GAME RULES

Carrom is like pool billiard played with fingers. But

in Carrom you flick and slide wooden discs on a
high gloss square field. Try to pocket your discs
in the corner holes and collect extra points by
pocketing the red disc (queen).

If you’d like to try yourself in a great game of skills,

Carrom is for you!

Players Age Time

2/4 8+ 30-60’

www.carrom.world
1. INTRODUCTION
Carrom is a strike-and-pocket table game originating A
from India, for 2 or 4 players. The objective of play is
to use a larger disc – the so-called striker – to pocket
the lighter objective discs, or carrom-men into one of B
four corner pockets. The game has many variants, some
of them providing easier rules suitable for families or
group of friends, while other game modes require more
advanced skills. The most common game variants –
including the official tournament rules – are explained C
in this rulebook.

2. CONTENTS OF THE SET

• Game board
• 1 striker disc D
• 9 black carrom-men
• 9 white carrom-men
• 1 queen (red disc) A rall C center circle
• 1 glisspowder B shooting lines D corner pocket
• 1 wax set

3. THE GAME
In this section, we explain the simple carrom rules.
Other game variants are explained in the next section.
This game variant is suitable for 2 players. The aim is to
pocket your carrom-men before your opponent, while
also pocketing and covering the queen for bonus points.

SET-UP

All 19 carrom-men (9 white, 9 black, 1 queen) have to be

set up in the center circle. To begin, the Queen is placed
in the centre of the board.

Six pieces are put around the Queen directly in a

circle, each touching the Queen and their neighbours.
The remaining twelve pieces are positioned around
the inner circle of six pieces, so that each outer piece
touches the inner circle. Both circles should have the
pieces alternating in colour. The two circles are oriented
so that the Queen, a white piece from the inner circle
and a white piece from the outer circle lie in a straight
line pointing towards the center of the side of the board
where the player who will play first is sitting.

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CHOOSING FIRST PLAYER the same or subsequent strike. If you fail to do so, the
queen is returned to the center of the table.
The players now have to choose the first player, who will
be the white player. The official way to choose is called After the queen is covered, whoever clears their pieces
the „toss”: an umpire hides a carrom-men in one of his first wins the board.
hands, and the players have to guess which hand he’s
hidden it. The player who guesses correctly becomes the If you sink your opponent’s piece, you lose your turn. If
first player, or now has the opportunity to change sides you sink their last piece, you lose the board and three
from white to black and give up the opening shot. points.

GAMEPLAY If you sink your last piece before the queen, you lose
the board, three points and one point for each of your
q Shooting: opponent’s pieces left.

The players have to use their striker – the larger disc – to Sinking the striker costs you one piece and your turn.
shoot their carrom-men into the pockets. But, if you sink a piece in the same shot, then two come
up and you shoot again.
When placing the striker on the board to shoot, the
striker must touch both shooting lines, either covering After sinking the striker, your opponent places the due
the circle at the end of the lines completely, or not piece(s) within the center circle. If you haven’t sunk one
touching it at all. The striker may not touch the diagonal yet, you owe one.
arrow line.
q Scoring:

The winner of the board scores one point for each of the
opponent’s carrom-men still left on the board.

If the winner pocketed and covered the queen, he scores

three additional points.

If the loser pocketed and covered the queen, no one

The players may use any of their fingers, including their scores the extra points.
thumb for shooting. However, no parts of the players’
body except their hands may cross the diagonal line or q Miscellaneous rules:
its imaginary extension.
If a piece jumps off the board, it is placed on the center
q Pocketing: spot. If pieces land on end or are overlapping, they are
left that way.
If you pocket one of your carrom-men, you are entitled
to shoot again. If the center spot is partially covered when replacing
the queen or a jumped piece, the piece should cover
The queen (the red piece) can be pocketed any time after as much red as possible. If totally covered, the piece is
pocketing your first carrom-men, and must be pocketed placed opposite the next player behind the red spot.
before you pocket your last piece.
If the striker does not leave both lines, go again. You get
After pocketing the queen, you must immediately three tries to break before losing your turn.
„cover” it by pocketing one of your own carrom-men in

LET THE FLICKING BEGIN!

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4. GAME VARIANTS
TEAM CARROM (4 PLAYERS) POINT CARROM (2-3-4 PLAYERS)
The rules are the same as above, with the 4 players A variant of family point carrom, gameplay is mostly the
forming two teams. Teammates sit opposite of eachother, same with a few exceptions:
and turn goes around in clockwise order.
• Both black and white carrom men are worth­
FAMILY POINT CARROM (2-3-4 PLAYERS) 1 points.
• The queen is worth 3 points.
Family-Point Carrom is a variant that is very popular with
• The queen has to be covered int he same or
the young and old, or when playing with an odd number
subsequent strike.
of players. Players are allowed to pocket carrom men of
any colour. The rules are as follows: • The first player to reach 21 points is declared the
winner.
• Players can shoot carrom men of any colour. • If no player reaches 21 points, the player with the
• The rules of shooting are the same as the base highest points is declared the winner. If the scores
game. are tied, a tie-breaker must be played. Players
who are tied select a colour. They are allowed to
• Black is worth 5 points, White is worth 10, and the pocket carrom men of an alternate colour only on
queen is worth 25 points. rebound.
• The queen has to be covered in the same strike.
• When the board is cleared, the player/team with
the most points wins.

LET THE FLICKING BEGIN!

translated by Olivér Ősz and Ádám Novák

designed by larakka | www.larakkadesign.com

CHECK OUR OTHER WOODEN BOARD GAMES HERE:

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The flicking frenzy. The intense recreation.

Storing and maintenance of the board!

Always keep your board in a dry place on room temperature! High degree of humidity may cause bending or warping of the board. • If water is spilled on the board clean it immediately
with a dry soft cloth, because absorbing the water may cause bending or warping of the board! • Do not expose the board to glaring sun or heat because it can result in crackles of the
surface lacquering! • Do not use open fire near the board! Do not put cigarette on the board! • Do not place foreign or sharp objects on the board, because it may cause serious scratches
on the surface! • It is highly recommended to use only the proper gliss powders on the board, because other lubricants or powders may cause scratches! • If the board becomes dusty or
dirty use moist (not wet) or dry cloth to clean it! Do not use cleaning agent or detergents! • The manufacturer has the right to refuse responsibility in case of any damage due to improper
use of the board and accessories! • This product contains no detrimental materials to health! Please keep this information for your records!

Manufacturer: Cogitate Games Ltd.

Choking hazard! 6 Ménes str. Szolnok H-5008
Not suitable for children under 3 years Email: [email protected]
of age. Small parts could be swallowed! www.woodestic.com
Phone: +36-30-2-444-111
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