Basic Terminology

1.1. Dots is an abstract turn-based intellectual strategy board game with a fixed number of players and full information. In general, it consists of surrounding the opponent's pieces with your own pieces on a flat rectangular field.

1.2. Sports Dots are a type of amateur sport, the basis of which are in-person and correspondence competitions in the game of Dots, conducted according to the rules established by the relevant public organizations.

1.3. Dotser - a player of Dots.

2.1. Sides are participants in a single game of Dots. There are always two sides, each played by one dotser.

2.2. The playing field (field) is a rectangular plane of limited area, divided by equally spaced vertical and horizontal lines, on which the game is played.

2.3. Line - a straight line running along or across the field.

2.4. Adjacent lines are two lines of the same direction, located next to each other.

2.5. A cell is a square area of ​​the field, limited by two pairs of adjacent lines - horizontal and vertical.

2.6. The edge of the playing field is the lines located along the perimeter of the field and limiting its size.

2.7. Point - the intersection of two lines.

2.8. The dot is the piece with which the game is played.

2.9. A move is a game action that consists of placing a dot on a point. Moves are made by the parties strictly in turn; skipping moves is prohibited.

2.10. A free point is a point without a dot.

2.11. Occupied point - the point at which a dot was placed.

2.12. Blue - the side making the first move in the game. Its dots are displayed on the field in blue.

2.13. Reds - the side making the second move in the game. Its dots are displayed on the field in red.

2.14. Coordinates — specification of the location of a point (dot in a point) on the field. They are written as two numbers separated by a hyphen (the numerals are Arabic), where the first number indicates the location along the horizontal axis, and the second — along the vertical.

2.15. The origin of coordinates is the lower left corner of the field (point with coordinates 1-1).

2.16. Starting position - the situation on the field before the first move of the blue team.

2.17. Initial cross - a starting position with a pre-established symmetrical figure formed by two pairs of dots of each color, located at the corners of one cell in such a way that dots of the same color are connected by an imaginary diagonal.

2.18. Four Initial Crosses - a starting position with four pre-set initial crosses, symmetrically located around the geometric center of the field.

2.19. Game time (time) – equal for both sides and a pre-determined amount of time for each move and/or the game as a whole.

3.1. Adjacent points are points located close to each other horizontally, vertically or diagonally, while being part of the same cell.

3.2. Adjacent dots are dots placed at adjacent points.

3.3. Connection is the interaction of two adjacent dots on one side, uniting them into a chain and allowing, at the moment of encirclement, to draw a boundary of the corresponding color between them.

3.4. Horizontal connection – connection carried out along the horizontal axis.

3.5. Vertical connection – connection carried out along the vertical axis.

3.6. Diagonal connection is a connection carried out diagonally.

3.7. An impassable connection is a connection that cannot intersect with a connection of another color. These are horizontal and vertical connections.

3.8. A passable connection is a connection that can intersect with a connection of another color. This is a diagonal connection.

3.9. A chain is a continuous sequence of connections of any type.

3.10. Link - a chain of minimum length, consisting of two dots. A visual expression of horizontal, vertical or diagonal connections.

3.11. A wall is a chain consisting only of impassable connections.

3.12. Cross - two diagonal connections of different colors crossing each other. A visual expression of mutual control.

3.13. Encirclement is a game action that closes a chain around a dot(s) and/or regions of the other side's encirclement.

3.14. Encirclement chain — a chain closed around the dot(s) and/or regions of the opponent's encirclement. At the moment of closure, it is drawn on the field as a broken line of the corresponding color.

3.15. Border - the chain of encirclement after drawing on the field.

3.16. The encirclement region is the space of the field inside the border, including the surrounded dots of the opponent. At the moment of creating the encirclement region, this space is painted over the entire area with the corresponding color.

3.17. A surrounded dot is a dot of one color that falls into a encirclement region of ​​another color.

3.18. A house is a closed chain of one color that limits the area of ​​the field without dots of another color.

3.19. Control is a situation that occurs when one side occupies certain areas of the field. It allows one to carry out one's own chains through these areas and deprives the opponent of such an opportunity.

3.20. Complete control is control that cannot be intercepted by the opponent.

3.21. Partial control is control that the opponent can, to one degree or another, intercept.

3.22. Expansion of control - an increase in one side of the area of ​​the field areas over which control has been established.

3.23. Interception of control - placing dots in the remaining free points of an area of ​​the field partially controlled by the opponent and/or in close proximity to it with the aim of conducting one's own chain through this area and/or preventing (hindering) the creation of an opponent's chain there.

