Alkkagi

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Alkkagi is an ancient two-player game. Stones sit on a board and players flick them with a finger to knock the opponent’s stones off the board. A Chinese version called Tanqi was played by emperors from the Han to the Tang dynasties; in Korea it appeared in the Goryeo period. The game became popular again after comedian Choi Yang-rak showed a match on Comedy.com, and public competitions are common now.

How to play: The goal is to flick your stones so they push the opponent’s stones off. Depending on the flick, you can knock away two or more stones (called iltaipi), fail to push any, or have your own stone fall off. On TV, this is called “kkwak” (often called suicide in older terms). Sometimes both players’ stones fall off at once (mutual suicide, non-gaetabeop). Stones can also get stuck next to the opponent’s stones, a situation called “tteok.”

Boards and stones: The game is usually played on a Baduk (Go) board with Go stones, but you can also play on a Janggi (Korean chess) board with Janggi stones, which is then called Janggi-alkkagi. Go stones are round; Janggi stones are octagonal, which changes how they collide. There are three sizes of Janggi stones, allowing more strategies. A foldable board with a Janggi back adds another variable, like a hinge.

TV appearances: In the show In the Soop: Friendcation, Episode 1, Seojun, V and Peakboy play alkkagi. They decide who goes first with Rock-Paper-Scissors, and in a final round Peakboy and V start with only three stones. Alkkagi has appeared in other TV shows as well.