A Template Matching Table for Speeding-Up Game-Tree Searches for Hex

Abstract

Transposition tables have long been a viable tool in the pruning mechanisms of game-tree search algorithms. In such applications, a transposition table can reduce a game-tree to a game-graph with unique board positions at the nodes. This paper proposes a transposition table extension, called a template matching table, where templates that prove winning positions are used to map features of board positions to board values. This paper demonstrates that a game-tree search for the game of Hex can have a more effective pruning mechanism using a template matching table than it does using a transposition table.