[1]United States Patent Office 31414,264 3,414,264 GAME APPARATUS wiTH BOARD HAVING DIFFERENTLY COLORED GAME PIECE PATHS Raymond L. Schriber, 16 Ferndale St., St. Paul, Minn. 55119 Filed Dec. 20, 1965, Ser. No. 514,938 2,Claims. (Cf. 273-134) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A -ame board havin- thereon a plurality of lengthwise exten@ding, parallel, side-by-side strips of different colors with each strip being arranged into a file of squares and each strip having at each end thereof a starting square and a counting scuare on which starting and counting pieces repose, each counting piece having a blank face with the opposite face being marked with indicia, the indicia on each of the counting pieces of each set of counting pieces being different from those of the other coun'tin- pieces of the same set and each set of counting pieces bavin.- the same indicia thereon, and dice having faces of colors matching the colors of the playing strips for governin.- the movement of the playing pieces from end to end of each playinstrip. This invention relates to a game and more particularly relates to a -,ime played on a game board wbich provides a unique combination of elements of chance. A primary object of the invention is to provide a game board apparatus which combines color coded playin- surfaces with movable playin.- pieces and fixed counting pi@3ces in a unique arran,@ement which provides for a quick and ready understanding of the objects to be achieved by the game and the manner of playing such that the game is playable by almost any age .-roup. A further object of this invention is to provide a gameapparatlis which provides a unique combination of fixed p'iayin.a pieces and movable playing pieces, the movement of each of the latter being confined to a color coded playing area and bein.- governed by the appearance of the proper color on a thrown die, dice, or other random color selection device, such as migbt be achieved by a dial surrounded by @i circle of different colored sectors. A still further object of the invention is to provide a game board apparatus which is particularly suitable to children of the a.-c group of from three to eight, and which provides a ready procedure to both leam simple addition and identify colors while providing entertainnient. In general, the .-ame apparatus comprising the invention includes a -ame board having a rectan-ular playing surface divided into six, parallel colored strips, wbich strips are divided into squares arranged in a file from one end of the board to the other. Associated with each colored strip are two movable playing pieces and two fixed countin- pieces, one of each at the opposite ends of each color s@rip. The game is ideally set up for two players, although potentially playable by any number of players up to twelve, six players on each side of the board. The fixed counting pieces are each numbered or otherwise provided with indicia on one surface to distinguish them in valtie from one another while being blank on the other surface, to conceal the indicia. Along with these pieces and the game board is included a pair of dice, each of which has the six faces thereof colored to correspond to the six colors of the playin- strips of the game board; while other random color selecting means than dice can be used, dice are preferred becatis,- they enhance the versatility of the game. Patented Dec. 3, 1968 2 The invention will be explained in more detail in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein: FIGURE 1 is a top view of the @-ame apparattis looking down on the game board with the game pieces in position ready to play the game. FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of one form wbich the movable pltying pieces may take; FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of one of the fixed countin.- pieces showing the opposite face thereof from 10 the face shown on FIGURE 1; and FIGURE 4 is a view in perspective of a pair of dice having colored rather than numbered face@, the roll or throw of which controls the action of the game. Referring first to FIGURE 1 of the drawing, there is 15 illustrated a conventional form of rectan.@ular game board 10 foldable into halves by a center hin,-e 12. Within the game board 10 on the top surface thereof there is provided a rectangular playing surface 14 com osed of six lengthwise extending, parallel strips 16, th e p strips bein., 20 illustrated an being of purple, blue, green, yellow, red, and brown colors respectively as viewed from left to right on the drawing. Of course, the colors may be varied as desired, the ones depicted being chosen for simplicity of illustration. Spaced parallel lines 18 extend across the rec25 tangular playing surface 14, parallel to the ends of the playing surface and uniformly spaced from one another, dividing each colored strip 16 into a file of colored squares 20. At each end of the rectangular playing surface 14 of 30 the board and spaced therefrom, the board is provided with a starting area 22 which comprises a transversely extendinrectangle, the width of which is the same as that of the rectangular playing surface 14, the length, however, being very short. Each of the starting areas 22 35 is divided into 6 strips 24, which are in effect extensions of the six playing strips 16. Transverse lirie 26 divides each starting area 22 into a rank of starting squares 28 adjacent to playing area 14 and immediately therebehind a rank of countinsquares 30, more rempte from the 40 playing surface 14. While the squares of the@ starting area are shown as being of a neutral uniform color, they may, of course, be colored to match the colored playin.