FINAL EXAM IN COMBINATORIAL GAME THEORY,

IE619 2023

EXAMINER: PROF. URBAN LARSSON, IEOR, IITB

Please fill in your name and roll number on pages 3 and 4. The rest you
need not return. (If you require extra space, please use page 2 as well.)
This examination concerns only short normal-play games. You are allowed
to use the lecture notes from the course, but no other aids are permitted.
Please grade the problem items on page 5 onwards as true “1” or false “0”
and fill the table on page 3 with your answers. The nim sum of the answers
should be the nim value of the displayed game, with two Wythoff Queens in
a disjunctive sum, in Figure 1.
Each row that has all four correct answers is worth 3p. Three correct
answers is worth 1p. Otherwise the row score is 0. Full table score gives a
bonus of 5p. The below Theorem Problem (page 3) is worth 12p. Altogether
> 25p is a pass, and > 55p is AA.

0
0

Figure 1. The black tiny boxes are two Chess Queens,

where each Queen moves as in Wythoff Nim. The terminal
position (0, 0) is in the lower left corner. These Queens are
invisible with respect to each other, that is they may reside
inside the same square, and jumps are permitted.

1
2 EXAMINER: PROF. URBAN LARSSON, IEOR, IITB

In case you need extra space for the proof of the Theorem Problem on
page 4, please use this page, and give name and roll number here as well:
 FINAL EXAM IN COMBINATORIAL GAME THEORY, IE619 2023 3

Name and roll number:

(a) (b) (c) (d)

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

nim sum:
4 EXAMINER: PROF. URBAN LARSSON, IEOR, IITB

Name and roll number:

Theorem Problem. State and prove the Weak Number Avoidance Theo-
rem (Theorem 35 in the lecture notes). 12p

Below is a proof sketch with math expressions replaced by “( )”.

You may use this sketch, and fill in the missing math expressions, or if you
prefer, write your own proof below.

“Suppose that Left has a winning move of the form ( ).

Then ( ).

But ( ) does not equal a number, so strict inequality must hold.

That is ( ). Therefore Left wins playing first on ( ).

By induction, we may assume that Left’s winning move is on the non-

number component ( ),

to the game ( ). Thus ( ).

But, since ( ) is a number, then ( ),

which implies ( ).”

 FINAL EXAM IN COMBINATORIAL GAME THEORY, IE619 2023 5

Problem 1. Suppose that the Queens from the initial problem can capture
one or the other on the way, and moreover, now there are three Queens. A
starting position, {(1, 2), (2, 1), (2, 2)}, together with its options are displayed
in Figure 2. Two winning options (P-positions) are:
(a) {(1, 2), (2, 1), (1, 1)} and {(1, 2), (2, 1)};
(b) {(1, 2), (2, 1), (0, 0)} and {(1, 2), (2, 1)};
(c) {(0, 1), (1, 2), (2, 2)} and {(0, 2), (1, 2), (2, 2)};
(d) {(1, 1), (1, 2), (2, 2)} and {(0, 1), (1, 2), (2, 2)};

0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0

Figure 2. The three black boxes are Chess Queens, where

each Queen moves as in Wythoff Nim. In addition, a Queen
may capture another Queen, but not jump its position. The
left most picture is the starting position, and the other pic-
tures represent the set of options (modulo symmetry) of the
first picture.

Problem 2. The switch ±1 is

(a) hotter than the number 2;
(b) colder than the game ± {2 | 1} = {{2 | 1} | {−1 | −2}};
(c) of the form, a number plus an infinitesimal;
(d) equal to 1∗ = 1 + ∗.

Problem 3. Various topics:

(a) Bouton proved that the nim-sum of the nim heaps equals 0 if and only
if the game is an N -position;
(b) A game is impartial if all options are the same for both players, and all
options are impartial;
(c) A game is all-small if both players can move, and each option is all-small;
(d) “Strategy stealing” is an argument to prove that the first player has a
winning move in Chomp on a rectangular chocolate bar.

Problem 4. The temperature of a game component

(a) is a measure of the ‘urgency’ of playing in this component;
(b) indicates if a player has an advantage in this component;
(c) approximates it to a nim heap;
(d) depends on the Left and Right stops of that component.
6 EXAMINER: PROF. URBAN LARSSON, IEOR, IITB

Problem 5. We know the outcome of the sum G + H if

(a) G ∈ P and H ∈ R;
(b) G ∈ N and H ∈ P;
(c) G ∈ R and H ∈ N ;
(d) G ∈ L and H ∈ R.