3.24. Maintaining control is a situation that has arisen as a result of the interception of control, in which the ability to conduct its chain through a specific area of ​​the field is retained only by the side that previously controlled this area.

3.25. Loss of control - a situation that has arisen as a result of an interception of control, in which the ability to pass its chain through a specific area of ​​the field has been retained only by the side that initiated the interception.

3.26. Mutual control - a situation resulting from the interception of control in which both parties have the opportunity to pass their chain through a specific area of ​​the field.

3.27. Typical encirclement regions are the most frequently encountered configurations of encirclement regions, which have their own names.

3.27.1. Redoubt.	3.27.2. Bastion.	3.27.3. Citadel.
3.27.4. Fortress.	3.27.5. Ravelin.	3.27.6. Fort.

6.1. Attack - increasing the length of one's chains (branches) with the aim of expanding (intercepting) control and encircling the opponent's dots (branches, encirclement regions).

6.2. Defense - increasing the length of one's chains (branches) in order to prevent their encirclement by the opponent and to expand (intercept) control.

6.3. Position is the situation on the field at a particular moment. The position can be characterized by the observer in terms of the game prospects of each side, as well as the most likely ways of realizing these prospects.

6.4 General position - a picture of the strategic confrontation on the scale of the entire field or significant areas of it, determining the outcome of the game.

6.5. Local position is a picture of a tactical confrontation on a limited area of ​​the field, which in itself does not determine the outcome of the game.

6.6. A simple position is a position that, due to objective reasons, does not allow for a large number of development options.

6.7. A complex position is a position that, due to objective reasons, has a large number of development options.

6.8. A good position is a position that, due to objective reasons, determines positive game prospects for one of the sides.

6.9. A bad position is a position that, due to objective reasons, determines negative game prospects for one of the sides.

6.10. An equal position is a position that, due to objective reasons, does not give a game advantage to either side.

6.11. Potential is a set of characteristics of a position that objectively contribute to one of the sides, by consistently making the right decisions, eventually gaining a game advantage of one scale or another.

6.12. Weakness is a single characteristic of a position that reduces its potential in relation to one of the sides.

6.13. Realization of potential - both targeted and random actions of one of the sides that turned out to be correct in the position under consideration and allowed this party to gain a game advantage of one scale or another.

6.14. Initiative is a purposeful implementation in which a side acts in an attacking manner, determining the course of the game and imposing its pattern on the opponent.

6.15. Sequence of moves - several moves in a row, performed by both sides in order of priority.

6.16. A variation is one of the possible sequences of moves in a specific position.

6.17. Continuation is the most meaningful and probable option in a specific position.

6.18. Calculation is a mental process by which a player goes through various options in order to find a continuation.

6.19. Depth of calculation is the number of moves that comprise the options mentally considered by the player during the calculation.

6.20. A draw is a sequence of moves completed within a specific position, which allows us to speak about the full realization of the potential of this position for both sides.

6.21. Effective control is complete or partial control established by the minimum possible number of dots of one side, such that an attempt to intercept it by the opponent will not prevent this side from realizing the potential of a specific position.

6.22. Tempo is the rate of expansion of effective control, measured in the number of moves by one side (the fewer moves, the higher the speed).

6.23. Maintaining the tempo is the action of one of the sides that ensures an equal tempo with the opponent in a specific position and leaves the given position generally equal as well.

6.24. Gaining tempo is active action by one of the sides, the consequence of which, in relation to a specific position, is a higher tempo than the opponent and the possible transition of this position to the category of good ones for themselves.

6.25. Loss of tempo - erroneous or forced actions by one of the sides, the consequence of which, in relation to a specific position, is a lower tempo than that of the opponent and the possible transition of this position to the category of bad for themselves.

6.26. A quick move is a move by one of the sides that leads to maintaining or winning the tempo.

6.27. Slow move - a move by one of the sides that leads to a loss of tempo.

6.28. Overconcentration is an excessively dense arrangement of dots of one of the sides on any part of the field, which does not provide any real game advantages and indicates a loss of tempo.

6.29. The best move is a move by one of the sides that, in a particular position, has a large number of alternatives, but, compared to them, provides the maximum opportunities for realizing the potential of the given position.

6.30. An unnecessary move is a move by one of the sides which, at the time it is made, does not bring it any benefit either in the local or in the general positions and, on the contrary, allows the opponent to gain a game advantage on any part of the field of his choice.

