Irish Fidchell

Fidchell (pronounced fickle) is based on the Welsh tafl (pronounced tabl) game known as tawlbwrdd ("throw board"). The board is a 12x12 square grid. the king piece is placed upon the center square marked with an "X". King's guards are placed in each of the two squares adjacent to and projecting outward to the right, left, top, and bottom of the central square. An additional piece is placed in each adjacent corner square totalling twelve in all. The pieces for the opposing force are placed six per side with five centered along the side and the sixth protruding up from the center forming a "T" of sorts. Pieces move as the rook in chess (any number of unobstructed spaces orthogonally). Capture is custodial in that a piece must be intentionally surrounded on two opposing sides by the enemy. Concerning both movement and capture the throne is considered a piece (may be be used to assist a capture and may only be crossed or occupied by the king piece). Capture of the king is by surrounding so as to render the king incapable of movement or surrounded on three sides and the throne such that the king must move to the throne to escape. In tawlbwrdd the king wins by moving to any unoccupied square along the any side. A tafl board was found in Ireland (7x7) marked with a curious quarter circle around each corner space (in this case peg holes). The game is all but unplayable using conventional rules. But when a tawlbwrdd is used and the corner squares marked for use as alternate seats of power (thrones) the uneven tafl game is nearly equalized. In all other tafl game the king is almost guaranteed a win hence the focus on playing well. With fidchell (based on an Irish game mentioned in the sagas and suspected of being a member of the tafl family) the king must progress to a corner rather than a side to win. This makes for a more intense game when played well. Tafl boards are easy to make using wood, leather, or cloth. A cloth version with stylized pieces known as "The Viking Game" can sometimes be found in the "Past Times" catalog (North American Office, Suite 400, 100 Cummings Center, Beverly MA 01915-6102). Rules and suggestions for board construction will also be available in the upcoming "Gamesmasters Handbook" (only one signature left to make it official). Lord Rowan O'Sidhe Kingdom Gamesmaster, An Tir harbingers@earthlink.net