Thud!
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Thud is a board game devised by Trevor Truran and first published in 2002,
inspired by the Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels.
In the game, the objective is to eliminate as many of the opposition's pieces
as possible. The two antagonists are the trolls and the dwarfs, the trolls
being few in number (but individually very powerful), while there are a large
number of dwarfs, but each individual dwarf is very weak and requires support
from nearby dwarfs to be of use against the trolls.
On the dwarfs' turn, they may either move or hurl one dwarf:
Move: any one dwarf is moved like a chess queen, any number of squares in
any orthogonal or diagonal direction, but not onto or through any
other piece, whether Thudstone, dwarf, or troll; or
Hurl: anywhere there is a straight (orthogonal or diagonal) line of
adjacent dwarfs on the board, they may hurl the front dwarf in
the direction continuing the line, as long as the space between the
lead dwarf and the troll is less than the number of dwarfs in
the line. This is different from a normal move in that the dwarf
is permitted to land on a square containing a troll, in which case
the troll is removed from the board and the dwarf takes his place.
This may only be done if the endmost dwarf can land on a troll
by moving in the direction of the line at most as many spaces
as there are dwarfs in the line. Since a single dwarf is a line of
one in any direction, a dwarf may always move one space to capture
a troll on an immediately adjacent square.
On the trolls' turn, they may either move or shove one troll:
Move: one troll is moved like a chess king, one square in any orthogonal
or diagonal direction onto an empty square. After the troll has been
moved, any dwarfs on the eight squares adjacent to the moved troll
may optionally [2] be immediately captured and removed from the
board, at the troll player's discretion; or
Shove: anywhere there is a straight (orthogonal or diagonal) line of
adjacent trolls on the board, they may shove the endmost troll
in the direction continuing the line, up to as many spaces as there
are trolls in the line. As in a normal move, the troll may not land
on an occupied square, and any dwarfs in the eight squares adjacent
to its final position may immediately be captured. Trolls may only
make a shove if by doing so they capture at least one dwarf.
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Games_of_the_Discworld#Thud
Koom Valley Thud
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For the 2005 rerelease of Thud, Truran devised a substantially different game
that could be played with the same board and pieces, known as Koom Valley Thud.
For the dwarfs to win they must move the rock to the far side of the valley -
onto any of the five squares on the opposite side of the board against which
the dwarf commander is sitting. For the trolls to win they must capture the
rock by placing three trolls adjacent to it (in any direction including
diagonally). If neither side can achieve their objective the game is drawn.
Movement is the same as Classic Thud except that Trolls may now move up to
3 spaces in any direction (horizontal, vertical or diagonal).
Dwarfs may move the Rock instead of moving a dwarf piece. It may move only one
square in any direction. To be moved it must be next to a dwarf and it must
also be next to a dwarf at the end of its move.
A troll captures a dwarf by trampling over it. It moves in a straight line
from a square next to the dwarf, through the square the dwarf is on and lands
on the empty square immediately beyond. The trampled dwarf is removed from
the board.
Several captures may be made in one move and a change of direction is allowed
between captures.
Dwarfs capture a troll by moving a dwarf so that the troll is trapped between
two dwarfs in any straight line (including diagonally). The three pieces,
two dwarfs and a troll, must all be in line.
If the dwarf that has been moved also traps another troll between itself and
another dwarf, that troll is also captured
Captures are only made when the capturing side moves a piece. The rock may be
moved and come to rest next to three trolls. It can only be captured when
a troll is moved.
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Games_of_the_Discworld#Koom_Valley_Thud
Koom Valley Football
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It's my variant of the Koom Valley Thud. Added a few changes in the rules
of the game:
1) Not allowed to capture of the opponent's pieces
2) Ball (unlike Rock) can move more than one square
3) Trolls can't move to the edge of the board
See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtCxPQ4DBCg |
