Hnefatafl (Hn-ef-ah-ta-ful)

Hnefatafl (Hn-ef-ah-ta-ful)

A fine evening to you, mortals, and no, that is NOT a typo! There is (was) a game called Hnefatafl!

Hnefatafl is another ancient game, like the Royal Game of Ur. Hnefatafl originates from Norse countries, primarily Scandinavia. This game is played by two players, each playing a different side.

One team plays the "King" team, which covers twelve pieces, plus a King piece. Their objective is to get the King piece from his starting centre square to one of the four corners of the board. The regular pieces surround the King.

The other team plays the attackers. They have twenty-four pieces positioned around the four sides of the board, and have the objective of surrounding the King piece on all four sides.

Each piece in Hnefatafl (including the King) moves similarly to a Rook or Castle in Chess; they can move any number of squares left, right, up, or down. None can move diagonally. Once the King has left his centre square, no pieces can move into it; once the attacking team pieces have left their starting squares, no pieces can move into them (except attacking pieces leaving their starting spaces passing through to get out).

I very much like this game; much like Chess, it's played purely on chance, but it is played by asymmetrical teams with differing objectives, something not often pulled off well by designers.

That's enough from me for this post. Praise to the Emperor.