History of aagenielsen.dk website. |
February 1993 there was a big exhibition at the Danish National Museum in Copenhagen, "Viking and White Christ", with extraordinary contributions from many countries. The hnefatafl game was everywhere to find in this exhibition with many viking graves, and the viking always bringing to the other side his personal set of hnefatafl pieces.
October 1998 this website was started. One page told the story of the great 1993 viking exhibition and the game hnefatafl, the game rules (Skalk), and ended up with sending the reader off to the Swedish company Expo Media's online hnefatafl game, a "Skalk Hnefatafl 9x9" written in Java:
Artist: Marcus Edström.
Snip from Edström's Curriculum Vitae: "Expo Media NS AB, Graphic Designer 1993-1995. Expo Media developed multimedia for exhibitions, cd-rom and kiosks. I developed application about Vikings, East India Company, Leonardo da Vinci as well as the game Tablut. Initial work was done parallel to studies."
During 2001 the Expo Media online game gradually stopped working because of changes in Java and in the browsers available. For some time it worked only in Netscape, then stopped there, too. I emailed Expo Media about it and was told that the developer had left the company, but they would try to fix the errors. Instead they soon after removed the online game from the internet entirely.
It is possible still to find the Expo Media Tablut pages in the Internet Archives.
January 2002 I decided to write a hnefatafl game from scratch to replace the Swedish one. It became a Java program of 6400 lines = about 100 A4 pages, and this applet became a stronger opponent than the Swedish was.
This hnefatafl page was before then merely an introduction to the Swedish online game, and several Danish public libraries, museums and schools already linked this way.
Now also a couple of schools abroad linked this way.
In the beginning of 2007 John C. Ashton, Chicago, USA, emailed me some questions about Hnefatafl and Tablut. After a discussion on the subject,
John C. Ashton published the thesis "Linnaeus's Game of Tablut and its Relationship to the Ancient Viking Game Hnefatafl", August 2010 in the journal "The Heroic Age".
February 2010. Once in a while during the previous years a mail had arrived from a user somewhere with a wish for some or other extension of the online game, and there was the Ashton discussion 2007. Other than that there was practically no direct contact with other players from this site.
ClustrMap, however, showed visitors and users of the applet as a dense swarm of dots covering a large part of the globe. Those dots must be a lot of people interested in hnefatafl, and would it be fun to let them contact each other and meet in an online game!
February 2010 a function was ready for playing live hnefatafl online, soon with rating and chat functions.
The first many years of this site "Hnefatafl" was seen as "Skalk Hnefatafl" as we'd learnt in Denmark as the only option. Now, however, skilled opponents appeared on the net and it was practically impossible to win the defenders' side.
(From 178 Skalk Hnefatafl 11x11 test games we measured the attackers to win four times more often than the defenders!)
And did the discussions about tafl take off!!
ClustrMap by October 2010:
April 2010 "Darkont" from reenactor club Ulvgard, Russia, advised to have the king captured from 4 sides instead of 2, and the "Old Hnefatafl 11x11" was added.
May 2010 Tim Millar ("crust"), UK, and Adam Bartley ("Adam"), Norway, joined and recommended the "Fetlar Hnefatafl 11x11", which was added.
The "Fetlar Hnefatafl" adjusts "Old Hnefatafl" and was outlined 2007 by the Fetlar Hnefatafl Panel, UK, chairman Peter Kelly.
For years, Millar, Bartley and I had keen discussions by email and in the site forums about tafl. And also other players contributed.
Millar was from the start a most diligent opponent for testing of rules, and has done a great work to disseminate the knowledge of tafl.
Millar also often was the one to welcome new players and in a pedagogical and instructive way teach them about the finer points of the game.
Bartley has from the start been a diligent initiator of philosophical discussions about the nature of this game, and digged up some extraordinary, detailed photos of arhaeological findings.
