1The king starts in the center with his defenders; the attackers start at the edges.
2Every piece moves like a rook: any number of empty squares in a straight line.
3Sandwich an enemy piece between two of yours to capture it; the king must be surrounded on all four sides.
4The king wins by reaching a corner; the attackers win by capturing him.
Questions
King's side: Move the King to any corner square. Attackers: Capture the King. Defenders win if the King reaches any corner. Attackers win by surrounding the King on all four sides. If the King is next to the throne, he must be surrounded on all three open sides plus the throne; elsewhere the board edge and the corners count as sides. If the player to move has no legal move, the game is a draw.
Played on a 9x9 board. The King starts in the center (throne). 8 defenders surround the King. 16 attackers are arranged on the four edges. Only the King can occupy the throne and corners.
Defenders: Create escape corridors for the King while keeping attackers at bay. Defenders: Don't let your guards get picked off one by one. Attackers: Block potential escape routes before moving in for the kill.
Hnefatafl games were played by Vikings and other Nordic peoples from around 400 CE until chess replaced them in the medieval period. Tablut was documented by Carl Linnaeus during his 1732 expedition to Lapland.
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