Goblet

Designed by T. Denoul and made by Blue Orange Games 2000.
(Game as purchased had instructions and 3 sets of light and dark 4-nesting cups;
augmented with 5 sets of light and dark top 5-nesting clear cups, J. A. Storer 2005;
wood box and cups where the lid turns over to be the board, 9.5 square)

Board: 4x4 rectangular array.

Pieces: White and black cups ("goblets"), 3 each of 4 different diameters.

Stacks: A stack is a set of one or more nesting cups facing down (largest cup on top).

Start: Board is empty, white and black each have 3 stacks of their cups.

Play: White goes first, players move alternately.
A player may move a single cup of their color that is on the board (that may have other cups under it) to an empty square or to cover another stack on the board (of either color).

Cups not yet on the board (which must be removed from their stack in order of largest to smallest) may placed on the board in one of two ways: Placed on an empty square.
Or, placed to cover an opponents stack that must be positioned in a row, column, or diagonal that contains three opponent stacks.
Touch Rule: Players may not touch any stacks with the opponent's color on top, and:
Players may touch a stack on the board with their color on top ONLY when it is their turn, and once touched, that cup MUST be moved to a different square.
Win: A player wins when there is a row of 4 stacks (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) with their color on top; however, if at the end of your turn the opponent has 4 in a row, you lose whether or not you have made 4 in a row.

Draw: The game is a draw if a position is repeated three times.

More Goblet Games
Goblet Variations
Goblet Moku

Building Goblet Pieces From Plastic Pipe
The standard goblet game purchased at the store uses solid pieces so you can't see inside a stack. Clear pieces remove the "memory" component and allow the player to concentrate on the logical component (more fun for some, less for others).

Basic Idea: Cut up different diameters of plastic tubing and plug the tops with dark or light wood. Use clear plastic for clear pieces. Solid pieces can be made with non-clear tubing (hard or impossible to find in small quantity) or by spraying painting clear pieces.

Common types of rigid plastic tubing: Diameters below 1.5" are most common in 1/8" increments with 1/16" thick walls (e.g., 5/8" inside diameter with 3/4" outside diameter).
Cast Acrylic: High quality, easy to machine, but may be hard to find in diameters below an inch, and costs more.

Extruded Acrylic: Cheaper than cast, and very clear, but a bit brittle to work with.

Polycarbonate: Similar to the brand name "Lexan". Almost as clear as extruded acrylic, as cheap, a bit more flexible, and a bit less prone to chipping.

CAB: Very cheap, but not as clear (a bit of a yellow tint).

A Set of 5 Goblets:
1. 1" long, 1/2" diameter (solid wood).
2. 1+3/8" long, 5/8" I.D., 3/4" O.D., 5/16" thick wood plug in top.
3. 1+3/4" long, 7/8" I.D., 1" O.D., 5/16" thick wood plug in top.
4. 2+1/8" long, 1+1/8" I.D., 1+1/4" O.D., 5/16" thick wood plug in top.
5. 2+1/2" long, 1+3/8" I.D., 1+1/2" O.D., 5/16" thick wood plug in top.