An upgrade to the hnefatafl applet

Friday, 9th August 2013

Way back in 2004 when I wrote the first version of the hnefatafl applet for this site, I wasn't impressed with the idea of capturing pieces other than the king against the central square. So I never got around to building in the option. Since then, though, extra research into Linnaeus' rules and a bit of Latin learning has taught me the error of my ways, so I've now built the option into the applet.

The "Corner" setting with its "Hostile" and "Benign" options has been replaced with a "Hostile" setting that determines the squares against which you can capture enemies. The options are "None", "Corners", "Castle" (the central square, as well as the corners) and "King", which means defenders can be captured against the castle even if the king is at home.

This means that, among other interesting games, you can now play the Fetlar version of hnefatafl accurately with the applet. The settings for Fetlar are as follows... Objective: Corner, size 1; Hostile areas: Castle; Castle: Exclusive; King capture: Strict, Armed; Movement: Unlimited; Layout: Trondheim II; First move: Attacker.

So now would be a good time to get some practice in, ready for next week's English Hnefatafl Championship!