2026-10-04 16:15 Hagbard: Comment:
Hattusili won the first Copenhagen Round 2 game.
2026-10-04 15:33 Hagbard: In my opinion, the WTF tournament games we have seen this year have been of high quality and very interesting, and this applies across the entire rating range!
2026-10-04 15:33 Hagbard: Info:
The discussion about the format and variants will not change this year’s tournament.
2026-10-04 15:32 Hagbard: Alex Hnefatafl:
Tell Gulo that, firstly, this will shorten the playing time, because there will be twice as many games. Secondly, the current player community is not capable of playing a large number of high-quality games. The 13×13 board is more difficult and requires a higher level of play than the players currently have. Title games on such a board are currently not very exciting or interesting.
2026-10-04 12:27 gulo: Why remove historical 13x13? That is one of our most succesful reconstructed variants in my opinion.
2026-10-04 10:15 Hagbard: Alex Hnefatafl:
To determine the winner more accurately, a larger number of games should be played than at present. I suggest removing the 13×13 board from the Historical variant. At the end of each round, the players who survive should be given one additional life. At the same time, however, everyone should play twice as many games. Starting from Round 3, each player should play 4 games against every other player instead of 2. This is a more professional and effective approach.
I would like you to post this message on the small forum. The same applies to Copenhagen.
2026-10-03 09:13 Hagbard: Comment:
When calculating the performance rating for the first round and comparing the result with the players’ regular ratings, these players have exceeded their ratings the most:
Copenhagen:
floki, rating 1660 but performance rating 2150, +490
Historical:
dimetr, rating 1790 but performance rating 2219, +429
2026-10-02 17:48 Hagbard: Comment:
Waclaw made the first move in Copenhagen Round 2.
2026-10-02 17:29 Hagbard: May Thor grant you strength and courage on your way.
2026-09-30 22:16 Hagbard: Comment:
Pavlo won the first Historical Round 2 game.
2026-09-30 20:08 Hagbard: Attention:
All players in Copenhagen Round 2 are now known.
Although there are still 5 Round 1 games remaining, Round 2 could, for example, start on Friday at around 18:00 Danish time.
Does anyone have any objections to this idea?
2026-09-28 19:25 gulo: That’s fine with me :)
2026-09-28 18:25 Hagbard: Comment:
Alex Hnefatafl made the first move in Historical Round 2.
2026-09-28 18:22 Hagbard: Even in the sheath, the sword must be sharp.
2026-09-28 15:16 Hagbard: Notice:
All players of Historical Round 2 are now known; only one game is left of Round 1: ChaolAibhne / Gulo, Would it disturb you if we start Round 2 tonight?
2026-09-27 22:00 Hagbard: Attention:
Historical Round 2 could start rather soon
2026-09-25 14:57 Hagbard: Comment:
Potapych is first to finish Race Games Round 1.
2026-09-24 11:13 Hagbard: Comment:
Dimetr is first to finish Historical Round 1 with all games won.
2026-09-21 20:29 Draganov: @Rosk, I tried practically every possible setup for the Copenhagen variant. I think the setup you proposed will favor the blacks too much. At first it seems like the blacks are in a bad position. However, if we examine the position, we will see that the corners are almost covered. So, I think with this setup the blacks will win almost every single game.
2026-09-21 08:53 rosk: Hello everyone! Did you play such an arrangement of the pieces?
https://imgdb.io/i/A8Fr29I.jpg
2026-09-20 00:20 Black Raven: It works now! Thank you!
2026-09-19 21:09 Hagbard: Thank you! Corrected
2026-09-19 19:21 Black Raven: Hagbard, I'm getting this error message when I try to type a message in game chat:
Parse error: Unmatched '}' in /var/www/aagenielsen.dk/public_html/beskeder_nojava.php on line 41
2026-09-18 09:06 Hagbard: Info:
The timer for the two Luizz games is paused.
However, the “Check your time” overview page shows the time for the two games as it would have been without the pause, and that figure can simply be ignored.
2026-09-15 18:40 sqaree: Hi, I'm sorry for timing out on all of my games of the current World Championship, although I was about to lose 3 out of the 4 games anyway.
I also finally figured out how to send a message in this chat.
I wanted to say about the last Championship, I was extremely happy with my performance, beating opponents that are leagues above me.
