Reconstruction

Referenced from:

David Whittaker's reconstruction of Primero -- This link is via the Wayback Machine. (more)
Mats Winther on Tablut -- Via the Wayback Machine. Includes a Zillions implementation. (more)
Modar on Pall-Mall -- Includes a speculative reconstruction of "Ground Billiards". (more)
Abbas Agraphicus -- The Hnefatafl-focused blog of Alessandro Arzani (more)
Tablero da Gucci at the Game Cabinet -- This sounds like a pretty authoritative description of the drinking game. (more)
Ruben's reconstruction of Rentoy -- (more)
Parlett on Losing Lodam -- (more)
David Parlett's reconstruction of Gleek -- (more)
Ruben's reconstruction of Truc -- (more)
16th century Rhythmomachy -- A reconstruction of the later form of the game described in Fulke. (more)
Ruben's reconstruction of Cacho -- (more)
A description of Kaiserspiel -- A descendant of Karnoeffel, still played in the modern day (more)
Dwyle Flunking at the Virtual Museum -- Based on the Brueghel painting. (more)
Period-style description of Tafl -- From the Ace's Boke. This is a modern reconstruction, written in period style. (more)
Justin on Tafl -- Largely adapted from Murray and Ragnar. (more)
Justin's reconstruction of Noddy and Early Cribbage -- (more)
Michel Wolffauer's reconstruction of El Mundo -- PDF, two pages (more)
The Game Cabinet on Senet -- Includes a couple of different reconstructions. (more)
Strawberry's reconstruction of Thirty-One -- Reconstruction of Thirty-One, with sources pushing the game all the way back into the 15th century. (more)
Period-style description of Irish -- From the Ace's Boke. Note that this is a modern writeup in period style! (more)
Gambling Games -- Baron Aurddeilen-ap-Robet provides a likely reconstruction based on other games of this period. (more)
Alternate reconstruction of Grande Acedrex -- A very detailed reconstruction that goes back to the Alfonso MS and looks at it carefully. (more)
The Game Cabinet on Tafl Games -- An overview of the family, including some of the more distant cousins, Seega and Latrunculi. (more)
Modar's reconstruction of All Fours -- (more)
Description on The History of Chess -- (more)
Jeff Suzuki's reconstruction of Primero -- (more)
YouTube video teaching Jactus -- (more)
Dagonell on Gluckshaus -- (more)
Laugh and Lie Down Cheat Sheet -- A one-page PDF summary, adapted by Michel from Justin's reconstruction (more)
Parlett on Loo -- He has several reconstructions, and is looking at a broader sweep of history; I haven't yet checked his writeup against Cotton specifically yet. (more)
Description on The History of Chess -- (more)
Shogi Rules -- A nice clear description of how to play Shogi, with lots of pictures. (more)
James Wickson's reconstruction of early Tarot -- (more)
Ruben's reconstruction of Pechigonga -- (more)
Trump, transcribed by Antron de Stoc -- A section from Bellot's Familiar Dialogues (1586). Includes a quick reconstruction, as well as a Lochac variant. (more)
Dagonell on Tag Games -- (more)
Rules to Goose at Kadon Enterprises -- (more)
Lady Gwir ferch John on Noddy -- (more)
Description at Chess Variants -- (more)
Dagonell on Tablero -- (more)
Low Company reconstruction of Ticktack -- Reconstruction by Alessandro the Storyteller, with help from Justin du Coeur (more)
YouTube video teaching Duodecima Scripta -- (more)
Dagonell on Quoits and Horseshoes -- (more)
Gwyddbwyll reconstruction from Y Camamseriad -- A nicely detailed article on the Gwyddbwyll and Towlbrwdd, which may or may not be the same game. (more)
Backgammon Galore on Trictrac -- (more)
Hnefatafl World Championship -- Run by the Fetlar organization, and gives a bit of info about the game itself (more)
Modar on Fierges -- (more)
A possible Bowling variant -- From the Virtual Museum, based on the Brueghel painting. (more)
Michel Wolffauer on Hopscotch -- (more)
