A
Japanese term from the game of
Go (
Wei Qi/
Badouk). It refers to specific kind of move, best described in
English by the
phrase "
two-space jump." A move is called niken tobi if it the stone is placed in the same
row or
column as another friendly stone, with two empty points in between. If either intervening point contained a stone, it would not be niken tobi. If one of them contained an enemy stone, it would be a
contact play or some sort of
pincer, whereas if one contained a friendly stone, it would be building a
wall. In the diagram below, playing at any of the four points marked * would be a niken tobi move, from the stone marked "o". Note that the points marked with a "," instead of a "." must be empty, or the corresponding "*" would not be a niken tobi move (stones at any of the "." points would not change the name of the move, although they might change its purpose or
value).
....*....
....,....
....,....
.*,,o,,*.
....,....
....,....
....*....
Niken tobi is a rather fast move, meant to expand one's influence, enlarge a moyo, or attack a group of the opponent's. It is generally not advisable to play this move in a defensive situation, as it is too easy to cut, or at the very least leaves the opponent with some kikashi (forcing moves - moves that you must answer, lest you lose the whole group).
Perhaps one of the most common occurences of niken tobi is as a response to an approach to a third line wedge stone. In this situation, it is usually referred to as "building a base", since a niken tobi formation (with a little open space around it) on the third line is almost guaranteed to live, even if the opponent is strong in the vicinity. See the wedge node for a more detailed explanation and a diagram.
Niken tobi also appears occasionally as a jump towards the center of the board, if the group doing the jumping is already strong, or not under immediate attack. A weak group under attack should generally opt for ikken tobi instead.