6.31. Pass is a move by one of the sides which, at the time of its execution, does not bring any obvious benefit either to it or to the opponent and is made with the purpose of clarifying the intentions of the latter and/or encouraging him to take active actions.

6.32 A mandatory move is a move that one side must make in the current position, since ignoring it would immediately give the opponent a significant game advantage.

6.33. Counterweight is a mandatory move that one side makes in response to a specific move by the other side (challenge).

6.34. A challenge is a move by one side that requires a counterweight from the other side.

6.35. Provocation is a move by one of the sides which in the current position is not objectively a challenge, but is done in order to provoke the opponent to make an unnecessary move.

6.36. Own game is the correct response of one of the sides to the opponent’s provocation in the current position, which consists of ignoring it.

6.37. A nail is a move(s) by one of the sides that precedes the mandatory or most relevant move in a given position and makes it possible to enhance its effect, since it leads to an expansion of control and is a challenge for the opponent.

6.38. Repair is a move(s) by one of the sides that is not objectively mandatory in the current position, but allows one or another weakness to be neutralized.

6.39. Threat (in the tactical sense) is a move (moves) by one of the sides that threaten immediate or rapid encirclement of the opponent's dot (group of dots) and force the latter to make defensive moves and/or further develop a branch (branches).

6.40. A threat (in a strategic sense) is a move (moves) by one of the sides that does not threaten the opponent with encirclement in the near future, but, if ignored, may lead to a development that can significantly worsen his position.

6.41 A trap is a not entirely obvious threat made in the hopes of an opponent making a mistake.

6.42. Degree of freedom is the number of moves that are necessary at a given moment to encircle a specific dot (group of dots, encirclement region). It can be real and formal, when the side surrounding a given dot has the ability to apply a reduction in moves.

6.43. The radius of attack is the expected curvature and, accordingly, the length of the segment of the future encirclement chain, lying at the moment the attack begins between the ends of the opposite flanks, which, as a rule, differs from the minimum possible due to the resistance of the opponent.

6.44. A sacrifice is a deliberate loss of one or more dots that increases the potential of the position for the side losing these dots.

6.45. Substitute dots are dots that are lost as a result of a sacrifice.

6.46. Toad - protection of dots that in a particular position would be more correct to sacrifice.

6.47. Dead dots are dots (encirclement regions) of one of the sides that are not currently surrounded, but due to the configuration of nearby branches and/or encirclement regions of the other side, are guaranteed to be surrounded in one or more moves and cannot be saved without an error by the opponent.

6.48. Resurrected dots are dead dots of one of the sides that the opponent was unable to surround due to a radical change in position and/or their own erroneous actions.

6.49. Exchange - a development of a position in which both sides are guaranteed to surround a certain number of each other's dots.

6.50. Equal exchange - an exchange in which the sides surround the same number of dots.

6.51. Unequal exchange - an exchange in which the sides surround a different number of dots.

6.52. An advantageous exchange is an exchange in which the side in question surrounds more dots than the opponent (the assessment of the advantage of an exchange may change if it involves a deliberate sacrifice and entails a positional advantage for one of the sides).

6.53. An unfavorable exchange is an exchange in which the side in question surrounds fewer dots than the opponent (the assessment of the advantage of an exchange may change if it involves a deliberate sacrifice and entails a positional advantage for one of the sides).

6.54. Quality is the result of certain game actions by one of the sides, expressed in obtaining a real (due to the surrounded dots of the opponent) or potential (due to the dead dots of the opponent) advantage in the score.

6.55. Mutual encirclement is a game situation in which the sides have created two branches, connected through one cross, and have comparable chances of closing the flanks.

6.56. Forcing is a continuous series of two or more consecutive challenges and counterweights from the opponent, initiated by one of the sides.

6.57. Move reduction — reducing the formal degree of freedom of the opponent's branch through challenges while simultaneously reducing the number of gaps in one's own branch forming the encirclement chain. May include one or more forcings.

6.58. Advancement is a move(s) by one of the sides that is not in itself a challenge, but reduces the number of gaps in one's own branch, reduces the degree of freedom of the opponent's dots (branch) and creates the preconditions for carrying out a combination both in the foreseeable future, if the opponent does not attach any importance to this move, and in the long term.

6.59. A cent is a situation in which one of the sides, by shortening moves, advancing, or closing the encirclement chain, has the opportunity to remove a specific gap in its own branch with two or three different moves, but chooses the one that either leads to the creation of an encirclement region of ​​the largest area, or allows for the creation of a bend in the chain that ensures the greatest expansion of control.

