Loops is the basic objective of Trax. Not knowing how to create a loop threat will almost certainly lose any Trax game. Also, loops may be used to form a number of complex threats that cannot be defended. Increasingly difficult such threat often is the cause for a loss for advanced players too. Here, it is assumed you know about loop threats (see Introduction) and so we can move on to look at some simple combinations. (Important: In what follows, we will show the played tile as full colored squares separated from the board, and forced plays as light colored, brighter tiles beside it!)

Ls and edges

When a player threats to make a move that gives him two loop threats next turn, he has an L. Ls is the first basic combination learnt in Trax and has great strategic importance for advanced players too. Some simple Ls look like this. Now remember rule 2. (If two ends of the same color meet on an empty space, they will be joined with a new tile.) Using this rule, find a move that will give two attacks (for black in the left example and for white in the two others).

The correct move in the left example is shown to the left below. This will give a double threat for black shown in the middle. Note that this is the only move that works, a move such as that shown to the right will not result in any force play and thus give only one threat (which can be defended).

When the player threats to make a loop threat and an L next turn it is called an edge. The position where an edge can be made is almost as common as that of the L and that too very powerful. An edge is shown below.

(Advanced note: This could be called a BWWB edge from the pattern at top. Other winning edges include BWWWB, BWWWWB, BWBWWB etc.) Build up this pattern for yourself and try it!) Note that the move shown gives an attack to the right and an L to the left for black. White will have to defend this attack and next move, black can play the L as shown above!

Advanced threats

We use a common opening trap, the 5 curves trap, to show a simple version of a multiple stage loop threats, the continuation of Ls and edges. It is shown in the upper left below. Black to play, and black to win! (1) Starting with a four-stage threat, you(black) create and edge at bottom and an attack with your move. (2) Second player defends the attack. (3) Continuing with a three-stage threat, an edge (that you already learnt about above!), you create an attack and a two-stage threat, an L. (4) The other player needs to defend the attack, and so you can (5) activate the L, to get two attacks. (6) Only one can be defended, and so you can win next turn (wide loop at bottom in last picture below).

A new player will usually start to in turn recognize attacks, L:s, edges, and four stage threats in this order. After this, one may see who to combine these types of threats for powerful results!

Hollows and cave strategy

A position of not as great strategic importance to the game is caves and hollows. Still, as this is harder to see, one player recognizing this but not the other would give that player a big advantage. Most importantly, some hollows are actually Ls thought they might not look as it.

We can see that it is a filling hollow by looking at the corner marked above. There, ther color pattern is BWBB, three blacks and one white. If the rest of the pattern in the cave is alternating, this means it will be possible to fill it all with only one move! In this case, the fill gives two attacks for white if he plays the move shown below.

Also some caves may give indefendable threats. In combination with a loop threats, such caves can create a threat similar to the edge. For the simplest instance of a cave threat, if it is blacks turn above to the left, he can play the move shown at right to get an indefendable attack. (Hint: Try to see what will happend if white tries to defend it to realize why it is undefendable!)

Separation of threats

Most difficult to find of the short-term loop wins is probably the "separation" of threats. This is done on a BBWBB color combination, playing a + on the middle square. As the new situation formed will have a triple WWW pattern only one of the black corners can be defended next turn. This makes if possible to make interesting threats in such a position. For now, we show only the simplest instance of a separation will be shown. (In this example, we get a separated loop threat and an L, so this could be called an edge as well.)

Faulty threats

Sometimes, one may find threats the are faulty, in the sense that playing the threat will not achieve the desired result. The typical example here is an L. Playing the L will give the opponent an attack and thus a win! This is shown below. If white plays as shown he gets two attacks of his own, but also gives black an attack, so black can win next turn. (hope you see where!). The same would be true if it were black to play, and he had played instead the corresponding move in lower right!

Moving on

While finding the right loop attacks is a considerable challenge, as long as there is only loops, Trax just is not Trax anymore. Lines are needed as well. While very interesting combinations can be made with loops, the inexperienced player will much more often see himself surprised with line threats by a better player. Such threats is in a way much more advanced, as making a computer program to play good line games and to recognize lines seems almost impossible. This is what the next section will be all about.