A Newcomer's Guide to Kubb (aka Viking Chess) (2024)

FAQs

Is Viking Chess the same as Kubb? ›

Legend has it that the Vikings used to played for hours on end during the light evenings during the summer months. Kubb is also often referred to as Viking Chess and is a popular garden game with families allowing everyone to join in with the fun and games.

Two teams of 2 to 6 players per side compete to first knock down all their opponents' five Kubbs, and then the King. Basically, the idea is to knock down big pieces of wood by tossing smaller pieces of wood; in practice, however, Kubb is a team-building game of skill, strategy and a little luck.

One of history's greatest board games, Hnefatafl(nef-ah-tah-fel), which translates as "King's Table," has been played for more than 1,600 years, far longer than chess. There are two ways to win: either the attackers (24 soldiers) capture the king, or the king (helped by his 12 soldiers) escapes to one of the corners.

The word kubb stems from the term vedkubbar, which means wooden block in the Gotland dialect of Swedish. Kubb is played between two teams. The objective of the game is to knock over all the kubbs, and then the king, with throwing sticks — before the opposing team does.

Games can last from five minutes to well over an hour. The game can be played on a variety of surfaces such as grass, sand, concrete, snow, or even ice.

In most games, the king can help to make captures like any other piece. There are some in which he can't, however. These are usually games in which he would otherwise be too strong: games where he wins on reaching an edge, and requires four attackers to capture him.

The attacking side moves first. All pieces move like the rook in Chess – in a straight line for as many empty squares as the player chooses.

If they knock down any Kubbs, Team 2 throws them into Team 1's half of the playing area. Where they land, they are stood up. If they hit each other, they are stacked on top of one another. They have 2 chances to land each Kubb in bounds.

“Kubb is a beautiful game. There's skill, there's strategy, there's luck, but there are no barriers when it comes to gender, age, or anything. You're competing as an individual because you want to knock something down.

The game has a basic strategy for each side. The attackers have to form a blockade to contain the king and his defenders, and gradually close in the ring until the defending forces are suffocated, capturing defenders and eventually seizing the king himself.

What is Viking chess called? ›

Also sometimes known as Viking chess, Tafl (also known as Hnefatafl) is considered the great strategy game of the Celtic and Nordic peoples during the Middle Ages, in addition to being charged with symbolism in the Viking culture.

Also known as Viking chess, hnefatafl is a board game in which a centrally located king is attacked from all sides. The game wasn't exclusive to the Vendels—people across northern Europe faced off over the gridded board from at least 400 BCE until the 18th century.

Our (rescheduled) July Spieleabend is all about Kubb (Viking Chess)–the Swedish game of skill and cunning, which is also popular in Germany.

Also sometimes known as Viking chess, Tafl (also known as Hnefatafl) is considered the great strategy game of the Celtic and Nordic peoples during the Middle Ages, in addition to being charged with symbolism in the Viking culture.

Welcome to Kubb (rhymes with “tube”), an ancient Scandinavian game that also goes by the name of “Viking Chess.” It is said that Viking villages played Kubb between raiding missions not only to keep occupied, but also to practice strategy and hand-eye coordination that would help in future missions.

Hnefatafl. Hnefatafl (sometimes now referred to as Viking Chess) was a popular game in medieval Scandinavia and was mentioned in several of the Norse sagas. Some of these saga references have contributed to controversy over the possible use of dice in playing hnefatafl.