Tablut rules
How to play Tablut
Tablut is a compact 9×9 member of the Tafl family, with a king and 8 defenders against 16 attackers. Because it is smaller than Hnefatafl, games are quicker and the tactics are easier to learn — a great place to start with Viking Chess.
Setup, moving and capturing
The king begins on the central square with its 8 defenders; the 16 attackers form four groups on the edges. The attackers make the first move. As in all Tafl games, pieces move like a rook — straight lines, any distance, no jumping — and you capture by flanking an enemy between two of your pieces. Watch the special squares: a corner, or the throne once the king has left it, is hostile and can serve as the far side of a flank.
Winning
In our version — like most modern reconstructions — the king escapes by reaching a corner square, as in Hnefatafl. (The 1732 Linnaeus record of classic Tablut had the king escape via any edge square.) The attackers win by surrounding the king on all four sides; because the throne counts as a hostile wall, a king beside it needs only three attackers to fall.
The history of Tablut
Tablut is the Tafl variant we understand best, thanks to Carl Linnaeus. In 1732 the botanist travelled through Lapland and recorded the Sámi people playing it, writing down the board, the pieces and the rules in his diary. That account is the backbone of almost every modern Tafl reconstruction — without it, much of how these games were actually played would be lost.
Frequently asked questions
- How is Tablut different from Hnefatafl?
- Tablut is smaller (9×9 with 16 vs 8 pieces) and faster. Historically, Linnaeus recorded the king escaping via any edge square; like most modern reconstructions, our version uses corner escape for all variants, including Tablut.
- Where do the Tablut rules come from?
- They were written down by the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1732 after he watched the Sámi play it — the most complete historical Tafl ruleset we have.