This feat took a LOT of time and effort, and I knew I wouldn't be able to replicate it this year.
That's why my heart wasn't really in it this year. Sorry guys, GL to everyone and see you next year! :)
2026-09-15 11:37 Hagbard: @Luizz: I have discussed the matter with the umpire, and it’s okay. Good luck!
2026-09-14 19:14 Hagbard: Comment:
Floki is first to finish Copenhagen Round 1 with all games won.
2026-09-14 18:21 Hagbard: Comment:
Potapych won the first two Race Games.
2026-09-14 16:07 Luizz: @Hagbard, I have a surgery scheduled on Wednesday and will probably not be able to play for at least 3 days. Any chance I could get a „vacation“ for a few days?
2026-09-14 15:38 Hagbard: Comment:
Pokshtya made the Race Games tournament's first moves.
2026-09-14 15:20 Hagbard: One's back is vulnerable, unless one has a brother.
2026-09-13 12:20 Hagbard: Comment:
Finneon7 is first to qualify for Historical Round 2
2026-09-13 08:09 Hagbard: The Race Games tournament starts tomorrow at about 18 o'clock Danish time. Please check that you're on the list:
rosk, Pokshtya, xerxes, Hagbard, Jrton80, Colophonius, Tonythebook, Potapych, Draganov, saxon, Paul7, cacreal, brave-frog, ChaolAibhne, SuruRada
Deadline for registering for the Race Games line: tomorrow at 12 o'clock Danish time.
2026-09-11 09:22 Hagbard: The Race Games tournament starts in 3 days. Please check that you're on the list:
rosk, Pokshtya, xerxes, Hagbard, Jrton80, Colophonius, Tonythebook, Potapych, Draganov, saxon, Paul7, cacreal, brave-frog, ChaolAibhne, SuruRada
2026-09-10 16:11 SuruRada: Registers for the WTF Race Games Tournament.
2026-09-09 21:03 Hagbard: Comment:
The first two Historical games of this year finished and were won by Pavlo.
2026-09-07 17:06 Hagbard: Comment:
Brave-Frog made the Historical tournament's first four moves.
2026-09-07 17:03 Hagbard: When men meet foes in fight, better is stout heart than sharp sword.
2026-09-07 11:09 Attila-F: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-09-07 10:19 Hagbard: Thank you! Corrected
2026-09-07 08:44 Потапыч: Why am I not in the tournament bracket for Historical Hnefatafl 9x9 (aka Saami Tablut)
2026-09-06 07:33 Hagbard: The Historical tournament starts tomorrow at about 18 o'clock Danish time. Please check that you're on the list:
Alex Hnefatafl, Ailill, gulo, Hagbard, Tonythebook, Pavlo, Potapych, Dimetr, Draganov, MasterLuke, saxon, Zugwykor, Paul7, LuckyScoundrel, Finneon7, brave-frog, Casshern, Askeladd, brave-frog, ChaolAibhne
Deadline for registering for the Historical line: tomorrow at 12 o'clock Danish time.
2026-09-04 17:43 Hagbard: Comment:
Hattusili is first to qualify for Round 2
2026-09-04 14:24 Waclaw: I got the joke :) But the king is also ridiculous, all the white pieces are misaligned. Just noticed it recently. Now my eye twitches whenever I look at it :)
2026-09-04 13:39 Floki: @Waclaw The reason must have something to do with the fact that the white soldiers do not pledge allegiance to their king, who is centred !
2026-09-04 07:13 Hagbard: The Historical tournament starts in 3 days. Please check that you're on the list:
Alex Hnefatafl, Ailill, gulo, Hagbard, Tonythebook, Pavlo, Potapych, Dimetr, Draganov, MasterLuke, saxon, Zugwykor, Paul7, LuckyScoundrel, Finneon7, brave-frog, Casshern, Askeladd, brave-frog, Casshern, ChaolAibhne
2026-09-02 17:52 Waclaw: In the new token design for Copenhagen and Brandubh, the black tokens are perfectly centered, while the white ones are shifted to the right of the square. How do I unsee this now? :)
2026-09-02 16:45 Hagbard: Warning:
Each move must be done within 3 days.
Therefore SuruRada and Zinedine80 have timeouts coming in 24 hours.
