An \(O(n)\)-round strategy for the Magnus-Derek game (Q1662552)

Summary: We analyze further the \textit{Magnus-Derek} game, a two-player game played on a round table with \(n\) positions. The players jointly control the movement of a token. One player, Magnus, aims to maximize the number of positions visited while minimizing the number of rounds. The other player, Derek, attempts to minimize the number of visited positions. We present a new strategy for Magnus that succeeds in visiting the maximal number of positions in \(3(n-1)\) rounds, which is the optimal number of rounds up to a constant factor.