Daldøsa

How to play

A boat-shaped running-fight from Denmark and Norway, a cousin of backgammon crossed with a war game. Cast the four-sided stick die and drive your ship’s crew around the two ranks of holes. A roll of one both wakes a sleeping piece and moves it.

Rules

  • Click "Cast die" to roll the four-sided stick.
  • A roll of 1 wakes a sleeping crew member onto the start hole (and counts as its move); any roll moves an already-awake crew member that many holes clockwise.
  • Land exactly on an enemy crew member and you knock it back to sleep at its own start hole.
  • Wake and run all three of your crew the full loop home before the enemy does to win.

Tips

Keep at least one crew member active at all times, or a run of non-one rolls will waste your turns. Hang a piece just behind an enemy so your next roll can land on it — a knockback sends it all the way home and can swing the whole race.