Do you know if there is an algorithm for a Twixt AI player?

There are two I know of, but they are both very weak.

http://www.johannes-schwagereit.de/T1.html

T1 is the best available, and even beginners can beat it easily. I hope to get permission from Johannes to post a Windows executable version of T1 on the Net. I will provide the link if/when I do that.

http://www.twixt.de/

This one is even weaker, requires a Java runtime environment, and is entirely in German. It's so weak, it seems to be trying to lose.

Both programs cannot handle link removal nor the pie rule. But they do automatically link all legal links to the peg when you place it. You can put them both in “human versus human” mode and use them as virtual Twixt boards. This might be handy if you'd rather not mess with Jtwixt.

Technically there is a third, my Zillions Twixt package:

http://www.zillionsofgames.com/games/twixt.html

I did not define the game object, so the Zillions engine doesn't have a clue what to do. It likes to make as many links as it can. Playing against itself is sort of like watching crystals grow. Mildly amusing- if you're easily amused. This package was intended as a virtual board for Net play. But it costs money, and Zillions isn't a server. The K2z server is free:

http://www.k2z.org/

The author gave me permission already! I uploaded T1_exe.zip to the BoardGameGeek Twixt page. It may take a few hours to show up there.

Oops…

i have developped a bot that play TWIXT on K2Z server.

its a console based program.

its still weak but better than T1 and www.twixt.de

you can see the bot connected sometimes on the K2Z server, it run on my PC, logon to K2Z server , create a game and then wait for a player.

i have plenty of ideas, but no time to implement.

i plan to organize a challenge between engineer schools about a AI playing TWIXT.

i'll contact some universities and engineer schools i know.

If you know someone interested, let me know. i plan to start the challenge now in september, ending in june 2005.

If it fails, i may put the source code of my bot open source, so we could be team work. (c++)

you can drop ideas on the K2Z Forum www.k2z.org/forum

cya