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50x50 image of pink 1-pip piece facing up from above, use freely
{{Infobox_Game|
subject_name=Nickel|
designer=Designed by [[User:Kataclysm|Kat Costa]]|
image_link=|
description=Use strategy to form a line or L shape on a colorful, randomly-generated board|
min_players=2|
max_players=2|
sets=0|
stashes=5|
setup_time=1 minute|
min_playing_time=5 minutes|
max_playing_time=15 minutes|
complexity=Low |
strategy=High|
other_equip=5x5 grid|
release_year=2020|
game_status=Complete|
game_length=Fast|
random_chance=None|
theme = |
BGG_Link=|
}}
==Nickel==
Nickel is a two-player combinatorial game played on a 5x5 grid that is randmly populated with 25 pyramids. The goal is to form an L shape or straight line of 5 pieces in your color or to leave your opponent with no valid moves.
==Materials==
*25 small pyramids in five colors
*A 5×5 grid
*12 tokens in two colors (these can be pyramids of unused colors, if you have them, or they can be coins, stones, bottle caps, etc).
Nickel works best if you own five nests each of five colors so that five small pyramids of each color can be used. However, you can get by with only a Pyramid Arcade set (three nests each of five colors) by substituting mediums for two of the smalls and ignoring the somewhat visually-distracting size difference.
{|
|
{|style="border:3px solid; border-collapse:collapse;"
|{{PL|::S|royalblue|5em}}{{PL|::S|royalblue|5em}}{{PL|::S|royalblue|5em}}{{PL|::S|royalblue|5em}}{{PL|::S|royalblue|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::S|crimson|5em}}{{PL|::S|crimson|5em}}{{PL|::S|crimson|5em}}{{PL|::S|crimson|5em}}{{PL|::S|crimson|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::S|orange|5em}}{{PL|::S|orange|5em}}{{PL|::S|orange|5em}}{{PL|::S|orange|5em}}{{PL|::S|orange|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::S|purple|5em}}{{PL|::S|purple|5em}}{{PL|::S|purple|5em}}{{PL|::S|purple|5em}}{{PL|::S|purple|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::S|green|5em}}{{PL|::S|green|5em}}{{PL|::S|green|5em}}{{PL|::S|green|5em}}{{PL|::S|green|5em}}
|-
|style="text-align:center; padding:3px;"|{{PL|:Volcano|black|8em}}
|-
|style="text-align:center; border:1px solid;"|Ideal materials
|}
||
{|style="border:3px solid; border-collapse:collapse;"
|{{PL|::S|royalblue|5em}}{{PL|::S|royalblue|5em}}{{PL|::S|royalblue|5em}}{{PL|::M|royalblue|5em}}{{PL|::M|royalblue|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::S|crimson|5em}}{{PL|::S|crimson|5em}}{{PL|::S|crimson|5em}}{{PL|::M|crimson|5em}}{{PL|::M|crimson|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::S|orange|5em}}{{PL|::S|orange|5em}}{{PL|::S|orange|5em}}{{PL|::M|orange|5em}}{{PL|::M|orange|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::S|purple|5em}}{{PL|::S|purple|5em}}{{PL|::S|purple|5em}}{{PL|::M|purple|5em}}{{PL|::M|purple|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::S|green|5em}}{{PL|::S|green|5em}}{{PL|::S|green|5em}}{{PL|::M|green|5em}}{{PL|::M|green|5em}}
|-
|style="text-align:center; padding:3px;"|{{PL|:Volcano|black|8em}}
|-
|style="text-align:center; border:1px solid;"|Pyramid Arcade
|}
|}
==Goal==
There are three ways to win Nickel.
*Form a straight line of five pieces in your color (diagonal or orthogonal)
*Form an L shape of five pieces in your color
*Arrange it so that there are no valid moves at the start of your opponent's turn
==Setup==
The board will need to be randomly filled with 25 pyramids. Each pyramid will have a color and an orientation characteristic that makes it unique from all other pieces on the board. To begin setup, sort the pieces into rows and columns of color and orientation (North, East, South, West, and Standing-Up). Do this ''next to'' the board, not on the board.
{|
|
{| style="text-align:center;"
|{{PL|::SPN|royalblue|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPE|royalblue|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPS|royalblue|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPW|royalblue|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPU|royalblue|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::SPN|crimson|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPE|crimson|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPS|crimson|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPW|crimson|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPU|crimson|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::SPN|orange|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPE|orange|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPS|orange|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPW|orange|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPU|orange|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::SPN|green|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPE|green|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPS|green|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPW|green|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPU|green|5em}}
|-
|{{PL|::SPN|purple|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPE|purple|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPS|purple|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPW|purple|5em}}
|{{PL|::SPU|purple|5em}}
|}
||
{| style="text-align:center; border: 3px solid black; border-collapse:collapse;"
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|-
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|-
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|-
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|-
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|style="border: 3px solid black;"|{{PL| ||5em}}
|}
|}
Now, alternating turns and moving quickly, each player takes any pyramid and, ''preserving its orientation,'' places it into a random space on the board. (Alternating players is simply the fastest way to accomplish placement. If it is more convenient for one player to do the entire setup in advance, that's fine.) Once the board is full, play can begin.
==Play==
Choose a player to go first. That player selects any square on the edge of the board to place his token in. To do this, he picks up the pyramid in the square and, ''preserving its orientation,'' places it on the table in front of his opponent. Then he proceeds to place his token in the empty square. The limitation of placing tokens on the board's edge applies on the first turn only.
The next player looks at the pyramid in front of her: she must place her token in a square that matches this pyramid in one of its two characteristics: in color or in orientation. So if the pyramid placed in front of her is a {{PL|::SPE|crimson|2em}}, she must place her token in a square occupied by a red pyramid or a pyramid pointing East. She follows the same procedure as above for placing her token: carefully remove the existing pyramid, place it in on the table front of her opponent with its orientation unchanged, and finally place her token in the vacated space.
Pyramids removed from the board on previous turns should be set aside in stacks off the board so that only the most recently removed pyramid is in front of each player at any time.
The game continues like this until one player has successfully formed an L shape or a straight line. That player wins! A player also wins if her opponent, on his turn, has no legal placement available.
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