ORIGIN OF PACHISI
Pichisi is a boardgame that originated in India. It is know by different names around the world. The name has its source from Hindi 'pachis' which means the number twenty five. In this game it is also the largest number that can be thrown with the cowrie shells. In the original set of game, sea shells were used instead of dice. These were called the cowrie shell. The number is obtained by throwing them and the total is counted by the shells apertures landing upward. The movement of the pieces is decided by this number.
Currently played board games of 'Ludo' and 'Parcheesi' are closely related to 'Pachisi.' But they are different in terms of their simplicity and the skill set required to play.
The game of Pachisi is played between four players, comprising of teams of two people each. A set of predefined colors of red and green for one team black and white for the other. Each player has four beehive shaped pieces. The pieces are arranged on a board in a shape of a cross. Three of the squares on each arm is highlighted by a cross - or other similar mark. The arms are divided into 3 adjacent columns comprising of 8 squares each. The highlighted box is considered 'the castle'.
Six cowrie shells are used to decide on the moves. The number pre-fixed by these shells are:
- 2 cowries with mouths up - 2
- 3 cowries with mouths up - 3
- 4 cowries with mouths up - 4
- 5 cowries with mouths up - 5
- 6 cowries with mouths up - 6 + grace
- 1 cowrie with mouths up - 10 + grace
- 0 cowries with mouths up - 25 + grace
Grace allows for a second throw by the same player.
