Why does a group need two eyes?

To live permanently and avoid capture

Go Board Game Quiz: Stones, Territory and Captures

Two players take turns placing black and white stones on a grid, yet the game is so deep that it challenged artificial intelligence for decades, and this Go board game quiz explains the rules. Play an interactive set of 10 questions on its Chinese origins, the 19 by 19 board, liberties and captures, eyes, the ko rule, komi, territory, baduk and AlphaGo.

Start Go Board Game Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Origin
Where did Go originate?
Board
What is the standard Go board size?
First
Which color moves first?
Komi
What is komi?
Liberty
What is a liberty in Go?
Eyes
Why does a group need two eyes?
Ko
What does the ko rule prevent?
Goal
How is a game of Go usually won?
Korea
What is Go called in Korea?
AlphaGo
Which champion did AlphaGo beat in 2016?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Where did Go originate?
Answer: China
It is over 2,500 years old.
Q2: What is the standard Go board size?
Answer: 19 by 19 lines
Beginners often use 9 by 9.
Q3: Which color moves first?
Answer: Black
White gets komi points to compensate.
Q4: What is komi?
Answer: Bonus points given to white
It balances black's first-move advantage.
Q5: What is a liberty in Go?
Answer: An empty point next to a stone
Stones with no liberties are captured.
Q6: Why does a group need two eyes?
Answer: To live permanently and avoid capture
Two separate empty points cannot both be filled.
Q7: What does the ko rule prevent?
Answer: Endless repetition of captures
A player must wait a move before recapturing.
Q8: How is a game of Go usually won?
Answer: By controlling more territory
Captures also count in some scoring.
Q9: What is Go called in Korea?
Answer: Baduk
Weiqi is the Chinese name.
Q10: Which champion did AlphaGo beat in 2016?
Answer: Lee Sedol
Its move 37 in game two became famous.

Go Board Game Quiz – Stones, Territory and Captures

Go originated in China more than 2,500 years ago, where it is called weiqi; in Korea it is baduk. Players place black and white stones on a 19 by 19 grid, with black moving first and white receiving komi points to balance the advantage.

Stones are captured when they lose all liberties, the empty points next to them. A group with two separate eyes cannot be captured, and the ko rule prevents endless repetition. The game is usually won by controlling more territory.

Go's huge number of possible positions made it hard for computers. In 2016 DeepMind's AlphaGo defeated champion Lee Sedol four games to one, a landmark in artificial intelligence.

What This Quiz Teaches

Strategy game fans will enjoy these questions.

Where Go comes from
How the board works
How captures happen
How games are won
How AI changed the game

Did You Know?

Go has more possible positions than atoms in the observable universe.
Professional players hold dan ranks.
Handicap stones help balance uneven players.
Japan's Honinbo title is centuries old.
Small boards help beginners learn quickly.