2026-09-02 14:04 Hagbard: New Sahkku World Champion 2026, Jørgen Betten from Nesseby, Norway:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Sapmi/comments/1w1jw11/s%C3%A1hkkuverdensmester_fra_nesseby/
2026-09-02 09:31 Hagbard: Comment:
— and Potapych made the tournament's first two moves.
2026-09-01 22:33 Hagbard: Comment:
The first two games of this year finished, both were won by Hattusili.
One was won by surrounding all whites, and the other was won by the guillotine.
2026-09-01 18:32 ChaolAibhne: Registers for the WTF Race Games Tournament.
2026-09-01 18:28 ChaolAibhne: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-08-31 21:47 Hagbard: Registered by August 31:
2026-08-31 20:01 Hagbard: Info:
NB. Last year, I kept a very close eye on all approaching timeouts and warned players about them a total of 73 times. I won't have time to do that this year! So please keep a close eye on the game timing, e.g. here:
https://aagenielsen.dk/wtftidsfrister.php
2026-08-30 08:43 OdinHimself: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-29 19:08 Askeladd: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-08-29 19:08 Askeladd: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-29 08:25 Hagbard: I had not heard about it
2026-08-28 19:43 gulo: Very random: I just moved to the small town called Slangerup in Denmark. Now I read in the local newspaper that a guy in the same town is starting up a new online platform for old board games, including hnefatafl and other games we play here. He’s arranging an “opening weekend” tomorrow. Unfortunately he didn’t include the historical variants. Anyone here heard about this before now?
https://taflgildet.dk/
2026-08-28 09:45 Hagbard: @fermillyc: If you join the Copenhagen WTF tournament, which time zone will be valid for you? It may be important for the timing.
2026-08-28 09:28 Hagbard: Info: It looks like the Copenhagen tournament this year may well be as many as two rounds shorter, because elimination is again after 4 lost games rather than 5.
2026-08-28 08:29 Casshern: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-08-28 08:29 Casshern: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-28 08:15 Hagbard: The Copenhagen tournament starts in 3 days. Please check that you're on the list (Draco has no games yet):
25 players: Alex Hnefatafl, Waclaw, Black Raven, Ailill, SuruRada, Hagbard, Jrton80, Tonythebook, Murray7, sqAree, Pavlo, Potapych, Hattusili, Fraech, Draganov, saxon, Paul7, Zinedine80, LuckyScoundrel, Luizz, cacreal, Askeladd, Finneon7, brave-frog, fermillyc
2026-08-28 03:10 Draco: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-27 21:39 fermillyc: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-27 12:03 Hagbard: and the boy who won 2025 looks like his son?
2026-08-27 11:33 Mihkkal: On the video, that's Dag Broch, who's behind the Unjárga World Championships and who has won cups both in Unjárga and Oslo
2026-08-25 19:18 Hagbard: NB! The Copenhagen WTF tournament starts in 6 days, August 31 at about 18 o'clock Danish time!
2026-08-24 14:13 Hagbard: If the WTF-tournament were to start now, the setup would be:
https://aagenielsen.dk/wtfturnering2026.php
2026-08-24 10:37 Hagbard: Here is a local video from Sápmi demonstrating the rules of the more complicated Sahkku variant:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL-2djunKA4
2026-08-24 10:18 Hagbard: Article on Norwegian TV in 2018 about the Sámi race game Sahkku:
https://www.nrk.no/sapmi/slik-spiller-du-det-ursamiske-spillet-_sahkku_-1.14196821
Here is an article from Finnmark County Municipality from 2026:
https://www.ffk.no/tjenester/kultur-og-kulturarv/aktuelt-kultur-og-kulturarv/sahkku-det-samiske-brettspillet-som-engasjerer-hele-finnmark.69707.aspx
And here the local newspaper in Sápmi, Varangeravisa, reports on last year’s Sahkku World Championship tournament:
https://varangeravisa.no/2025/08/30/se-10-aring-fra-tana-bli-verdensmester/
2026-08-22 10:35 Hagbard: Regarding the race games:
The annual Sahkku World Championship will be held in Northern Norway on August 29, and as usual, it will take place at the Várijat Sámi Musea in Varangerbotn.
The tournament is a regular part of the annual Sámi market, Vuonnamárkanat, which takes place around the museum.
They use a much more complicated version of Sahkku there than we do.
