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Big Eye Liberties
Path: GiveMeLiberties · Prev: BigEye · Next: BigEyesCanBeSmallInTheCorner Path: EyesCollection · Prev: SmallEyeLiberties · Next: BigEyesCanBeSmallInTheCorner
Keywords: Tactics
Eyes of more than 3 spaces are big eyes. Big eyes have more eye liberties than the number of empty points in the eye. The following diagrams explain. Beware however, big eyes can be small in the corner. KarlKnechtel: These diagrams show the big-eyed groups completely surrounded. Liberties are kind of useless in these cases... please refer to the examples at the bottom of the page for more practical application. Four-space big eye : five liberties
Using the same theory as in small eye liberties, we do the same counting for the four-space eye, the first big eye. First we count two liberties at the marked stones; now Black has three liberties left, because after White plays atari at a, and Black answers at b, we get...
... a three-space eye. So a four-space big eye has 2 + 3 = 5 liberties. That's three liberties for the "three-space eye" and two more liberties for the additional step above.
KarlKnechtel: This result also holds for the "square" arrangement for a 4-point eye. Other 4-point eye spaces are alive. Remember that two eyes trumps any consideration of liberties from a "capture-or-be-captured" perspective.
Again we count two liberties before the first capture, and three this time around. White's next play must be at the indicated point, or else black makes life. Note the difference though: The square cannot provide two eyes since it takes two moves in a row to DivideTheSpace; the t shape (FarmersHat) depends on sente. As a result, when (if) a semeai starts involving the group with a t-shaped eye, there has already been a play inside, so that only four liberties remain. Five-space big eye : eight liberties
The same theory goes, counting three marked stones, and after the exchange of White a and Black b, we have...
... a four-space big eye with five liberties. Summing up, a five-space big eye has 3 + 5 = 8 liberties. By the way, this shape is also known as the bulky five. That's five liberties for the "four-space big eye" and three more liberties for the additional step above.... You get the idea. KarlKnechtel: The greek cross also provides 8 liberties in the same way. Both of these shapes can be made alive if Black gets to play next, so as before, these shapes generally give only 7 liberties in a semeai. Other 5-point shapes are alive. Six-space big eye : 12 liberties
The last case, a six-space big eye...
... will get reduced to a five-space big eye. It has 4 + 8 = 12 liberties. KarlKnechtel: Yet again, you really only get 11 liberties in a semeai, since opponent will have already played here - otherwise, you can make life. There is more detail at FourIsFiveAndFiveIsEightAndSixIsTwelve. Seven-space big eye: 17 libertiesA very reduced set of eyes of seven spaces can be killed.
White can AlmostFill Black's 7 space big eye with a RabbittySix, a killing shape. After Black captures, a six spaces eye remains, leaving 12 liberties.Black's capture cancels out one of the five stones, giving a grand total of 17 liberties.
KarlKnechtel: This time, there must be *two* plays ahead of time by white in order to make it impossible to DivideTheSpace:
There are two implications of this fact:
This is a boundary case of sorts: All seven-space eyes are alive normally, but some of them are extensions of the unique 6-point DeadShape, and can thus be turned dead with enough stones inside. Since there are no dead 7-point shapes, it is impossible to kill a group with an 8-point eye in this way. (This assumes alternating play after the inside group is captured, with the owner of the captured group going first.) This is why, although we can extend the proverb to say "...and seven is seventeen", it makes no sense to continue with "... and eight is twenty-three". The theory is summarized by the proverb FourIsFiveAndFiveIsEightAndSixIsTwelve : 4=5, 5=8, 6=12.
This page is part of the Eyes Collection. Authors: Morten Pahle, Dieter Path: GiveMeLiberties · Prev: BigEye · Next: BigEyesCanBeSmallInTheCorner Path: EyesCollection · Prev: SmallEyeLiberties · Next: BigEyesCanBeSmallInTheCorner This is a copy of the living page "Big Eye Liberties" at Sensei's Library. ![]() |