The central square, called the throne, and the four marked corner squares may only be occupied by the king.The attackers are placed on four sides in the same lines as the defenders, two per side. The defenders surround him in the shape of a cross. The initial position of the pieces is shown in the following diagram.The second player plays for the defenders and the king. The first player plays for the attackers. There are 13 pieces total: 8 attackers, 4 defenders, and 1 king. The board is a square with a 7×7 grid.For that reason I have chosen to publish his rules and setup in this article. His setup has been tested out in Hnefatafl tournaments conducted by Aage Nielsen and were found to be the most balanced version of Brandubh. The accepted Brandubh rules and the initial setup of the board have been proposed by Eóin MacWhite in 1945, based on the Ballinderry board and mentions of the game in the two mentioned Irish poems. “Early Irish board games.” Eigse: A Journal of Irish Studies 5 (1946): 25-35. My famed brandub is in the mountain above Leitir Bhroin,įive voicelss men of white silver and eight of red gold.Įnglish translation from MacWhite, Eoin. Lines 3949-3950.Īcallam na Senórach (Tales of the Elders of Ireland) Irish Gaelic text from Stokes, Whitley, and Ernst Windisch, eds. isin tsléib os Leitir Broin,Ĭuiciur airgit gil can glór. Translation and Notes.” Irish Texts Society 2 (1922). “The Bardic Poems of Tadhg Dall O’Huiginn (1550-1591). Thou, O king of Bregia, on yonder square and a man on each side of thee.Įnglish translation from Knott, Eleanor. To the noble squares proper for the branán (Tara,Ī golden branán with his band art thou with thy four provincials I would draw to thy attention, O white of tooth, Leap up on that square, which is proper for the branán, Out in the exact centre of the plain, like a mark on a particoloredĪdvance thither, it will be a profitable step: The centre of the plain of Fál is Tara’s castle, delightful hill
#VIKING BOARD GAME HNEFATAFL RULES PROGRAMS FOR FIRST TIME MAC#
198-199.Ībair riom a Eire ogh (Tell Us About Ireland) attributed to Maoil Eoin Mac Raith … suighter duit orra (the poet names the five capitals: Teamhair,īranán óir guna fedhuin. as tí bhunaidh do bhranánĭo bhraithfinn shuit, a dhéd bhán. The corner squares being the target safe squares where the king has to arrive to win the game.Ībair riom a Eire ogh attributed to Maoil Eoin Mac Raith
Two Irish poems, Abair riom a Eire ogh from the 14th century, and Acallam na Senórach from the 12th century, describe Brandubh as being played with 13 pieces, the king, 4 defenders, and 8 attackers. The rules for Brandubh are unknown, but have been reconstructed based on the known rules for Tablut, the special corner markings on the Ballinderry Board and descriptions in Irish poetry. Waterford, Ireland.Ī second partial board was found in Knockanboy, near Derrykeighan, Antrim County, Northern Ireland in 1837 and was documented in an 1838 manuscript with a rough drawing, however, the board itself has been lost. Waterford Treasures Reginalds Tower Museum. One partial board was found in Waterford, Waterford County, Ireland, and is currently kept in Reginald’s Tower Waterford Treasures Museum on the site. Down County Museum, Downpatrick, Northern Ireland. It is double sided, and one side has a 7×7 grid made by crosshatched lines, a circle marking the central throne intersection and 4 semicircles on the corner intersections.ĭownpatrick Cathedral Gaming Board. One is carved on a stone found at the Down Cathedral, in Downpatrick, Northern Ireland, and is currently kept in the Down Country Museum, in Downpatrick.
In addition, three more Brandubh boards have been found. The board has 49 holes in 7×7 grid, with the 4 corner holes marked by semicircles around them, marking the unique feature of Brandubh, the corners where the king has to escape to.īallinderry Gaming Board. Its board has been found archaeologically in 1932 in Ballinderry crannog near Moate in Westmeath County, Ireland, and is known as the Ballinderry Board. Brandubh is the Irish variation of Hnefatafl. Its origins are unclear, but it seems that it has appeared during the Viking period, in the 7th or 8th century CE, in Scandinavia and other lands which the Vikings have conquered, as accounted for in archaeological finds of Hnefatafl pieces. Hnefatafl, meaning King’s Table (or literally, Fist Board Game) in Old Norse, is an asymmetric game of pure strategy played by the Vikings and neighboring people with many variations.
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