2 piles with 2000 and 2017 coins winning strategy
Source: JBMO Shortlist 2017 C3
July 25, 2018
combinatoricsgame strategycoins
Problem Statement
We have two piles with and coins respectively.
Ann and Bob take alternate turns making the following moves:
The player whose turn is to move picks a pile with at least two coins, removes from that pile coins for some , and adds to the other pile coin. The players can choose a different at each turn, and the player who cannot make a move loses.
If Ann plays first determine which player has a winning strategy.