6.60. A combination is a continuation, fully or partially associated with forcing and/or reducing moves, which inevitably leads to the initiating side surrounding or making the opponent's dots dead. It may include sacrifices and exchanges.

6.61. Target dot - a dot located in the attack line of one of the sides, allowing the latter to complete the "ladder" play technique by encircling. 

6.62. Attack line - points that are located on imaginary diagonals that are continuations of the ladder-like ends of the chain of the same color, as well as between these diagonals.

6.63. Lock - a move into the attack line of an opponent's started or hypothetical ladder between the ends of its chain and the target dot, which makes it impossible for the ladder to reach the target dot.

6.64. A station is a dot on one side of the field, placed at a point on the edge of the field or on the line following it, which allows the chain of that side to continue in the direction of the center of the field, performing a subway along the same edge.

6.65. A bookmark is a weakness that has developed randomly or was intentionally created by one of the opponents for the other, which does not currently require repair, but may in the long term prevent the realization of the position's potential.

6.66. Noose - a move(s) that reduces the opponent's dead dots to one degree of freedom in order to minimize the risk of them being resurrected later.

6.67. Landing (in a tactical sense) is the formation of walls from individual dots (groups of dots), tightly pressed to the edge of the field, as well as the connection of encirclement regions to the edge of the field (directly or through walls), which ultimately leads to the impossibility of their encirclement by the opponent.

6.68. Landed dots are dots for which tactical landing has been carried out.

6.69. Landing (in a strategic sense) is giving a branch such a configuration that it is not pressed against the edge of the field by a wall, but its encirclement by the opponent is still impossible due to the impassability of the forms that make up the branch and the proximity of its flank to the edge of the field.

6.70. Landed branch is a branch for which strategic landing has been carried out.

6.71. The opening is the initial stage of the game, during which the initial development of branches occurs and the strategic pattern of the game is determined.

6.72. Middlegame is the middle stage of a game, during which both sides conduct offensive and defensive actions, and the outcome of the struggle is not obvious.

6.73. The endgame is the final stage of a game, when the outcome of the struggle is generally determined, and the sides are engaged in tactical landing and surrounding the opponent's dead dots.

6.74. Time trouble is a situation of acute shortage of playing time, which does not allow one to properly consider moves and forces one to act intuitively.

7.1. Hide-and-seek is a deliberate refusal by one or both sides to take offensive action, a deliberate game aimed at a draw.

7.2. A pounce is a clearly premature and not properly prepared attack by one of the sides, which, with skillful counter-action by the opponent, worsens the position of the attacker.

7.3. A bullfight is a clearly hopeless attack by one side, which it continues against all common sense, thereby giving the opponent the opportunity to easily improve its position and create the conditions for a successful counterattack.

7.4. A rush is a situation where one of the sides, having an advantage in the score and a real opportunity to landing, continues active attacking actions, risking losing the advantage and losing the game.

7.5. A trench is a situation where one of the sides, having an objectively advantageous position for attacking actions, continues to act passively, not being confident in its ability to realize its available opportunities.

7.6. Escape is a situation in which the losing side makes no attempt to win back the score.

7.7. Cast iron - a player's predisposition to a specific strategy and tactics, and an inability to adjust their own game plan depending on the changing situation on the field.

7.8. Minesweeper is a style of play in which deep calculations are deliberately ignored, moves are made quickly and without serious analysis of the position, and the result is achieved through experience and luck.

7.9. Sparta is a situation when a player tries to play an active attacking game from the beginning of the game against an obviously stronger opponent.

7.10. Frying pan - a situation in which the side that is losing the score and has no real chance of winning back continues to make moves in the hope that the opponent, who is in time trouble, will not have time to respond and will lose on time.

7.11. Bluffing is a situation that most often arises in a complex position, when one of the sides, having made a rather serious miscalculation and realizing the futility of a certain continuation, nevertheless does not abandon its implementation, but, on the contrary, begins to move very quickly and confidently, counting on the fact that the opponent, who has not calculated the position well enough, will waver, refuse to continue the fight on this part of the field, or make a mistake.

7.12. Ambush is a situation where one side, having in mind a certain location that is potentially dangerous for the opponent, pretends to have lost interest in this local position, after which it switches to other parts of the field and plays there for a long time, hoping that the other side will forget about the threat and will not pay attention to the move(s) that can exploit the above-mentioned location.

