So, yet another version of a quadrangular-board but Hex-style
connection game!


Though this may be the last one; the last of its family, anyway,
but I'm sure the ingenuity of gamers will extend further.

The current game belongs to the family represented by Mark Steere's
"Crossway", and my own "Quax" and "Quadrex".  It is most like
Crossway,
which I acknowledge in the name "Quickway", while keeping the Qu-
motif,
as for QUadrangular-connection games.

The games are all essentially the same, one side has to connect
the north and south edges, the other the east and west edges,
by orthogonal paths of stones, alternately placed.   Like Hex.

The differences arise by how to treat a "Cross-cut", "Stymie" or
"Impasse".

          .   .   .  O     More specifically, how to
treat     .   .   .   .
e.g.   X  X  O  .     the situation where 3/4 of             .  X
O  .
         .   O  X  .     a stymie has occurred...               .   ,
X   .
         .   O   .
X                                                          .   .   .   .

In Quadrex, the 4th point (,) is automatically filled as X;

In Quax, the 4th point may be played, then resolve cross-cuts by
allowing
either player to use a turn to mark in a diagonal, (these may not
cross).

In Crossway, the 4th point (,) is forbidden to O,

In Quickway, the diagonal connection between the 2 X's is filled in
             automaticaly, and the 4th point (,) may be filled by
either.


So Quickway is a kind of cross between Quax and Crossway, in that
the final board will look very like a Quax game, but the "Hane"
shown at the above right is a guaranteed connection for X.

As far as playing goes, I expect it is most like Crossway; the new
game
is just a variant of it. Although the diagonal connection between the
X's
is not marked in Crossway, it is effectively there.  Most games would
be
identical, with a very rare case of where O might want to fill that
4th point for some other reason.  It seems more natural to me
to allow him to do so.

As I say, I think this may be the final member of this family,
in that Mark and I seem to have covered every case of what to do
with a 3/4 stymie, regarding the status of the diagonal connection
and also the status of the 4th point.

                            status of fourth point

                  imposed       allowed     forbidden
                ________________________________
Diagonal: |                    |
|                    |
        auto |  quadrex     |  quickway    |  crossway   |
                |__________|__________|__________|
requires   |                    |
|                    |
     move  | (quadrex)    |    quax        | (crossway)  |
                |__________|__________|__________|

Very cute!

As always, a swap option on the 2nd half-turn is required for
equalization,
and the size of the board is an extra parameter.  The same size should
suit both Crossway and Quickway, which as I say are almost identical.
So...
________________________________________________________

QUICKWAY
========
Played on a square quadrangular board of arbitrary size.

Players alternately place one of their stones (an unlimited supply)
on any free cell of the board.  Once placed, a stone is not moved.

The goal is for one player to connect the north and south edges
by an orthogonal path of stones (perhaps augmented by diagonal lines),
and the other is to connect east and west.

When stones of the same colour occur on diagonally adjacent cells,
the corresponding diagonal line is automatically filled,
unless it would cross over a previously marked diagonal.
________________________________________________________

Have fun!

Bill Taylor,   (with due acknowledgements to Mark Steere).