I decided to further explore the game Juniper Green, which was introduced to me while studying at the University of Manitoba. I was expecting many websites full of information, but was disappointed to only find a few with the same information repeated. There was one site by Ian Stewart on Juniper Green, which was informative, insightful and strategically helpful.
He begins with an introduction on how to play the game, and then moves to some basic strategies. He shows how planning your moves ahead can win you the game. The key is the number one. If a person chooses one, then their opponent will choose a prime number and the game is over as there are no more numbers to choose from as divisors. So, how do I make my opponent choose one? He shows a few scenarios of how to do this.
Ian also explains a few ways not to play so that you can play longer. For example, if your opponent chooses a prime number, you can pick a multiple of that prime (if available), forcing your opponent to choose one… so be careful of strategy. (Ex. In Juniper 50, they choose 7, you choose 49, and they are left with 1.)
The size of the board will determine what numbers are good and bad to pic. In Juniper 40, the number 7 picked would prompt the next move to be 14, 21, 28, or 35. Looking at the board and what is available you would strategize the next move. Perhaps there is no 5 left… then 35 is a good pick. If there is no three, then 21 is a good choice.
This game is very interesting as it challenges minds young and old. The rules are simple and yet, you can make the game harder by playing with more numbers, such as Juniper 100 or Juniper 1000. A very versatile tool for the classroom.
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