How to play Nim
Nim is a game for two players with a few piles of small things. On your turn you take some from one pile. Whoever takes the very last one wins.
- Ages 6+
- 2 players
- About 5 minutes
- You need: about twelve small things: coins, buttons, dried beans or crayons, or a pencil and paper to draw lines
Easy rules, to read aloud
- Make three piles: three, four and five things.
- On your turn, pick one pile.
- Take as many as you like from it, at least one.
- Then it is the other player's turn.
- Whoever takes the last one wins!
The full rules
- Set out three piles of small things: three in the first, four in the second and five in the third. Lines drawn on paper work too.
- Decide who goes first.
- On your turn, choose one pile and take away at least one thing from it. You may take the whole pile, but only from one pile per turn.
- Take turns. You may not pass.
- When a pile is empty, it is out of the game. Keep playing with the piles that are left.
- The player who takes the very last thing on the table wins.
How to win: Whoever takes the last thing wins. In the other way to play, called misère, whoever takes the last thing loses.
Tips
- Near the end, try to leave two piles the same size: whatever the other player takes, you can copy them on the other pile.
- Never leave just one pile with more than one thing in it, or the other player takes it all.
What it practises
counting, taking away, thinking ahead.
Other ways to play
- Misère. Whoever takes the last thing loses, so you want to leave it for the other player.
- Bigger piles. Play with four piles, or put more in each one. The game gets harder to plan.
- One pile. One pile of fifteen, and you may take only one, two or three on a turn.
About the game
Its name comes from Charles L. Bouton of Harvard University, who worked out how to win it in 1901.
The age is our own suggestion: Peabody's suggestion (counting and taking turns; the Wikipedia page gives no age). Sources we read: Wikipedia: Nim. Every word here is Peabody's own. Checked .