Bagh Chal
tigers & goats · nepal

Bagh Chal — Tigers & Goats Online

Nepal's national board game — can the goats trap all four tigers?

About Bagh Chal

Bagh Chal (बाघचाल) — literally "tiger movement" in Nepali — is the national board game of Nepal. Boards are carved into temple courtyards and house verandahs across the Himalayas, and the game is still played in village squares today. It belongs to the same ancient family as the South Indian Aadu Puli Aatam, though the boards differ significantly.

The game is beautifully asymmetric. Four tigers hunt up to twenty goats, capturing them by jumping over them as in checkers. The tigers start at the four corners and can move and capture from the very first turn. The goats start off the board and are placed one at a time — they cannot move until all twenty are placed.

The board is a 5×5 grid of 25 nodes connected by orthogonal (horizontal and vertical) lines and selective diagonal lines. Diagonals exist only at nodes where the row and column numbers sum to an even number — giving the board its characteristic cross-hatched appearance. This means not every node allows diagonal movement, which creates rich strategic depth.

Tigers win by capturing 5 goats. Goats win by surrounding all four tigers so none can move. Once all goats are placed, no move may repeat a previous board position — preventing indefinite stalling.

How to play Bagh Chal

Nepal's tigers-and-goats game: four tigers try to capture five goats; twenty goats try to trap every tiger.

The rules

  1. A 5×5 grid of 25 points joined by lines. The four tigers start on the corners; the 20 goats start off the board.
  2. Goats are placed one per turn; they cannot move until all 20 are on the board.
  3. Pieces move one step along a line. Tigers capture by jumping over a goat to an empty point directly beyond.
  4. Tigers win by capturing 5 goats. Goats win by blocking every tiger so none can move.
  5. Once all goats are placed, a move may not repeat an earlier board position.

Playing here

  1. Choose vs Computer or vs Friend, your side and a difficulty, then press Start Game.
  2. Goats: click an empty point to place a goat; after all 20 are placed, click a goat and then where to move it.
  3. Tigers: click a tiger and then a point to move to, or the point beyond a goat to capture it.
  4. Replay the whole game afterwards.

Tips

The full guide, with a worked example and common mistakes: How to play Bagh Chal.

Questions

Who usually wins Bagh Chal?

With perfect play the game is a draw; in practice, careful goats win more often against beginners.

How is it different from Lambs and Tigers?

Lambs and Tigers uses a triangular board with three tigers and fifteen lambs; Bagh Chal uses a square grid with four tigers and twenty goats.

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