What is Asalto?
Asalto is a siege game on the 33-point cross. The nine points of the top arm are the fortress. Diagonal lines are drawn in every block of two by two squares, so they pass through only every other point.
One player has two officers, the other has twenty-four rebels, which start on every point outside the fortress. The officers' player first places both officers on any points of the fortress. Then the rebels make the first move, and the players take turns.
An officer moves like the fox: a step along a line in any direction, or a jump over a neighbouring rebel to the empty point beyond it, which captures that rebel, with further jumps in the same turn when they are possible. A rebel steps forward, diagonally forward or sideways along a line, never back.
An officer does not have to capture, but missing a capture is punished. When the officers' player makes a move that is not a capture while an officer could have captured, every officer that could have captured is removed from the board. This is called huffing.
The rebels win by occupying all nine points of the fortress, by leaving the officers with no move, or when no officers remain. The officers win by capturing rebels until fewer than nine remain, too few to fill the fortress.
Sideways steps would let both sides shuffle forever, so a position that comes up a third time with the same side to move is a draw, and so are fifty moves each without a capture or a forward step.
Rule changes
| Rule | Standard Fox & Geese | Asalto |
|---|---|---|
| Board | Standard Fox & Geese33 points, with a diagonal between every two neighbouring points. | AsaltoThe same 33 points, with diagonals only through every other point. The top arm is the fortress. |
| Pieces | Standard Fox & GeeseOne fox and 13 geese (15 or 17 with the option in the table setup). | AsaltoTwo officers and 24 rebels. The geese count option is not used. |
| Starting position | Standard Fox & GeeseThe fox on the centre point; the geese on the row across the middle below it and on the bottom arm. | AsaltoThe rebels on every point outside the fortress. The officers' player places both officers anywhere in the fortress before play. |
| First move | Standard Fox & GeeseThe fox. | AsaltoThe rebels, once the officers are placed. |
| How geese or rebels move | Standard Fox & GeeseForward or diagonally forward along a line; sideways only with the option in the table setup. | AsaltoForward, diagonally forward or sideways along a line, never back. A position that comes up a third time, or fifty moves each without a capture or a forward step, is a draw. |
| Missed captures | Standard Fox & GeeseNo penalty: the fox may always choose not to capture. | AsaltoHuffing: after a move that is not a capture, every officer that could have captured is removed. |
| How the officers win | Standard Fox & GeeseThe fox wins by capturing geese until fewer than four remain, or by leaving the geese with no move. | AsaltoCapture rebels until fewer than nine remain, or leave the rebels with no move. |
| How the rebels win | Standard Fox & GeeseThe geese win by trapping the fox. | AsaltoOccupy all nine points of the fortress, trap both officers, or remove both by capture penalties. |
History
Asalto is a siege game on the fox and geese theme, in which two officers face a rebellion by many soldiers. Its precise origin is unknown, and despite its Spanish-sounding name it is not a Spanish game. It was popular in Germany, where it is called Belagerungsspiel, the siege game, and where several variations were made. In Britain it was sold as Officers and Sepoys after the Indian rebellion of 1857, and it has also been known as the Assault Game and German Tactics.
Frederic Grunfeld describes the game in Games of the World (1975). The rules played here follow the usual modern description: the officers are placed in the fortress by their player, the rebels move first, an officer that fails to make an available capture is removed, and the rebels win by filling the fortress or by trapping or removing both officers.