Board games
Go
- players
- 2
- minutes
- 45-120
- years
- 8+
In the box
1 goban of 19 × 19 lines · Black and white stones
Official rules (federation's site)
Box details
- Origin
- Traditional game, with no specific designer or publisher
- Mechanics
- Area MajorityChainingEnclosurePattern BuildingPattern Recognition
Where to buy it
Near you
In a shop
Within 50 km.
The basics
The aim is to surround more territory than your opponent. Black starts, then each player in turn places a stone on an empty intersection or passes; a chain whose liberties are all occupied by the opponent is captured, and ko forbids an immediate retake that would restore the previous position. After two passes in a row, the players remove the dead stones by agreement and count: under the French rules, your stones on the goban and the intersections you surround, plus 7.5 komi for White; the higher total wins.
Checked against the official rules · October 2026
The rules, step by step
Setup
19 × 19 goban, Black starts, Komi 7.5 for White
- A goban of 19 lines by 19, that is 361 intersections; 13x13 or 9x9 for learning or a quick game.
- Black plays first; then each player in turn places a stone or passes.
- White receives compensation points for the first-move advantage, komi: 7.5 under the French rules, 6.5 under the Japanese rules.
- Handicap game: the weaker player takes Black and places several stones in advance, traditionally on the star points, then White plays; komi then drops to half a point, to which the French rules add one point per handicap stone beyond the first.
How to play
Place or pass, No liberty: captured, Ko rule
- You place your stone on an empty intersection; it never moves again unless it is captured.
- Stones of the same colour joined along the lines form a chain. When the opponent occupies all its liberties, the empty intersections touching it, the chain is captured and removed from the goban.
- You cannot place a stone that would be left with no liberty, unless it captures.
- Ko: you cannot immediately recapture a stone that has just captured a single one of yours, which would restore the previous position; you must play elsewhere first. The French, Chinese and American rules go further and forbid recreating a position already seen; the Japanese rules stop at ko, but a repeated position can lead to a game with no result if both players agree.
- You may pass; two passes in a row stop the game.
Scoring
Stones on the goban, Surrounded intersections, 7.5 komi added to White
- French rules, like the Chinese: each player counts their stones on the goban and the empty intersections they surround. White adds 7.5 komi; the higher total wins.
- Japanese rules: each player counts their territory, the empty intersections they surround, plus their prisoners, that is captured stones and dead stones removed at the end. White adds 6.5 komi.
- The two counts nearly always give the same margin. If each player hands the opponent a stone whenever they pass, White passing last, territory counting gives exactly the same margin as counting stones: this is the quick method of the French rules, and the AGA’s.
- The half point of komi rules out a tie. Intersections that nobody surrounds count for nobody, except under the 1988 Chinese rules, which split them half and half.
- In Marquoir, one line per game: enter Black’s final total and White’s, with komi added for White, including the half point. The ruleset chosen at the start recalls its count and its komi.
End of the game
2 passes in a row, Dead stones removed, Higher total
- The game stops after two passes in a row, or when a player resigns.
- The players then remove the dead stones by mutual agreement, those that would surely be captured, and count.
- If they disagree, play resumes where it stopped, until play has settled the dispute; under the French rules, the stones still on the goban then count as they stand.
House rules and pitfalls
Go rulesets differ from country to country on the count and the komi, very rarely on the winner.
- Go rulesets differ from country to country on the count and the komi, very rarely on the winner. This page follows the French Go Federation’s rules and gives the essentials of the Japanese rules.
- Komi: 7.5 under the French rules and for the AGA, and in China today, where the 1988 text set 5.5; 6.5 under the Japanese rules, whose 1989 text gives no figure.
- Handicap: White only receives half a point; when stones on the board are counted, under the French rules as for the AGA, White also receives one point per handicap stone beyond the first.
- A group with two eyes, two separate empty spaces inside it, can never be captured: keeping your groups alive is the basis of the game.
Going further
Variants · Frequently asked questions · In the same family
Variants
Board size
9x9
A beginner's game, about twenty minutes.
13x13
19x19
Tournament format.
Ruleset
French rules
The French Go Federation’s rules: stones on the board plus surrounded intersections, 7.5 komi for White.
Japanese rules
Territory plus prisoners, 6.5 komi for White.
Chinese rules
Stones on the board plus surrounded intersections, 7.5 komi for White.
American rules (AGA)
7.5 komi and a stone handed over at each pass: counted by territory or by area, the result is the same.
choose them when you start a game: the scorer adapts
Frequently asked questions
What is the goal?
Control more territory than your opponent by surrounding empty areas with your stones. You play on the intersections, not in the squares.
How do you capture stones?
By occupying all their liberties, the empty intersections touching them. A stone or chain completely surrounded is removed from the goban.
What is a living group?
A group with two eyes, two separate empty spaces inside it, can never be captured: the opponent cannot fill both at once. Keeping your groups alive is fundamental.
What is ko?
A rule against loops: you cannot immediately recapture the stone that has just captured one of yours, which would recreate the previous position. You must play elsewhere first.
How do you count at the end?
Under the French and Chinese rules: stones on the goban plus surrounded empty intersections, and 7.5 komi for White. Under the Japanese rules: territory plus prisoners, and 6.5 komi. The higher total wins.
How do you record a game in the counter?
One line per game: Black’s final total and White’s, komi included for White. The counter accepts half points, and the higher total wins.