__NOTOC__ ''Terrace'' is a

strategy game A strategy game or strategic game is a game (e.g. a board game) in which the players' uncoerced, and often autonomous, decision-making skills have a high significance in determining the outcome. Almost all strategy games require internal decisio ...

played by two, three, or four players on a multi-leveled 8×8 (or, more recently, 6×6) board. It is most widely known for also being a

prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct ...

in the American television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation''. There are also computer versions of the game.

Rules

The game board for ''Terrace'' has either 64 or 36 squares of uniform color, arranged in L-shaped levels ("terraces") that rise stepwise from the board's lowest points in two diagonally opposite corners to its highest points in the other two corners. All pieces are shaped alike and move according to the same rules, but they are of four different sizes and vary in capturing "power." One of each player's smallest pieces has the letter "T" carved into it and has a role somewhat similar to the king in chess. The object is to win either by moving your "T" piece from its starting point at one corner to an opposite corner, or by capturing your opponent's "T". Players can move any number of squares on the same terrace, and are allowed to jump over their own pieces. Players can move up a terrace by either going straight up or diagonally up. Players can move down a terrace by going straight down. Opponent's pieces, and even one's own pieces, may be captured by moving diagonally down. Pieces may only capture those of equal or lesser size. It is courteous to say 'Terrace' when the opponent's "T" piece is placed in jeopardy of being caught the next turn; "Terrace-Mate" should be said when the opponent's "T" piece cannot escape. In 3 and 4 player games, when a player loses his or her "T", all of their pieces are removed from the board; other players continue the game. If a player cannot make a move during his or her turn, the game is a draw, with no winner or loser.

History

The original 8×8 game of ''Terrace'' was invented in 1950 by Dutch-born Anton Dresden (September 8, 1915 - July 3, 2006), with rules that "proved unworkable"; in 1988, while living in

Lake Oswego, Oregon Lake Oswego () is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon, primarily in Clackamas County, with small portions extending into neighboring Multnomah and Washington counties. Located about south of Portland and surrounding the Oswego Lake, the town was ...

, Dresden showed his game to Buzz Siler, who bought the rights to Dresden's design for $100 and, over time, created a simplified set of rules. After the game was introduced in 1991, ''Terrace'' won a number of major awards and was subsequently featured on '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' as a permanent prop. In 1997, a revised version was introduced, with the board changed to 36 squares, with 12 pieces per player instead of 16. Two rows separate the two players' pieces, instead of four. The change came about because of legal problems with the owners of the molds to the original version of the game.

Awards

* Best New

Abstract Strategy Game Abstract strategy games admit a number of definitions which distinguish these from strategy games in general, mostly involving no or minimal narrative theme, outcomes determined only by player choice (with no randomness), and perfect information. ...

(''

Games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

'' magazine, 1992) * Best New Mind Game (

Mensa International Mensa is the largest and oldest high-IQ society in the world. It is a non-profit organisation open to people who score at the 98th percentile or higher on a standardised, supervised IQ or other approved intelligence test. Mensa formally compr ...

) *

Bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

Industrial Design Industrial design is a process of design applied to physical Product (business), products that are to be manufactured by mass production. It is the creative act of determining and defining a product's form and features, which takes place in advan ...

Excellence Award (

Industrial Designers Society of America The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) is a membership-based not-for-profit organization that promotes the practice and education of industrial design. The organization was formally established in 1965 by the collaborative merger of t ...

, 1992)

References

External links

* * {{Memory Alpha, Terrace Board games introduced in 1991 Abstract strategy games Mensa Select winners Star Trek: The Next Generation