Tablut

Overview

Tablut is the most reliably sourced variant in the tafl family, recorded by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus during his 1732 Lapland expedition among the Sami people and published in Lachesis Lapponica (English translation 1811). A corrected translation was produced in 2013 by Finnish linguist Olli Salmi. Tablut is the only tafl variant documented from living practice; all other variants in this hub are historical reconstructions.

Components

Board: 9×9 squares. The central square (e5) is the castle, also called the throne (konakis in Sami). No piece may land on the throne once vacated, including the King.

Pieces:

• Swedish (defenders): 1 King + 8 defenders (light)
• Muscovite (attackers): 16 attackers (dark)

Starting Position

• King: e5 (centre)
• Defenders (8): c5, d5, f5, g5 (horizontal arm); e3, e4, e6, e7 (vertical arm)
• Attackers (16): d1, e1, f1, e2 (south); d9, e9, f9, e8 (north); a4, a5, a6, b5 (west); i4, i5, i6, h5 (east)

Muscovite attackers move first.

Movement

All pieces move any number of empty squares orthogonally, in the manner of a rook in chess. No piece may jump another. No diagonal movement.

Throne Square

The throne counts as a hostile square for custodial captures against any piece. No piece may land on the throne once the King has vacated it, including the King himself.

Capture

A piece is captured by custodial capture: sandwiched orthogonally between two enemy pieces, or between one enemy piece and the empty throne square. A piece that moves voluntarily between two enemies is not captured; the trap must be closed by the moving piece. The King may participate in captures.

King Capture

The King is captured when surrounded on all four orthogonal sides by attackers. If the King is adjacent to the empty throne, three attackers suffice (the throne counts as the fourth side).

Win Conditions

• Defenders win if the King reaches any square on the board edge.
• Attackers win if the King is captured.
• Draw if neither player can achieve their objective.

Special Terms

When the King has one escape route to the board edge, the defending player announces raichi. When the King has two such routes, the call is tuichu. These are modern additions, likely borrowed from chess.

Historical Note

Linnaeus witnessed Tablut being played by Sami people in Lapland in 1732. The original diary entry was first translated to English in 1811 (Lachesis Lapponica). The Salmi corrected translation (2013, updated 2015) addresses transcription errors in the earlier version and forms the basis of the most widely used tournament ruleset. Under the Salmi ruleset, the Muscovite (attacking) side wins approximately 60% of games.