Problem 6. The Second Fundamental Theorem concerns constructive com-

parison of games. This means that
(a) there exists a game X such that for all G and H, o(G + X) = o(H + X);
(b) two games, G and H, are equal if, for all games X, o(G+X) = o(H +X);
(c) G > H if and only if Left wins G − H playing second;
(d) G = H if and only if G − H ∈ P.

Problem 7. Consider positions of Pingala (Fibonacci) Nim of the form

(x, r), where x is the heap size and r is the maximum size of the next removal.
In case of a starting position, only the heap size is displayed.
(a) the starting position 13 is a P-position;
(b) (16, 4) is an N -position;
(c) (16, 2) is a P-position;
(d) (233, 200) is an N -position.

Problem 8. The Toppling Dominoes position of the form “five blue domi-
noes between two red ones”, rbbbbbr is
(a) the game {0 | {0 | −3}} = 3 ;
(b) strictly greater than 0;
(c) the game 5 · ↑;
(d) smaller than any positive uptimal.

Problem 9. The subtraction game S = {1, 2, 5}

(a) has period length 3;
(b) is purely periodic;
(c) has the same outcomes as the subtraction game S ′ = {1, 2, 4, 5};
(d) the nim values of the games S and S ′ are different.

Problem 10. Figure 3 displays some Red-Blue-Green Hackenbush po-

sitions. Left plays Red, Right plays Blue and both players can play Green
edges.
(a) Red-Blue Hackenbush has no N -position;
(b) One of the pictures represent the game 41 ∗;
(c) One picture represents the game {0, ↓∗ | 0, ∗};
(d) The two numbers are 1 and 81 .
 FINAL EXAM IN COMBINATORIAL GAME THEORY, IE619 2023 7

Figure 3. Some Red-Blue-Green Hackenbush posi-

tions. In black and white printouts: Blue edges are a bit
thinner, and Green edges are bit lighter.

Problem 11. Suppose that the Queens from the first problem are red (Left)
at position (0, 1) and blue (Right) at position (1, 1), respectively. See Fig-
ure 4 to the left.
(a) If capture is permitted, then the game value is −2/3;
(b) If capture is not permitted and the Queens may not be in the same
square (or jump each other) then the game value is −1/2;
(c) If capture is permitted but red (Left) starts at position (2, 1) and blue
(Right) starts at position (1, 2) (see Figure 4 to the right), then this is a
P-position;
(d) With the starting position as in (3), but capture is not permitted (nor
jumps or residing in the same square) then this is a P-position;

0 0
0 0

Figure 4. The game setting is as in Problem 14, (1) and

(2) to the left, and (3) and (4) to the right. Right plays the
smaller Blue Queens, and Left plays the larger Red Queen.

Problem 12. The disjunctive sum game

{1 | −30} + {30 | 1} + {0 | {−2 | −1000}}
is an N -position.
(a) Left wins if she plays in the hottest component;
(b) Right wins if he plays in the hottest component;
(c) the third component is the hottest one;
(d) the first component is the hottest one.
Problem 13. Let G = {∗, ∗2 | 0} and let H = ∗3.
(a) G < H;
(b) G > H;
8 EXAMINER: PROF. URBAN LARSSON, IEOR, IITB

(c) aw(G + H) = −1;

(d) rcf(G + {1 | H}) = {1 | 0}.
Problem 14. Consider the game G = {0, ↑∗ | ∗}.
(a) G is in canonical form;
(b) G has a dominated option;
(c) G has a reversible option;
(d) G = ↑.
Problem 15. Figure 5 illustrates the lattice of all games born by day two.
Why is the game {1, ∗ | 0, ∗} not in there?
(a) It is born on day three;
(b) It is not in canonical form;
(c) This game never occurs in actual play;
(d) It has a dominated option.
Problem 16. The impartial game tree G has a nim value. It is

. . .

. . . . .

. . . . . .

. . . . .

(a) ∗3;
(b) ∗2;
(c) ∗;
(d) .
FINAL EXAM IN COMBINATORIAL GAME THEORY, IE619 2023 9

1 1∗

1
2 {1 | ∗} {1 | 0}

↑ ↑∗ {1 | 0, ∗}

0 ∗ ∗2 ±1

↓ ↓ ∗ {0, ∗ | −1}

− 21 {∗ | −1} {0 | −1}

−1 −1∗

−2

Figure 5. There are 22 games born by day 2.