Skyline 2026

Skyline is a stacking game for two players: Black and White. It is played on the hexes (cells) of an initially empty hexagonal board. The recommended board size is 7 cells per side, although boards from 5 to 9 are also valid. Each player has access to a sufficient supply of stones of their own color.

Definitions: A stack is one or more stones located on the same cell. The height of a stack is the number of stones it contains. The horizon is the space outside the board. A cell sees a stack or the horizon in a straight line through zero or more empty intermediate cells.

Turns:Black plays first and then turns alternate. On your turn, place a stack of height 1 of your color on an empty cell.

If the placed stack sees the horizon, the placement is legal only if it is adjacent to as many friendly stacks as enemy stacks. If the placed stack does not see the horizon, the placement is legal only if it is adjacent to at least one enemy stack. In that case, place a stone of your color on each visible enemy stack, increasing its height by 1.

End of the game:The game ends when neither player can place a stack.

Each player identifies the maximal height of their stacks and scores the sum of the heights of all stacks of that height. In the event of a tie, the next maximal heights are compared in the same way, in descending order, until a difference is found. If no difference is found, the game ends in a draw.

To balance the game, before starting, the first player places a black stone on an empty cell, and the second player chooses a side. This balancing method is called the pie rule.

—description from the designer