Papillon's Escape and Hnefatafl by Jumping Frog Toys are two commercial offerings that use this layout, and it is present in a couple of books in my collection. However, this has not stopped others from experimenting in modern times. It is not practical to use this layout in games where the king must reach a corner, as attacking pieces already occupy the corners.Īlternative 9x9 Board Layout Linnaeus left us a precise drawing of the layout of pieces for a 9x9 board. The layout has apparently been inspired by the image on the Golden Horn of Gallehus, which arranges circular marks around the edge of the board in a similar, but more even, manner. Since the attackers also have a lot of room, it is easy to complete the blockade.įidchell Layout A number of people label this layout "fidchell", although literary sources suggest that fidchell was a game of equal forces rather than a hnefatafl game. Compared to the ard-ri board, it gives the king's forces much more room to manoeuvre, but the king's forces are still very much hemmed in from the start of the game, with all the corner areas blocked off. Small Viking Siege Layout The computer game Viking Siege uses this layout for its game on the smallest hnefatafl board. However, with 51% of the board occupied, the king's task is extremely difficult without some changes to the usual rules. There is little evidence that this was ever attempted before modern times, although a large number of boards conform to this size, and many piece finds conform closely to this number. The rules need to be adjusted in order to accommodate such a game without making the attackers' task impossible.Īrd-Ri Board Layout This crowded layout is an attempt to fit 25 pieces on a board of seven rows by seven. For its rules it adopts a strange 21-piece layout where the attackers are only one and a half times the defenders' number. Unusual Ballinderry Layout Some time ago I came by a game which is a vague likeness of the Ballinderry board, cast in resin. I have seen this layout marketed commercially by Viking Crafts and Shannon Games, among others. However, it satisfies the needs of those who think that thirteen pieces are too few and 25 too many for this board. Secondly, it lacks the 90-degree rotational symmetry of the other boards. Firstly, the number of defenders is not divisible by four. Nineteen-piece Layout This layout differs from the rest in two points. But while this looks pretty, the attackers form a blockade, such that any defender that tries to break through is liable to immediate capture. It is probably the most attractive layout for thirteen pieces on the small board. Magpie Brandub Layout Nigel Suckling in the Leprachaun Companion gives this as a layout for Brandub. It has the peculiarity that if the attackers move first, they can guarantee an early capture: moving one of the attackers inwards so it is directly adjacent to two defenders will create a fork. Zillions Brandub Layout The computer game Zillions of Games includes a brandub variant with this layout. For instance, more crowded games sometimes work better when pieces are restricted in the distance they can move, while sparse games like the alea evangelii compensate by having the attacking blockade in an advanced state at the beginning of the game. There are many layouts which do not follow the formula, but these generally require adjustments in rules or layout to create a balanced game. More open space tends to favour the king by giving him and his forces more routes to escape consequently less open space favours the attackers who will find it easier to make blockades. This gives a ratio of pieces to empty space of approximately 30%. Many layouts conform to a simple formula: p = 6w - 29, where p is the number of pieces and w is the width of the board, in playing spaces. The 7x7 and 13x13 boards have no clear standard, while the 15x15 board has been so far neglected. But there is a vast number of alternatives as people have experimented with the game. Some board layouts have become widely adopted, particularly Linnaeus' layout and the diamond-centred layout on the 11x11 board, and the alea evangelii layout is practically undisputed on the 19x19 board. Other Board Layouts | Hnefatafl: the Game of the Vikings Hnefatafl: the Game of the Vikings
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