7.13. A miss is an erroneous move in which the dot ends up at a different point than the player intended. This can be caused by haste, fatigue, an unclear hand movement, etc.

7.14. Ring - a situation where the opponent of a player who has obviously missed does not take advantage of the mistake, but makes a move that does not in any way affect the local position in which the miss was made.

7.15. A blunder is an erroneous move that is not a miss and is made by the player consciously at the moment the dot is placed, but the erroneous nature of this move is so obvious that, with due attention, a player of the corresponding skill level should have been able to prevent this error.

7.16. A burn is a situation in which a player who has made a miscalculation and is confident in the correctness of their decision makes a move, but almost immediately discovers an unaccounted option and realizes that they have made a mistake.

7.17. Horns are obviously meaningless actions by one of the sides, which has clearly lost the game and could well resign, but continues to make moves, forcing the opponent to tactically land all of their dots.

7.18. Hooves are obviously meaningless actions by one of the sides, which has clearly lost the game and could well resign, but stops making moves or makes them very rarely, forcing the opponent to wait until that side's time runs out.

7.19. Nichtkapituliren is a situation where one of the sides, having clearly lost the game, does not want to give up, but either waits for its own time to expire, if there is little time left, or declares landing.

7.20. Picasso is a player who uses moves to write or draw something with dots on the field.

7.21. Fig - a situation when one of the sides, in a hopeless situation for itself, deliberately makes several meaningless moves and resigns at the moment when the opponent has one or two moves left before closing a large region of ​​encirclement, in order to deprive him of some of the satisfaction of victory.

7.22. Curtsy is a situation where one side, in a hopeless situation for itself, makes several meaningless moves before surrendering in order to give the opponent the opportunity to close a large region of ​​encirclement.

7.23. Paranoia is a situation where one side has clearly won the game and has tactically landed itself, but is not completely sure of this and continues to strengthen its walls, not daring to declare landing.

8.1. Enveloping - cutting off the straight-line trajectory of the opponent's chain development using a bevel.

8.2. Turning - cutting off the straight-line trajectory of the opponent's chain development by means of growth.

8.3. Entry - development of a chain through a gap in the opponent's branch with the prospect of dividing it into isolated sections.

8.4. Passage - creating your own diagonal connection through the opponent's diagonal connection with the prospect of forming a tail.

8.5. Insertion - placing a single dot in a gap in the opponent's branch with the prospect of developing a chain and using an entry (passage).

8.6. Block - a response to an opponent's entry that does not allow one's branch to be split into isolated sections.

8.7. Departure - eliminating the gap between separate dots and a branch of the same color, eliminating the threat of their separation.

8.8. Spiking - blocking the opponent's ability to enter or passage by securing the chain to the wall.

8.9. Pocket - blocking the opponent's opportunity to passage by creating an unfinished house for one move.

8.10. Invitation - blocking the opponent's opportunity to passage by placing a dot that provides a net or ladder in case the pass is nevertheless made.

8.11. Sticking is placing a dot on a point adjacent to the opponent’s point (horizontally or vertically).

8.12. Contact – placing a dot on a point adjacent to the opponent’s point (diagonally).

8.13. Vise - sticking to the opponent's dot from two opposite sides in a straight line with the possibility of making a lunge on the next move.

8.14. Pincers - sticking to the opponent's dot from two adjacent sides diagonally with the possibility of making a lunge on the next move.

8.15. A raid is a move that threatens entry or passage and forces the opponent to make a spike or pocket.

8.16. Hacking is a move that occupies the opponent's form key and threatens to prevent it from executing its program.

8.17. Double hack - a move that occupies a key that belongs to two adjacent forms of the opponent simultaneously, forcing the latter to sacrifice the program of one of them.

8.18. A lunge is a move that creates a threat of encircling a dot (group of dots) with the next move.

8.19. A fork is a move that simultaneously creates a threat of encircling two separate dots (groups of dots) on the next move, forcing the opponent to sacrifice the other while defending one.

8.20. Network - the creation of such a configuration of one's branches and/or encirclement regions, in which an opponent's dot (branch, encirclement region) located within its boundaries is guaranteed to be surrounded in two or more moves and cannot be saved without an error by the surrounding player (becomes dead).

8.21. A ladder is a special case of a combination, a situation of continuously repeated lunges, which is created by the successive development of two parallel ends of a chain of the same color (or one relative to the previously developed second), and in the presence of a target dot (dots) of the same color in the attack line, it ends with the encirclement of the dots of a different color lying between the ends of this chain.

