In a real game of Go, players have 381 stones in total. It is therefore conceivable, in theory, that at a certain point one player might no longer be able to play because he has run out of stones. What would happen in such a situation?

The comments on the Tromp-Taylor Rules state this:



So under Tromp-Taylor rules running out of stones is not possible. What about other rules?

Well, it is only 361 total. And there are only 361 intersections on the board. Many times I have played a game and we have had to exchange prisoners. If there are not enough prisoners to exchange then probably one person is so far behind that he probably should have resigned anyway. It should not be a problem under Chinese rules.

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Still officially AGA 5d but I play so irregularly these days that I am probably only 3d or 4d over the board (but hopefully still 5d in terms of knowledge, theory and the ability to contribute).

I think only Ing rules specify each player has only 180 stones each. I think all the other rule sets assume an unlimited supply (which you can do with a prisoner exchange, or stealing from the bowls on the table next to you).

Most physical sets come with anywhere between a minimum of 150 stones each to at least 180 stones each.

What about after a long, drawn out ko?

Isn't a long drawn-out ko an example of a situation where you could exchange prisoners?

Ah, prisoner exchange, very clever, I hadn't thought of that (that's how inexperienced I am). I guess if running out of stones is not something that can happen in real-world play, nor is it a scenario considered by any specific rules, then I won't have to implement it in software.