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Free game guide · TABLE Method™

Azul

Planning and beauty without reading · Stage 1 to 2 (BGT suggestion)

Buy the guide, $7 See the TABLE plan

Azul TABLE Method™ Game Guide cover

What the game is

Players draft colored tiles from shared displays and arrange them on their own boards to decorate a palace wall. It needs no reading, and its weighted tiles are satisfying to handle.

Why it works at a table

Azul engages planning and visual-spatial thinking in a format that is beautiful and accessible. It requires minimal reading during play, although teaching and discussion may still need language support, and it offers a visual tile-drafting alternative to chess. The book offers it for older adults and intergenerational tables.

Try one variation

Gray-side wall (official variant, in the official rules). All players use the gray side of their boards. During wall tiling, place the tile from each completed pattern line into any legal space in the matching wall row. Each color may appear only once per row and once per column. If no legal space remains, move all tiles from that pattern line to the floor line. All other official rules apply.

  • Targets: Decision-making and planning
  • Suits: Experienced players who want more choice
  • Watch for: Overload for new players. Use it only after a standard game.
  • Debrief prompt: “How did more choice change your planning?”

The TABLE Method™, applied

A short excerpt from the full guide's TABLE plan. Anyone can pass, pause, or stop at any time.

  1. Target

    Notice focus, planning, and gentle interaction around shared displays.

  2. Assess

    Check the player count, the time, and whether the game serves today's goal.

    • Can everyone tell the tile colors apart? Most tiles carry patterns too; check with the group.

  3. Build

    • Play an open practice round.
    • Explain the floor line gently: it is a cost, not a failure.

  4. Lead

    • Play alongside, at an easy pace.
    • Admire boards without ranking them.

  5. Extract and Extend

    Debrief in order: Board, Self, Us, Life or Work, Extension. Ask what participants make of the game. Do not tell them.

Game not included; play by the rulebook in your box. In the BGT book: Chapter 9 (Games Across the Lifespan), offered as an alternative to chess for older adults and for groups where reading or language is a barrier. Independent companion. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Next Move Games. Azul is a trademark of its owner and is named only to identify the game. Board Game Therapy is not inherently psychotherapy. Copyright 2026 Solid State Strategies, LLC.

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