From June 2010 many players sent photos of their homemade hnefatafl boards and sets. Especially Altti Piirsoo ("altti"), New York, USA, created a great collection of tafl boards (photo left). The simplest board was sent by Millar, lines in the sand (photo right).
May 2017 - : Also Alexander Steiger Dis ("Steiger"), Ukraine, and Lucho Panchev ("OdinHimself"), Bulgaria, created many extraordinary, carved boards.
August 2011 a Hnefatafl World Championship tournament was organised here for the first time, as the annual tournament on the Shetland island Fetlar was cancelled (held on Fetlar since 2008). Since then we've had a Championship tournament every year.
August 2011 the hnefatafl discussions were now so complex and involved ever more players so that it became necessary to establish the large, structured forum (proposed by Christoph Treskow, "red-ron", Germany) as a supplement to the simple chat forum.
Some of the great contributors here were Adam Bartley ("Adam"), Norway, Tim Millar ("crust"), UK, Jonas Lööf ("conanlibrarian"), Germany, Damian Walker ("cyningstan"), UK, and Arne Hansen ("arne64"), Germany. Damian Walker has been the expert in digging up information from all kinds of historical sources.
August 2011 the association "World Tafl Federation" was formed, with Tim Millar - Chairman and Adam Bartley - Vice Chairman, and this site as home page of the association.
September 2011 the first edge tafl was added, unarmed king ("Rachunek"), advocated by Adam Torkelson ("hnefataflmodern"), USA.
September 2011 Adam Bartley, Norway, invented the simple, unarmed king game "Sea Battle Tafl 9x9", in discussion with Torkelson.
November 2012 Aage Nielsen, Denmark, drew the dragonship pieces for the online Sea Battle tafl.
September - October 2011 Aage Nielsen, Denmark, invented the "Berserk Hnefatafl 11x11", based on a photo of an archaeological Norwegian tafl set with five types of pieces sent by Bartley, and exclusively combining rules from tafl antecedents and their decendants.
November 2011 the live play format was replaced by correspondence format.
November 2011 the Saami Tablut was identified.
The Saami Tablut setup and rules details were proposed by Nicolas Cartier, France, November 2011 in a scientific article "LE TABLUT DE LINNAEUS / Nicolas Cartier", which was published on this site.
(Cartier was inspired from the August 2010 article by John C. Ashton.
April 2012 the Belgian magazine Histoire et Images Medievales published an article "La Famille du Hnefatafl" based on the Cartier article, and championed these Tablut rules.
December 2013 the Finnish linguist Olli Salmi did a thorough examination and translation of the historical sources, most importantly the Linné diary, and confirmed them to be in agreement with these Tablut rules.
Jonas Lööf ("conanlibrarian", Germany) also contributed greatly to this discussion.)
January-September 2012 Aage Nielsen (Denmark), Adam Bartley (Norway) and Tim Millar (UK) developed the "Copenhagen Hnefatafl 11x11". The Copenhagen Hnefatafl is Fetlar Hnefatafl extended with a handful of additions to fix its shortcomings.
The process was also supported and commented by other tafl players in the forum.
May-June 2012 the site software was rewritten so that games humans against humans no longer use Java, Java becoming increasingly problematic just as it happened to Expo Media eleven years earlier.
The software now works on computers, mobile phones, internet-connected televisions, anything.
March 2019 all use of Java was given up on this site.
August 2012 Adam Bartley, Norway, drew the World Tafl Federation logo:
December 2012 the Welsh Tawlbwrdd was identified.
December 2012 Arne Hansen ("arne64"), Germany, proposed the Tawlbwrdd Bell setup.
May 2013 Aage Nielsen, Denmark, invented the method used here for calculating the variants' game balances.
And July 2013 invented how to allow for the game balances in the rating calculations.
From February 2014 the collection of game variants was expanded into more board sizes than 9x9 and 11x11: board sizes 7x7, 13x13 and 15x15 were added.
