Macchleepak Saranee (mæʃlɪːpæk sərænɪː)

History

'Macchleepak Saranee', known outside of central Mathrava simply as 'the Stork Goes Fishing', is one of the most popular and wide-spread games among the citizens of Xetlan and also among the nations of the Kayamanan Peninsular. History claims that the game was first invented among the fishing communities that lived around the Dahmanee river around two hundred years ago. The story of its invention tells that a fisherman created the game for his children out of reeds and river pebbles, inspired after watching a river stork hunting the large salmon in the Dahmanee. The game proved popular with both his family and the community, and soon spread further as the river-folk carried it up and down to the larger towns along the Dahmanee.
Initially the game carried wide appeal to those who lived or worked on the water, such as fishermen, sailors and traders, but it wasn't long before its popularity spread across every level of society. Supposedly the noble class dismissed the game as a peasants pastime, until a curious sage of the Nishtava Sapan in Bandajor witnessed a group of children playing a game along the river bank. After requesting to join them and have them teach him the rules, the learned sage supposedly lost eight out of a total of nine games with the children. Upon returning to the Saphed Mandir, the sage introduced his peers to the game, and soon macchleepak saranee became popular among the educated and nobility as well. To this day, macchleepak saranee remains popular and game sets can be found in most households, both wealthy and poor alike, either simple and homemade, or elaborate and beautifully stylised.

Execution

The aim of macchleepak saranee is to move ones own game pieces, representing fish, from the centre of the game board to the end of one of the six game lanes. How many pieces, and how many spaces a player can move them, is determined by rolling two stylised dice. Once a player has finished moving all the pieces they can, the next player takes their turn and so on.
The game is complicated by the movement of a special marker, traditionally a small colourful streamer or ribbon, which represents a preying stork. Before a player moves their pieces, they must first roll a third unique dice that determines which of the six 'lanes' on the board the stork is hunting in. Every time the stork is moved, there is a chance that a player will be forced to remove one or more of their pieces that shared the same lane as the stork, representing the stork eating their fish. There are a number of regional variations and additional rules on how the stork can move and interact with the game pieces, but the basic premise remains the same throughout.
The player who manages to move the most of their game pieces off the board is the winner.

Components and tools

Sets of macchleepak saranee come in all manner of styles and designs, though all share the same components and layouts. Play takes place on a 'board' that is divided into six 'lanes' resembling a star, and the entire board is divided into squares. Traditionally this board would be made of wood, though some sets are made from alternative materials. Some boards are woven out of wool or flax like a carpet, with the additional benefit of being easily rolled up and carriable. A few rarer, more expensive sets are carved from marble or polished stone, though these are rather heavy.
Anything on hand can be used for the game pieces that each player uses to represent their fish. Cheaper sets will use simple painted pieces of wood, stone or clay, and one can even use things such as shells, seeds or some other on-hand material as a substitute, as long as each players pieces can be distinguished. The most expensive saranee sets will use pieces made of rare or expensive materials, such as glass, ivory, jade or even gem stones for those with perhaps more money than sense, and these pieces will likely come intricately decorated and stylised.
The final components of the game are the stork's marker and the three dice. The dice are usually basic and unremarkable, but many makers of macchleepak saranee like to embellish the stork marker to set their designs apart. Most common sets use a small flagpole design with a painted stork on it, or at their most basic a coloured ribbon or piece of string on a stick. More expensive markers can be more elaborately decorated and designed than royal insignia or military banners, and are works of art by themselves.

Primary Related Location

Xetlan