MAN AHL CODER PRIZE
HIVEMINDER (THE “GAME”): RULES
1.
THE GAME
1.1.
The Game in which you will be competing is a bespoke game called “HiveMinder”, which
has been created by AHL Partners LLP, the promoter of the Man AHL Coder Prize (the
“Promoter”).
1.2.
The Game consists of multiple Game Boards, each consisting of 64 hexagonal tiles (the
“tiles”), joined together in a Game Grid (described in further detail in paragraph 2).
1.3.
At any one time, there will be non-moving pieces comprising hives and flowers on the
Game Boards. There will also be different volants (the “Volants”) comprising bees, queen
bees and seeds moving around the Game Grid around and across the Game Boards.
1.4.
Each player owns a Game Board and controls the Volants on that Game Board. The
moves of each player is in turn governed by a Submission of an Entrant.
1.5.
A player wins the Game by scoring the highest number of Game Points in 10,000 moves.
1.6.
A player earns Game Points by:
1.6.1. a bee picking up nectar from flowers and returning it to a hive on the player’s Game
Board (two points awarded per piece of nectar);
1.6.2. the presence of a hive on the player’s Game Board (200 points); and
1.6.3. the presence of a flower on the player’s Game Board (50 points).
1.7.
A player loses Game Points when:
1.7.1. a bee dies (deduction of 3 Game Points) on the player’s Game Board; or
1.7.2. a flower previously on the player’s Game Board wilts and disappears (deduction of
the 50 points previously awarded).
1.8.
Hives and flowers
1.8.1. Game Points awarded and deducted by the hives and flowers are earned by the
player whose Game Board they are on.
1.9.
Hives
1.9.1. At the start of the Game, a hive will appear at random on the same, randomly
selected, tile on each player’s Game Board.
1.10.
Flowers
1.10.1. At the start of the Game, a flower will appear at random on the same, randomly
selected, tile on each player’s Game Board.
1.10.2. A flower lasts for 300 turns before wilting and disappearing from the board. Its
lifespan increases however by 10 turns each time it is visited by a bee.
1.10.3. Flowers can be generated by planting seeds (described in further detail in
paragraph 1.13).
1.10.4. The amount of nectar produced by a flower increases by one every 10 times it is
visited, up to a maximum of three pieces of nectar.
1.11.
Volants
At each turn, a Volant will move in the direction it is already travelling unless a player
chooses to redirect it. A player can opt to change the direction of one Volant by a
maximum rotation of 60° and has only 0.2 seconds to make a selection before losing this
opportunity. If an algorithm has not made a move decision within the allowed 0.2 seconds,
the turn is forfeited but the game is not.
1.12.
Bees
1.12.1. Bee Volants are randomly generated from each hive with a probability of one bee
every 5 turns.
1.12.2. A bee ceases to exist if it lands on a tile on which a hive is present.
1.12.3. A bee collects nectar each time it visits a flower and can carry up to a maximum of
five pieces at any one time.
1.12.4. Each bee has an energy bar which depletes at a constant rate, but which can be
topped up by visiting a flower.
1.12.5. A bee dies if it runs out of energy or collides with another bee.
1.13.
Queen bees
1.13.1. A queen bee Volant is generated from a hive when 100 pieces of nectar have
been deposited in that hive, with a queen bee being generated for every 100
additional pieces of nectar deposited thereafter.
1.13.2. Queen bees travel and have energy in the same way as regular bees.
1.13.3. The queen bee has the ability to generate new hives. Once the new hive is
created, this hive will generate bees and the player can use it to deposit nectar. The
player whose Game Board on which the new hive is generated earns 200 points.
1.14.
Seeds
1.14.1. A seed is generated by a flower every 10 times that flower is visited.
1.14.2. Seeds are moved in the same way as bees are but do not have an energy bar.
1.14.3. Players can use their turn to change a seed into a flower on an unoccupied tile of
their choice.
2.
THE GAME GRID
2.1.
gram below illustrates how
w seven Gam
me Boards are joined toggether on the
e Game
The diag
Grid.
The three
e-dimensional structure m
means that each
e
player’s
s Game Boarrd will be equ
uivalent
to being in the centra
al position (i.e
e. the Game Board colou
ured yellow) aat any one time.
2.2.
c move ac
cross the Gam
me Board bo
oundaries. Fo
or example:
Volants can
2.2.1. Vo
olants on pla
ayer 4’s Gam
me Board can
n move from the bottom oof this Game
e Board
intto the top of player 2’s Ga
ame Board; and
2.2.2. Vo
olants on pla
ayer 6’s Gam
me Board can
n move from the left of th is Game Boa
ard to
the
e right of play
yer 7’s Gam e Board.
3.
GENERA
AL
3.1.
The regisstered addre
ess of the Pro
omoter is Riv
verbank House, 2 Swan LLane, Londo
on EC4R
3AD, United Kingdom
m.
3.2.
o
deffined in these rules (the “Rules”)
“
shaall have the meanings
m
Terms ussed but not otherwise
provided in the generral terms and
d conditions published by
y the Promotter on the
nd Condition
ns”).
Competittion Website (the “Generral Terms an
3.3.
These Rules and General Terms and Conditio
ons shall tog
gether apply tto the Comp
petition.
n any provisio
on of the Rules and the G
General Term
ms and
In the evvent of a confflict between
Condition
ns, the Gene
eral Terms an
nd Condition
ns shall preva
ail.
3.4.
These Rules shall be
e governed b
by English law
w. All parties
s submit to thhe exclusive
on of the cou
urts of Englan
nd and Wale
es for matters
s in connectioon with the Game.
G
jurisdictio