Damian Walker, UK, was a great inspirer for the setups of these boards.
August 2014 Tim Millar set up the hnefatafl Facebook page, which now has 891 followers (July 2023).
October 2014 Adam Bartley wrote a
Press Release about the World Tafl Federation on the occasion of the Hnefatafl Championship Tournament 2014, which was sent to major newspapers and magazines in UK, USA, Germany, Norway and Denmark.
January 2016 Rasmus Holbroe, Denmark, drew a collection of viking drawings for the site:
Artist: Copyright © Rasmus Holbroe.
May 2016 Aage Nielsen, Denmark, put forth here the theory of the historical rules of the ancient Scandinavian board game Hnefatafl, which unifies the tafl games Brandubh, Ard Ri, Tablut, Tawlbwrdd and Hnefatafl as one game:
Historical rules of the ancient Scandinavian board game Hnefatafl.
Feb. 2018 Aage Nielsen, Denmark, invented the Market Hnefatafl, a simplified version for use at board game demonstrations at markets and board game events.
January 2020 - April 2021 Luk Martens ("MasterLuke"), Belgium, developed the Tyr tafl game.
Mid March 2020 - end June 2021 players' activity on this site was explosively high, coinciding with the global corona lockdowns.
March 2020 and forward Marian Luck ("themightyglider", Germany), Luk Martens ("Masterluke", Belgium), David Zolli ("branan", France), Mikkel Berg-Nordlie ("mihkkal", Sápmi, Norway) and Alessandro Arzani ("Abbas Agraphicus", Italy), drew 23 new sets of game pieces for the site:
Artist: Copyright © Luk Martens.
August - September 2020 this site was for the first time expanded with games other than tafl: The Saami games Sáhkku 3x15 (Kåfjord), Daabloe 11x9 and Cuhkka 5x5, received from Mikkel Berg-Nordlie (Sápmi, Norway), and the Danish Hex 11x11.
May 2021 the Danish/South-Norwegian game Daldøs was added.
October 2022 Aage Nielsen, Denmark, invented the Diagonal Tournament Format, developed and used here since 2021, description finished August 2024.
Jan. 2023 Plamen Draganov ("Draganov"), Bulgaria, invented the Total Hnefatafl 11x11, merging all strong king variants, Fetlar, Copenhagen and berserk.
Sep. 2024, shifted to SSL (https).
Hnefatafl events at Viking markets etc.During many years the hnefatafl game has been displayed at Viking markets etc. in UK, Norway, Ukraine and Russia. These events have spread the awareness of hnefatafl and brought many new taflers to this site.August 2008, 2009 and 2010 Hnefatafl World Championship was organised on the Shetland island Fetlar, UK. Tim Millar won 2009 and 2010 and made sure that this site was mentioned in the local newspaper 2010.
June 2010 Adam Bartley displayed Hnefatafl at Tønsberg Middelaldersfestival, Norway, and did for many years since then.
September 2010 Tim Millar displayed Hnefatafl at Burnsall Viking Festival, England.
March 2012 Shaun Nelson in Burnsall, Yorkshire, UK started a hnefatafl club which played regularly in the village pub.
May 2012 Adam Bartley displayed Hnefatafl at the "Vikinger i krig" exhibition at Midgard Historisk Senter, Borre, Norway. Bartley created for the exhibition an extraordinary board and pieces for "Sea Battle Tafl"; first time displayed outside this site, and first time ever with ships as game pieces.
June 2013 Frank Prohl ("Gungnir") founded the "Tromsø Tafl Laug", Norway, which plays in the "Victoria Fun Pub" in Tromsø.
August 2013 Tim Millar supervised the English Hnefatafl Championship tournament at Sutton Hoo, UK, and did so for years.
September 2013 Tim Millar displayed Hnefatafl at Shave Farm arts festival, Somerset, UK.
