Ive played hnefatafl before, and the rules and the board were different. What gives?
Unfortunately, there was no medieval equivalent of Hoyle or Parker Brothers, so the rules for games and even board layouts tended to vary considerably. In the case of hnefatafl, I’ve seen boards anywhere from 7-by-7 to 17-by-17 squares in size. Also, in most cases no one thought to actually write down the rules, so most of what has come down to us is reconstructed from scattered references and more modern versions of the games. The rules I have for my games are based on what seem to be the most commonly accepted ones, but feel free to use your own variations.
