The Pearl Challenge

[Sim_One]

Call me dumb, but I just can't beat this guy. Can you?

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/pearl.shtml - Pearl II

EDIT: added link to the prequel game:
http://www.transience.com.au/pearl.html - Pearl I

 

[gerryandersson]

Is it actuly possible to beat him?

 

[Ancient Grudge]

that is annoying can anyone beat him?

 

[WillJ]

There must be a way to beat him, since you have the choice of going first or second, right? But I sure can't beat him...

 

[Sim_One]

You COULD probably beat him if you could calculate all the 100 million or so possible moves you and the computer can make.

 

[nixon]

What's this guy's problem!

 

[Dynamic Cow]

i solved one of these once. you have to use the computers strategy against it. cant remember how thats done right now though...

 

[tpasmall]

Wow, he has to be cheating, its so hard!!!!!

 

[cgannon64]

I've played that game before (against a friend, with pen and paper) although I played a different variant with rows of 3, 5, and 7. He isn't cheating, he is just using the perfect strategy. I forget what it is, but if you use it, you can't lose. I could probably find it online.

CG

 

[Perfection]

I BEAT HIM!!!!!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

He went arggggggggghhhhh and walked away!!!!

 

[Dynamic Cow]

care to tell the world ho you did it?

 

[nixon]

Ahh, sweet victory!

Tsk. Loser.

 

[WillJ]

Yes! I beat it! Here's how: (Note that I call the row of 3 the top, the row of 6 the bottom, and every other row by the number of pearls that it originally had.)

Spoiler :

Let him go first. If he picks 5 from the bottom, play on as I tell you. If he does something else, start over, since I don't know how to win that way yet. (Go ahead and find out yourself by opening up two games, letting him pick something first in one game, then picking that same thing first in the other game, then doing what he just did in the second game in the first game, and so on, and eventually you'll win one of the games.)

(He picks 5 from bottom.)
-Pick all from the top.
(He picks 1 from the row of four.)
-Pick 3 from the row of five.
(He picks 1 from the row of four.)
-Pick 1 from the bottom.
(He picks 1 from the row of four.)
-Pick 2 from the row of five.

YOU WIN!!! [dance]

 

[Sim_One]

Alright good job guys.
Here's another variant of the same game.

This is the prequel:
http://www.transience.com.au/pearl.html

 

[Dominix]

About beating Pearl2, it seems like for the last few times I've played it, whenever I let him go first he always picks 5 out of the last row, weird...

To beat the first one, just pick two pearls out of the first row (the row with 3).

X
XXXX
XXXXX

The goal is to leave him with some combination where one row has 3 pearls, another 2 pearls, and the last 1 pearl. Looks something like this:

X
XXX
XX

He'll probably pick the top one:

XXX
XX

You take one from the row of 3:

XX
XX

And you have it made.