November 2013 René Gralla organised in Berlin a Hnefatafl demonstration match between the Norwegian chess player
Woman International Master Silje Bjerke and the CEO of the German newspaper "Neues Deutschland", Olaf Koppe, during the "8th Ladies Chess Gala" in Berlin.
October 2014 Tim Millar displayed Hnefatafl at Fornebei Herfolk's Viking Festival, Formby, UK, and did so for years. This event directed seven new, strong tafl players to this site.
October 2014 Justin Levi White ("Fairland") started the Fairland Schools Hnefatafl Club at Fairland High School, Oklahoma, USA.
June 2016 Alexander Clay ("Tuireann") created the USA tafl site "Play Tafl Online",
and Jay Slater ("Fishbreath") created the opentafl AI for it.
August 2016 Tim Millar supervised the Asgardian Hnefatafl Championship tournament, Leicestershire, UK.
May 2017 Aage Nielsen attended the Board Game Studies Colloquium XX in Copenhagen, Denmark.
June 2017 Damian Walker ("cyningstan") organised Hull's Hnefatafl tournament (Kingston upon Hull, UK).
June and September 2017 Lucho Panchev ("OdinHimself"), Bulgaria, informed about Hnefatafl in Bulgarian media.
September 2017 Vogneslav Zmijovich, Kiev, Ukraine, started the ancient games club "Gral'nij Majdan" at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Kiev, Ukraine.
January 2018 Tabletop Gaming Magazine has an article on hnefatafl, including input from David Lonsdale ("Animals") and Damian Walker ("Cyningstan").
February 2018. Alexander Fomichëv ("Ded Fomich"), Moscow, Russia, is active in the hobby centre "Geek Wars" in Moscow, which regularly arranges board game evenings with i.a. tafl tournaments.
February 2018 Aage Nielsen presented Hnefatafl at a Classic Board Game cafe, Denmark, and does so twice a year.
April 2018 Vogneslav Zmijovich told about tafl in the daily Culture program of the Ukrainian Radio.
June 2018 Alexander Steiger Dis presented Hnefatafl at the Moscow medieval festival.
June 2018 Vogneslav Zmijovich presented Hnefatafl at the Mariupol Festival in Ukraine.
November 2018 Mikkel Berg-Nordlie teaches sáhkku games, dablo games, and tablut in Umeå in Sweden, and Oslo, Alta, Bodø and Kautokeino in Norway and many more places in the Sápmi area.
July 2019 a group of tafl players from Moscow, Ukraine and Bulgaria presented Hnefatafl at the living history festival "Bylinnyj Bereg" ("the legendary river bank") at the banks of the river Volga, Russia. January 2020 Lucho Panchev ("OdinHimself") told about Hnefatafl in Bulgarian National Television channel 2 prime time, a thorough broadcast dedicated to Hnefatafl.
September 2020 University of South-Eastern Norway as part of the nationwide annual event Forskningsdagene (Science Days) had a day of Hnefatafl at Midgard Vikingsenter, the event was organized by Knut Jul Meland ("jules") and was called "Hnefatafl - hjernetrim for vikinger" (Hnefatafl - brain trimming for vikings). February-April 2021 Aleksandr Valerievich Tsyganok ("Steiger") created a series of videos in Russian for the internet about Tafl.
April 2021 Aage Nielsen attended the Board Game Studies Colloquium XXIII in Paris, this year exceptionally transmitted via the internet.
January 2022
a Copenhagen Hnefatafl 11x11 tournament was part of the big Board Games Festival "Larix" in Moscow. Players from the "Ethnic Board Games" and also from this site were there. The event is organised once every year.
May 2022 Aage Nielsen attended the Board Game Studies Colloquium XXIV in Leeuwarden, Netherlands, via internet.
August 2022 Aage Nielsen and a group of classical board game players took part in the Ringsted Medieval Festival 2022, Denmark.
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Aage Nielsen, Copenhagen, Denmark, Aug. 2023.
