Play Halma Online vs AI
Move All Nineteen Pieces
Getting one marble across the board looks like progress, but you win only when all nineteen reach the opposite camp. The marble still buried in your home corner often matters more than the one already near the finish. Keep useful marbles in place for later jumps, fill the deepest goal holes first, and leave the entrance open for the last few pieces. A long hop saves time only if the next marble can follow.
How Halma Works
Halma is a race played on a 16×16 square. In this two-player version, Red and Blue each start with nineteen marbles in opposite corner camps, and Red moves first. The first player to move all nineteen marbles into the opposite camp wins.
On each turn, move one marble to an adjacent empty hole or hop over a neighboring marble into the empty hole directly beyond it. You may chain several hops together and change direction along the way. You can hop over either player's marbles, and no pieces are captured.
Free the Back Row
The two players start in opposite corner camps, but the rest of the square remains open for travel. If you move only the outer marbles early, the back row can run out of exits. Even a strong hop chain up front may not bring those trapped pieces into play. At the other end, fill the point and deeper holes first so the last marbles can still get through the entrance.
Keep the Jump Ladder
A hop works only when a neighboring marble has an empty hole directly beyond it. Because a chain can turn, one marble may have several possible destinations. The longest route is not always the best one. Check whether the landing sets up another hop and whether the marbles already in place can still carry the back row forward. Stopping early may preserve the same route for two or three pieces behind it.
Play Against AI
Choose from multiple difficulty levels, then play first as Red or second as Blue. Hints suggest a move from the current position, and Undo lets you compare a different destination. The move history and replay preserve every hop and turning point. All game calculations run locally in your browser.
16×16opposite corner camps
19pieces per side
8neighboring directions per square
Fill itmove all nineteen marbles into goal
Questions
Is Halma the same game as Chinese checkers?
They're related, but not the same. Halma is played on a 16×16 square board, with two players starting from opposite corners. Chinese checkers came later and moved the same jumping idea onto a six-pointed star, with different camps and piece counts.
I have eighteen pieces in the goal camp. Why haven't I won?
You need all nineteen in, not most of them. Usually the last piece is still stuck back home, or one of your opponent's pieces is sitting in your goal camp. You can't capture or push it out, so you have to wait until it leaves. Fill the deep squares first so the last spots stay open.
Does jumping over a piece capture it?
No. Halma has no captures. The piece you jump stays where it is, and any piece of either color can be used as a stepping stone. That also means a piece your opponent just pushed into the middle may become your launch point next turn.
Do I have to keep jumping until I run out of jumps?
No. You can stop on any legal landing square along the way. Stopping early is often the better move, since a piece parked where it can help the back row is worth more than one that races ahead alone.
How should I open so I don't block myself in?
Don't rush the front piece across the board. Use the first few moves to spread the front row out, so the back pieces have somewhere to land and something to jump over. Moving as a group gets you there faster than sending one runner ahead.
How strong is the AI, and are hints stronger than the level I picked?
There are multiple AI levels, so start low while you get a feel for the jumps. Hints come from the same search as your current level, not a secret top setting. Treat them as a suggestion, not a guaranteed best move.
When should I use undo, and when should I use replay?
Use undo right after a move that feels wrong, then try a different landing square. Use replay once the game is over to step back through it and find where the back row got stuck or a jump chain broke.
Can I play blue and move second?
Yes. Red always moves first, so if you take blue the AI makes the opening move for red. Switching sides gives you a separate game, and the pieces on the current board don't carry over.
If I close the page mid-game, can I pick it up later?
Yes. Games against the AI are saved in this browser on this device, so the position is still there when you come back. A different phone or browser won't have it, and clearing this site's data deletes the save.
Do I need an account or an app?
Neither. Open the page on a phone or computer and start playing. The AI runs in your own browser. You can add the site to your home screen for quicker access, but you don't need to.
