann as they watch over mortals, but it's also known to envelop those same mortals, who suddenly find themselves in the Otherworld, the dwelling place of the gods and the land of the dead. The fog conceals your actions from your foe, but if you are caught, retribution will be swift.

OVERVIEW

This Death Match takes place on a 5 by 5 by 5 hexagonal grid, with the very center being unplayable, for a total of 60 cells. Players will alternate turns, placing pieces on the board in order to form the largest group. However, the state of the board is not publicly known; it's shrouded in mist, and players must gain vision in order to see what's happening.

RULES

On a player's turn, they may place up to three pieces (of their own color) on any cell. You cannot place pieces adjacent to other pieces you played on the same turn.

You will gain vision around each piece you placed, depending on the total number of pieces you played this turn. The center unplayable cell does not block your vision in any way. You cannot place pieces next to other pieces you played on the same turn.

> One piece: 3 spaces away of vision

> Two pieces: 1 space away of vision

> Three pieces: 0 spaces away of vision (you only gain vision on the 3 spots you placed)

You are allowed to place zero pieces, but you gain zero vision for it; this is your default turn if you run out of time.

Your pieces will then be placed, but have a possibility of being destroyed. If that happens, you will be informed on which of your pieces were destroyed. There are two ways for pieces to be destroyed, which are processed in this order:

> If your opponent spots you place down multiple pieces, those pieces are destroyed. A piece is spotted if an opponent's piece has vision of it.

> If a piece is placed on top of an existing piece, the new piece is destroyed.

Destroyed pieces still give vision but cannot spot opponent pieces.

Your vision lasts until just after your opponent places down their pieces. You will see where their pieces are placed within your field of vision, be informed which (if any) were destroyed, then your vision will disappear.

WINNING

The game ends when the grid is completely filled, or a player's victory is guaranteed no matter the sequence of remaining moves.

The winner of the DM is whoever has the largest connected group of their pieces (the center cell does not count towards either players' pieces). In the case of a tie, each players' second largest group is compared, and so on; if this is somehow a tie, the DMO, RedsToad, will win.

TURNS

Before the DM begins, both players should agree on which colors they would like their pieces to be. Additionally, the DMO, RedsToad, will publicly select the player to go first within the next 24 hours.

The player going first can only place up to two pieces and will have their first move publicized. Additionally, for the second player's very first turn, they may invoke the pie rule instead of making their move. The pieces on the board will swap color, and then it will be the original first player's turn again. (This is the same as the second player deciding that they want to be the first player, and making the same moves as the first player, but with their own colored pieces.)

Each player will get 1 minute to make their move, plus an additional 5 minutes of reserve time. If you run out of time, you will go into reserve time; if you have no more reserve time, you will automatically skip your turn (you will place down zero pieces and gain zero vision). Your final submission before your minute is up will be taken; your first submission when reserve time begins will be taken.

On your turn, you will receive a board that has cells you have no vision of grayed out, with all other cells you have vision of having their contents. It is up to each player to keep track of pieces they may have seen in the past but no longer have vision of anymore.

RESTRICTIONS

There are no special restrictions for this DM. You may use anything you want (e.g. pencil and paper, a spreadsheet) to take notes. You may not use any automated software.