[pbmserv] New game: Conway

[Cameron Browne <cameronb@optusnet.com.au>]

A new game Conway has been added to the server. It's an interactive version 
of Life.

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Help For the Game Of Conway

Introduction

   Welcome to the network Conway server. The challenge command is
   described here. Other commands are the same as for all pbmserv games.

      conway challenge userid1 userid2 [userid3..8] [-size=S] [-place=P]

   Starts a new game between userid1, userid2... up to eight players.
   The -size option specifies the size of the board (default is 10).
   The -place option specifies the maximum number of pieces that players
   may place each turn (default is 4).

Introduction

   It's Life, Jim, but not as we know it.

Rules

   The board is initially empty. Players take turns placing a number of
   their pieces on empty board points.

   The first player places one piece on the first move, then the second
   player places two pieces on the second, increasing until the maximum
   number of pieces P is reached on move P. Players may place less than
   their allowed number of pieces and may pass.

   After move P, the board undergoes one cycle of life and death each
   turn, according to the Game of Life rules:
     1.  Any piece with 2 or 3 neighbours survives.
     2.  All other pieces die.
     3.  A new piece is born on any empty cell with 3 neighbours.

   New pieces are assigned to the player who contributed most to their
   birth (i.e. who had the most neighbours). If there is no dominat
   parent then the new piece becomes a neutral piece '#'. The board is
   toroidal, that is, it wraps from top to bottom and from left to right.

   The game is won by the last surviving non-neutral player.

Syntax

      conway move board# userid password a1,a2,a3,a4
      conway move board# userid password a1
      conway move board# userid password pass
      conway move board# userid password random (place random pieces)

   Random moves are marked with an asterisk in the move list.

References and History

   Conway was designed by Eric Schultz and Cameron Browne in Februrary
   2005, based on the Game of Life by John Conway.

   Implementation and help file by Cameron Browne, February 2005.