Khnefatafl is a Scandinavian board game. The first mentions date back to the 3rd century A.D. e. Subsequently, the Vikings brought it to Greenland , Iceland , Wales , Britain , and, possibly, to Kievan Rus (see. Taveli ). With the spread of chess in Scandinavia ( X - XI centuries ), this game was forgotten.
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Rules Details
Khnefatafl (aka tufle) and other similar games were played on boards with an odd number of cells ranging in size from 7 × 7 to 19 × 19. Usually wooden, boards often had holes in the center of each cage, where chips with a pin were inserted, for easy storage and transportation. Often the boards had allocated places for the initial arrangement of pieces.
The game was sometimes played with a die that showed the maximum distance by which the chip can be moved, or whether the player can move the chip (even - moves, odd - does not move).
The royal chip is called Hnefi (" fist "). The king stands out for his size. The chips were made of horn , bone , glass , wood , amber , stones and other materials. The royal white chip is placed in the center of the board; she is surrounded by other white chips. Blacks go first.
There are practically no descriptions of the rules, and therefore it is not known for certain how the Vikings played this game. The following is one of the reconstructions.
Players make moves in turn. All pieces move in any direction, just like rooks in modern chess. The player can move any one chip of his color at any distance. Chips cannot "jump" through others. With the exception of the king, not one chip can stand on the "throne" and corner cells. On small boards, chips can pass through the throne, on large boards only the king can do this.
White is trying to lead the king to one of the corner cells. If they manage to put the king on an open line to one of these cells, they declare “Raichi” (check), if on two straight lines - Tuichi (checkmate). If the next move, they stand on the corner square - White wins. If a black player accidentally opens a passage for the white king, white can take advantage of it immediately. If a chip in its own way pinches an opponent’s chip between itself and another chip or between itself and an angular square, the opponent’s chip is considered eaten. More than one chip can be eaten at a time. The king is considered captured when he is surrounded on four sides. In this case, the corner cells, the throne, and the sides of the board can be considered parties. When the king is in danger of being captured by the next move, black warns the whites (check to the king). Black wins if the king is captured. The king can be captured with one white chip, being surrounded by black from all sides. A chip can enter between two enemy ones. In this case, it is not considered eaten. White can calmly place his chip between two blacks [1] .
White wins by leading his king to one of the corner squares. Black - if they managed to capture the king.
See also
- Chess from Lewis Island
- Tawley
Links
Notes
- ↑ Khnefatafl is a Viking game. Game rules with diagrams for different game options and board sizes.