8.22. Complex ladder - a combination similar in execution to a ladder, differing from the latter in that the result is ensured not by successive lunges, but by successive threats, each of which guarantees the encirclement of the opponent's dots in two moves.

8.23. Theft is a move into an opponent's house that closes one's own encirclement chain.

8.24. Subway – the extension of one side's chain along the edge of the field in a situation where the other side responds with a synchronous extension of a parallel chain along the next line, threatening to turn and tactically land themselves with each subsequent move. If a station is available, the chain performing the subway can be extended toward the center of the field. If there is no station, the opponent will land their chain upon reaching the perpendicular edge of the field.

9.1. Positional struggle is the development of a game situation in which opponents generally do not interfere with each other's development of branches in the safest configuration, while striving, by expanding control over certain sectors of the field, to create favorable conditions for transition to an attack or successful defense in the event of an attack by the opponent.

9.2. A heated struggle is a game situation in which opponents, either unilaterally or mutually, actively interfere with each other's ability to develop branches in the safest configuration, striving to gain a position with high potential as quickly as possible and realize it.

9.3. A wide attack is an attack using abstract and/or light branches. If it is successful and the opponent continues to resist, it gradually transitions to a dense attack.

9.4. A global attack is a special case of a wide attack, in which the attacking side either deliberately sacrificed the center of the field and, accordingly, the dots (branches, encirclement regions) located there, or lost them in the opening (middlegame) and is now trying to form a chain of encirclement around all or most of the opponent's dots (encirclement regions), using for this, as a rule, the entire space of the playing field.

9.5. A dense attack is an attack using heavy branches. If it advances successfully and the enemy continues to resist, it will eventually lead to the formation of a chain of encirclement.

9.6. Abstract defense – a defense using abstract and/or light branches. If the opponent's attack cannot be thwarted early on, the defense gradually transitions to a dense defense.

9.7. Dense defense – a defense using heavy branches. Failure at the final stage results in the formation of a chain of encirclement by the enemy.

9.8. A fence is a special case of abstract defense, which is used in combination with a dense defense and consists of the defending side sharply breaking away from the ends of heavy branches, both their own and the opponent's, and making moves at a significant distance from them, creating a chain or form and blocking with it the shortest trajectory to the opposite flank of the attacking side.

9.9. A cautious attack is an attack in any form that does not necessarily aim to surround the opponent's branch(es), is carried out mainly without sacrifices and, as a rule, ceases immediately after the attacking side has surrounded and/or rendered dead a sufficient number of dots of the defending side to gain an advantage in the score.

9.10. A sharp attack is an attack in any form that is aimed at a decisive success, consisting of surrounding the opponent's branch(es), is carried out using sacrifices and, as a rule, does not cease even after the attacking side has received the current advantage in the score.

9.11. Passive defense is a defense in which the defending side, without allowing significant gaps in its branch, tries to preserve (increase) the degree of freedom of this branch and strategically land it, limiting itself to blocking the shortest trajectory between the flanks of the attacking side and locally influencing individual sections of the attacking branches.

9.12. Active defense is a defense in which the defending side deliberately creates significant gaps in its own branch, hoping that if the attacking side tries to take advantage of them, it will create a situation of mutual encirclement, coupled with an advantage in the degree of freedom over the opponent's tail.

9.13. Counterattack is a game situation in which the defending side, taking advantage of the opponent's mistake or independently creating the conditions for this, creates a real threat of encirclement of one of the branches (part of a branch) of the attacking side and forces the latter to either go on the defensive or continue the fight in a situation of mutual encirclement.

9.14. Threat of counterattack - a game situation in which the defending side makes a move (moves) that can potentially be used to carry out a counterattack, thereby forcing the attacking side to respond with a counterweight or to abandon the attack altogether.

9.15. A breakthrough is an attacking or active defensive move, which consists of one side developing its branch along a trajectory that intersects the trajectory of the opponent's branch, which leads to the creation of new crosses, tails (branches) and flanks.

9.16. Stretching (displacing) is a defensive technique that involves placing dots in gaps in the abstract, as well as in the vulnerable forms of the opponent's light or heavy branch, in such a way as to force them to switch to a wider attack radius or sacrifice individual dots (sections of the branch) to preserve attacking prospects. Typically, this is carried out sequentially in different areas of the field to make it difficult for the opponent to calculate their options.