For a very good look at the history and range of the game in ancient Europe, as well as the variations, check out http://www.nucleus.com/~npl/history.htm
A
A
A
A
A
D
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A
D
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K
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D = Defender
K = King
Moves All men move as a rook in chess — as far as they choose to go in their row or column until reaching the edge of the board or another man. There are no diagonal moves, and no jumps. The defender always moves first. Object The object of the game depends on whether you play the attacker or the defender. For the defender, the object is to move the King off the table, thus escaping the siege. For the attacker, the object is to capture the King. Capture To capture a man, a player must surround it on two opposing sides, either vertically or horizontally, like so:
A D A -- defender is captured and removed from the table D A -- attacker is captured and removed from the table D
The King, however, is a special case, and can only be captured by surrounding on all fours sides, either alone as
A A K A A
or along with a single defender adjacent to the king in any direction, as
A A D K A A
It may seem that the defender is at a serious disadvantage, having only about half the number of men as the attacker, but in practice I've found that an aggressive defender can usually open up a path to an exit without too much difficulty. The game itself, as you can see, is quite simple, but the strategies can be very subtle. As in chess, it helps to think ahead several moves.
If, at the end of the defender's turn, the King has a clear path to an unoccupied square at the edge of the board, the defending player must announce that s/he has a way off. If the king manages to move off the board, the defending player wins; if the king is captured, the attacking player wins.