Nardi on Your Phone: How to Play Comfortably

Nardi on your phone on tamashebi.cc runs in the browser: there is no app to download, you just open the site and go to the nardi room. The board is laid out especially for phones, sideways and the full height of the screen, so the checkers are big enough for a finger. Below is everything you need to play comfortably: how to turn the screen, how to move by tapping, how the timer works, what happens when the internet drops, and how Android and iPhone differ.

Landscape mode

A nardi board is wide, twenty-four points in two rows with the bar in the middle, and on a phone held upright the checkers would come out tiny. So on a phone nardi is played in landscape only. Hold the phone upright and the screen asks you to "Turn your phone sideways: nardi is played in landscape". One important detail: the game carries on underneath that request. The board does not close and the move timer does not stop, so do not hold your phone upright for long while it is your turn.

On a touch screen the table offers to go full screen: on your first tap on the table, through the "Play full screen" button on the turn-your-phone request, and through a small button that stays next to the other controls. On a phone lying sideways, the browser bar takes up a noticeable share of the screen; in full screen that space goes back to the board. Where the browser allows it, the table also locks the screen in landscape, so you do not even have to turn the phone yourself.

Moving checkers by touch

Checkers move by tapping; there is no need to drag. The quickest way is this:

1. On your turn, tap the dice button in your half of the board. The server rolls the dice, and both players see the same numbers.
2. Tap a checker. Every point it can reach this turn lights up, including the sum of both dice if the stop in between is open too. If some of your checkers cannot move at all, the ones that can are marked.
3. Tap a lit point and the checker goes there. Tap the same checker a second time and it moves by the larger die (or by the smaller one, if the larger cannot be played).
4. When bearing off, one tap is enough: a checker that can be borne off goes straight to the tray, using the exact die if there is one.
5. Tapping an empty area cancels your choice.

Mistakes can be fixed. While it is your turn and you have already made steps, the undo button takes back your last step. Once all dice are played, an "End turn" button with a small circular countdown appears: tap it to finish the turn at once, or the turn passes by itself after two and a half seconds. If the dice cannot be played at all, the screen shows "No move" and the turn passes to your opponent.

On a double you see two dice, not four, with a small figure beside them telling you how many of the four moves are left. A die you have used fades, so you always see what is still to play. Your opponent's move is shown step by step as well: the checkers move across the board in order, so even on a small screen you can tell what happened and which of your checkers was hit.

The move time limit

Whoever creates the table chooses the time per move: 20, 30, 45 or 60 seconds. The clock covers the whole turn, the roll and every checker moved, not each step separately. If time runs out, the server finishes the rest of the turn for you, following the rules; the seat stays yours and you play your next turn yourself. On a phone, where a notification or a call can come in, 45 or 60 seconds is the calmer choice; 20 seconds is for players who already move on autopilot.

If your connection drops

Mobile internet sometimes drops: in a lift, on the metro, when switching from Wi-Fi to mobile data. When it does, your screen shows "Reconnecting...", and your opponent sees on your plate that you are disconnected. You have a limited time to come back. The game is tied to your account, not to a particular tab, so you can return even from a freshly opened browser, and play continues from where it stopped. Two things to know: the move clock keeps running meanwhile, and if you do not return within the allowed time, the match counts as lost; your opponent gets as many points as they need to win. Leaving the table on purpose also ends the match at once.

Adding it to your home screen (PWA)

You can add tamashebi.cc to your phone's home screen like an app, without any app store. The icon opens the site in its own window without the address bar, which frees space on a sideways screen. It opens the site, and from there you go to the nardi room. One caveat: this does not mean offline play. Nardi against a live opponent is played on the server, so you always need a connection.

• Android, Chrome: browser menu (three dots), then "Add to Home screen" or "Install app".
• iPhone, Safari: the Share button, then "Add to Home Screen".

Android vs iPhone

On Android, in Chrome, the table asks for full screen and can then lock the screen in landscape, so you may not even need to turn the phone by hand. The iPhone browser has no full-screen mode, so on an iPhone the full-screen button simply does not appear: turn the phone yourself, and make sure portrait orientation lock is off in Control Centre. On an iPhone the best way to get rid of the browser bar is to add the site to your home screen. Everything else (the taps, undo and end turn, the timer, reconnecting) works the same on both.

Tips for a stable game

• Play on a stable Wi-Fi network if you can; on the move, mobile networks switch often and that drops the connection.
• Do not switch to another app for long during a game: a browser sent to the background often loses its connection, and the move clock keeps running.
• Turn on Do Not Disturb, because an incoming call or notification covers the board.
• Charge the battery beforehand: full screen and maximum brightness drain it quickly.
• If you are often on the move, choose 45 or 60 seconds per move and a 1 or 3 point match when creating a table; a short match takes less time.
• If the connection drops, simply reopen the site with the same account; the game continues as long as the allowed time has not run out.

Frequently asked questions

Why can I not play nardi with my phone upright?

The board is wide, and on an upright screen the checkers would be too small for a finger. So on a phone nardi is played in landscape; when you hold it upright the screen asks you to turn it, and the game carries on underneath.

What happens if a call comes in during my turn?

The move clock keeps running. If it runs out, the server finishes the turn for you and the seat stays yours. If the connection drops, you have a limited time to come back; if you do not, the match is lost.

Do I need to register to play from a phone?

No. When creating a table you can come in as a guest or with an account; both work the same way on a phone.

• Play nardi on your phone
• Nardi against a bot, and practice
• Games on Android without a download
• Games on iPhone in the browser
• Anatomy of the nardi board

Nardi on tamashebi.cc is free to play. Some tables use Domino Coin, a virtual in-game coin: it is never money, cannot be bought or cashed out, and means nothing outside the site. The game is for fun and for skill.