(I had AI look these things up, but it seems to be correct.)
Since the annual World Champion is crowned in Sápmi, we only call our winner Master.
2026-08-21 16:44 brave-frog: Registers for the WTF Race Games Tournament.
2026-08-21 16:43 brave-frog: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-08-21 16:43 brave-frog: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-21 11:23 Hagbard: Just a little note on how to manage the paired games in the WTF tournament (which will start on the evening of August 31):
There may, perhaps unconsciously, be a risk of being influenced by the opponent’s moves and inadvertently mirroring them in your own game.
We saw a few cases of this some years ago.
As a precaution against this, I use the following method myself:
I let the player with the lower rating start. Only after about ten moves does the player with the higher rating start the other game.
2026-08-19 23:50 Finneon7: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-08-19 23:50 Finneon7: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-19 02:17 Askeladd: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-18 07:32 Ytreza: @Waclaw - I'm sometimes out of network connection for more than a week, especially in the winter. So I can't participate
2026-08-17 18:29 Hagbard: New in gallery: Ringsted Medieval Festival
2026-08-15 21:39 cacreal: Registers for the WTF Race Games Tournament.
2026-08-15 21:38 cacreal: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-15 04:04 williebgoode: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-13 12:16 Hagbard: New in gallery: Lejre and Roskilde.
2026-08-12 10:12 Luizz: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-12 08:55 Hagbard: New in gallery: Alex Hnefatafl's game sets
2026-08-10 17:54 Masterluke: Nah, forget about it. Doesn’t work at all…
2026-08-10 17:35 Masterluke: Forgot to mention: pieces should only move 1 space. I'll give it a try on Fellhun's app ;)
2026-08-10 14:48 Masterluke: Just wondering: Is an Ard-Ri game with 25 pieces (same amount as Tablut) on a 7 x 7 grid, but NO throne and edge-escape with a weak king applied, ever tested on this site? There's only one variant here, with 17 pieces and which favorites the whites. A more crowded game board might correct that situation? It would be great to have a more or less balanced small game variant, in contrast to Brandubh. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Ard-Ri was originally conceived with that much pieces, but proved very unbalanced, because of the corner-escape, throne and against-the-edge capture.
2026-08-09 17:24 OdinHimself: @Hagbard: Thank you! Let the future generations remember.
2026-08-09 11:42 Hagbard: By the way, information about Lucho Panchev's games is collected here:
https://aagenielsen.dk/taflshop_panchev.php
2026-08-08 13:57 LuckyScoundrel: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-08-08 13:56 LuckyScoundrel: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-08 13:25 Hagbard: Alex Hnefatafl: I invite Plantagenet and Aluizo for the games.
2026-08-07 16:49 Hagbard: yes, PDF is the easier format.
2026-08-07 15:14 OdinHimself: @Hagbard& Thank you! If I send you a word file or PDF would you be so kind to post it on site so that every user can read the whole history of creating the game set?
2026-08-06 20:48 Hagbard: New in gallery: Lucho Panchev Hnefatafl game set 2026.
2026-08-06 12:57 Waclaw: This is a really awesome job🔥
2026-08-06 11:13 Hagbard: Thank you very much for the video. It is a beautiful game set!!
All the warriors are individually carved with their own unique appearance. This is the first time I have seen that idea!
Here is the video:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OCoMd429_kQCXHNkXbv-7q_GkSwywXjs/view?fbclid=IwY2xjawThGIBwZG9mA2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAGJyaWQRMFRXSUdXZ1A2djVLcE1XUVNzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAEwAAEeyyP2aONJ7_DdfyAwAkMQETCEOhPQwVPa1WzlB2V7sSCfOoNL-HcgLZXWVL4_aem_6owjJAT_2ib_qcyGrHj_qg
2026-08-06 09:00 OdinHimself: Hagbard, please check your Messenger, I've sent you a message.
2026-08-06 08:05 Hagbard: yes, new aliases must have completed at least one game.
2026-08-05 21:10 Draganov: @Hagbard, are we going to apply the rule for at least 1-2 completed games before participation in the WTF? It seems we have a lot of newcomers who registered for the championship but still have not completed a single game. They are potentially showoffs which can worsen the match pairing in the WTF.
2026-08-05 05:53 Zinedine80: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-03 10:32 Paul7: Registers for the WTF Race Games Tournament.
