Hnefatafl
Brandubh
The small Irish game on 7x7, where the king is captured by an ordinary two-piece sandwich like anybody else.
What is different here
Brandubh is the tafl game named in an Irish poem that describes a board of seven squares by seven with five men at its heart. Boards of that size have been found in Ireland, so the poem and the archaeology agree about the shape even though neither says how a turn worked.
Eight attackers stand in pairs at the middle of each edge against four defenders and a king. The king wins by reaching a corner. It is over quickly: there is very little board, and both sides are one careless move from losing.
Because the board is so small, the usual reconstruction gives the king no protection at all. He is taken between two attackers exactly like an ordinary man, which is what keeps eight attackers a real threat.
- 7x7 board: 8 attackers against 4 defenders and the king.
- The king escapes to one of the four corners.
- The king is captured by two attackers, like any other piece.
- Empty corners and the empty throne are hostile and can complete a capture.
- Short, sharp games — a good way to learn tafl tactics.