The Games We Play
Neeldhara Misra
Links to games played during the session
Two players: cop(s) and robber(s)
Typically both players move at the same speed along edges.
Turn-based strategy game with perfect information.
In the first move, the cops are positioned at some vertices of the graph.
The robber wins if they can evade capture forever.
In the second move, the robber picks their spot.
Otherwise, the cops win.
A graph is called a cop-win
if one cop is enough to corner the robber.
How can we determine if a graph is a cop-win?
A Pitfall ⚠️
For an edge \((u,v)\), \(u\) is a pitfall with an attack from \(v\) if \(N(u) \subseteq N(v)\).
If a graph is a robber-win,
then perhaps we need more cops?
The cop number of a graph is the smallest number of cops you need to deploy for the cops to win.
If a graph is a robber-win,
then perhaps we need more cops?
The cop number of a graph is the smallest number of cops you need to deploy for the cops to win.
Is the cop number well-defined?
Can the cop number be arbitrarily large in the #vertices?
Drunk robbers.
Lazy cops.
Cops on helicopters.
Imperfect information.
Long-range robbers
Infinite graphs.
https://slides.com/neeldhara/fdp-games-ai
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