2026-08-03 10:32 Paul7: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-08-03 10:32 Paul7: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-08-02 12:47 Colophonius: Thanks for the information, Hagbard! I'll see what I'll do. :)
2026-08-02 08:23 Hagbard: We experimented with four different 7×7 Sea Battle setups, but they were all unbalanced, so Sea Battle 7×7 was abandoned.
The versions tested were:
Sea Battle 7×7 (No. 56)
Sea Battle-1 7×7 (No. 57) - Only one step at a time
Sea Battle 7×7 (Circle) (No. 61)
Fidchell (Sea Battle 7×7) (No. 66)
2026-08-01 23:24 Colophonius: Hey there everyone! Just a quick question: Is there a sea battle 7x7 game already been tested? I'm currently working on a wooden tafl cube for several 7x7 boards on the sides, for example with a throne and corners or a 7x7 tablut with just a throne in the middle or an empty 7x7 sea battle board.
2026-07-31 16:32 Zugwykor: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-07-31 10:41 saxon: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-07-31 10:40 saxon: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-31 10:39 saxon: Registers for the WTF Race Games Tournament.
2026-07-29 23:51 Hagbard: Thank you to Luk for those!
2026-07-29 23:45 Black Raven: Thanks @Hagbard! Also, really like the new piece design!
2026-07-29 23:06 Hagbard: fixed
2026-07-29 07:34 Black Raven: Well, actually 4 on the throne, 1 next to the corners, and 2 everywhere else.
2026-07-29 07:32 Black Raven: @Masterluke
Yes, I was hoping for this to be changed as well. For Brandubh, it should say "The King is captured by 4 on the throne and 2 everywhere else."
2026-07-28 19:52 OdinHimself: Soon.....
2026-07-28 17:03 Masterluke: I noticed this sentence underneath the game board of Brandubh2.5W 7x7 (current tournament 1198): "If a throne: King captured by 4 and 3 around it. NB! Next to the throne, the king is captured by 2 blacks!"
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this is misleading: either the king is captured by 3 or by 2 blacks when next to the throne?
2026-07-26 23:27 MasterLuke: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-07-24 09:23 Draganov: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-24 09:22 Draganov: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-07-24 09:22 Draganov: Registers for the WTF Race Games Tournament.
2026-07-24 09:17 Hagbard: Registered by July 24:
Copenhagen:
Alex Hnefatafl, Waclaw, Black Raven, Ailill, SuruRada, Hagbard, Jrton80, Tonythebook, Murray7, sqAree, Pavlo, henriquemattos, Potapych, Hattusili, Carsten Sederholm, Fraech
Historical:
Alex Hnefatafl, Ailill, gulo, Hagbard, Tonythebook, Pavlo, Potapych, Dimetr
2026-07-22 23:29 Hagbard: The uncompletedly measured game balances so far are:
Historical Hnefatafl 15x15 (w, Gulo 1) +1.25
Historical Hnefatafl 15x15 (w, Gulo 2) +3.00
- That is not bad at all for the Gulo 1, whereas Gulo 2 seems to end up unbalanced.
2026-07-22 19:25 gulo: Initial testing has proven 15x15 gulo2 unplayable. King side will almost always win. 15x15 gulo1 seemed decent at first, but at higher skill level this is also too much in favour of king side (e.g. my games against iolllan286).
From here on, to weaken king side, we can either make the defender cross entirely straight and closed (like Lewis Cross) or spread attackers out (two pieces on each block’s front row moved back and outwards) – or both.
2026-07-21 20:12 Hagbard: New in gallery:
Basque Country Tafl Championship 2026.
Kerteminde Cherry Festival 2026.
2026-07-15 00:17 Fraech: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-12 14:28 CarstenCederholm: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-11 20:30 Hattusili: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-11 08:44 Dimetr: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-07-10 18:04 Потапыч: Registers for the WTF Race Games Tournament.
2026-07-10 18:03 Потапыч: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-07-10 18:03 Потапыч: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-08 22:59 SuruRada: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-08 21:09 henriquemattos: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-05 20:29 Павло: Registers for the WTF Historical Hnefatafl Tournament.
2026-07-05 20:29 Павло: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
2026-07-05 20:29 Павло: Registers for the WTF Copenhagen Tournament.
