Conspirateurs

Conspirateurs (or the English spelling Conspirators) is a two- or four-player strategy board game probably invented in 18th-century France. It perhaps dates after 1789 from the French Revolutionary Wars, "a period of feverish political activity with factions conspiring against each other" (Bell 1983:129).

Conspirateurs resembles Halma, Ugolki, Chinese Checkers, and Salta in that pieces jump without capturing over friendly or enemy pieces to help race to their destinations.

Equipment

The gameboard comprises 17×17 gridded lines. At the centre is a specially marked or coloured area comprising 9×5 intersection points representing a "secret meeting place". On the board perimeter, 39 points are specially marked or coloured to identify sanctuaries.

The play pieces (men) are always placed on the points, using either marbles or pegs in holes, or flat-bottom pieces. In two-player games, each side has 20 men; in four-player games, each side has 10 men. The sets of men are distinctively coloured.