- strips 16 with which the particular starting strip 24 corresponds. On each starting square 28 is placed a movable game 45 or playing piece 32 which while illustrated@as being of a color matching the playing strip with which it is associated, may be of a neutral color. There are two sets of playing pieces 32, one set at each end of the board with one playing piece 32 on each starting square 28 at each 50 end of each strip 16. On each counting square 30 at each end of the game board 10 is placed a counting piece 34 of a neutral color. There are two sets of counting pieces 34, one set at each end of the board. The counting pieces are in effect fixed 55 game pieces which remain on the counting squares 30 while the playing pieces 32 are moved along the playing strips 16 of the playing area 14 of the game board 10. While the counting pieces 34 at each end of the game board 10 are illustrated as having blank faces exposed, 60 as will be apparent from the description hereinafter the @ame may be played with the obverse faces of the counting pieces exposed. As illustrated in FIGURE 2, each playing piece 32 may be a simple flat disc. It may, however, be of any desired 65 configuration, the primary purpose of the shape being to distinguish the playing pieces 32 from the coi@ntin.- pieces 34. As illustrated in FIGURE 3, each counting piece 34 is simple rectangular flat piece or block, the front face of 70 which is provided with a number or other indicia 36 assi.-ning a value to the counting piece, the back face thereof being blank as illustrated in FIGURE 1. The in-
[2]3 dicia may be the ntimbers from I to 6 on the counting pieces of each set for convenience, or any other indication of value may be indicated on the face of the counting pieces 34, so long as each of the counting pieces of each set of counting pieces is provided with a different value than are the otber countin.@ pieces of the set. As illustrated in FIGURE I of the drawing, the playing pieces 32 and the counting pieces 34 are dimensioned to fit within the starting and counting squares 28 and 30, respectively. In order to govern the playin.- of the game, a pair of dice are preferably used, as illustrated in FIGURE 4, eacb die 38 having one of the colors of the playing strips 16 of the rectan-ular playing surface 14 of the board on each of the faces thereof. Playing the game with a pair of dice is preferable to other means, but a single die can be used, as well as a spinning type counter or other means which provides for a random selectioii of color at each player's turn. Assuming the .-ame is played by two players for simplicity of illustration, the first player throws the dice an(f moves each .@ame piece corresponding to the color of an exposed die face onto the first square of the playing strip 16 corresponding to the color. If both die faces are of the same color, the player moves two squares along the playing strip 16 corresponding to that color and gets another roll or throw of the dice. When a player's piece on a -iven colored strip 16 of the playing surface gets to the opponent's first square of that color at the opposite end of the rectangular playing sur@ face 14, then the opponent's piece on the same color strip is removed from the board, the player first reaching the square at the opposite end of the strip 16 capturing a piece of his opponent which is on that strip. This player also captures the counting piece of his opponent. The game is ended when each of the sLx playing strips 16 has been travelled from end to end by @ playing piece. The winner may be determined in a variety of ways, the most usual of which is to count a single point for each playing piece captured and the number of I>oints revealed on each counting piece captured, the player having the highest total number of points being the winner. Thus, the mere travelling from end to end of the strips with the playing pieces usually is not sufficient to win the game, but a second element of chance comes in depending upon the arrangement of the counting pieces made by the players at the ends of the board, since it enters into the total score. In the event there are more than two players and particularly when there are twelve players, six on each side, the random selection by each player of one of the counting pieces in the absence of knowledge on the part of the opponent of the value of the selected counting strip lends great interest to the game. 3,414,264 4 As will be noted from the description, the rules of the game are extremely simple ard readily grasped by a child. Yet, the game provides a combination of the elements of chance by the arrangement and kind of playing pieces which because of its simplicity and random selectivity, provides entertainment for all age groups. Also, the game ]ends itself ideally to ready adaptation as a horse racing, auto racing, or other imaginative game, being capable of a change in identification simply by changing the shape of 10 the playing pieces.