Hazard on the Tattershall Arms page -- (more)
Description at the History of Chess -- Not a terribly detailed reconstruction. (more)
Modar's reconstruction of 2-player Alouette -- Based on work by Brusten de Bearsul (more)
Description at The History of Chess -- (more)
How to Play Ruff and Honours -- Described on their Whist page, as a variant. (more)
Strawberry's reconstruction of Karnöffel -- A dash of history, and a couple of reconstructions. (more)
Michel Wolffauer on Chess of the Four Seasons -- A nice concise writeup on how to play. (more)
Description from Abstract Games -- Discussion of Alquerques and a bunch of similar games. (more)
Mats Winther's Description -- URL via the Wayback Machine. (more)
Sten Helmfrid on Tafl Games -- Nominally focused on Hnefetafl, but really a fine, deeply detailed overview of the entire family. (more)
How to Play Piquet -- Includes a pretty detailed description of play, as well as several more-recent variations. (more)
Bassetta, A Renaissance Italian Card Game -- (more)
A Medieval Battle of Numbers -- An overview of Rhythmomachy by Peter Mebben, one of the more serious students of the game. (more)
Blind Man's Buff at the Virtual Museum -- Based on the Brueghel painting. (more)
Gluckhaus at The Reverend's Musings -- A good quick description of the game, with a little history and illustrations of several boards. (more)
Dagonell on Goose -- A concise description, plus an outline for a live-action version to play with kids. (more)
A brief description on the Landsknecht page -- (more)
Modar on Wari -- (more)
Count and Capture Games at the Museum of Games -- This page has a good overview of the family; at the bottom are links to boards and rules from many different countries. (more)
Tali at the Roman Board Games site -- URL via the Wayback Machine. (more)
Michel Wolffauer's handout on Tafl -- PDF, 2 pages (more)
Michael Wolffauer on Trappola -- (more)
Modar on Fox and Geese -- (more)
Michel's reconstruction of Losing Loadum -- PDF (more)
Sonja Musser Golladay's Dissertation on the Alfonso MS (PDF) -- A PDF copy of the full, 1400-page tome about the Alfonso. This is the single most important source when working on this MS, including a full translation, lots of notes and reconstruction details, information about the culture and context, and so on. (more)
Dagonell on Shove Groat -- (more)
Dagonell's description of Boules -- (more)
A brief description of Primero on the Landsknecht page -- (more)
Dagonell on Knucklebones -- Includes Gomme's description of "Fivestones". (more)
Mats Winther on Fox and Geese -- Notes several setup variations. (more)
Justin's reconstruction of Gleek -- (more)
A period-style description of Gleek -- Justin's writeup of Gleek from the Ace's Boke. This is a modern reconstruction, written in Elizabethan style. (more)
Trondheim Hnefatafl Board Fragment -- Some notes about a relatively recently found board, and some thoughts about its possible implications. (more)
Justin's reconstruction of Ruff and Trump -- (more)
An in-depth paper on Metromachy -- Written in French, including a translation of the Latin primary source into French. (Sadly for us English monoglots.) (more)
Dagonell on Gameball -- (more)
Roman Board Games -- Wally J. Kowalski's reconstructions of various pre-period games. (more)
Justin's reconstructions of Primero -- Covering English and Italian separately. (more)
Margaret's reconstruction of Piquet -- (more)
1on1 Backgammon on Tabula -- (more)
Board Game Studies -- The main journal of board games research, recently (2014) rebooted as an online journal. Currently run by Ludus, a Portugese games organization. Not exclusively historical or SCA-period, but has enough relevant material to be worth keeping an eye on.

The predecessor paper journal ran for half a dozen issues over a number of years, but isn't easy to get a hold of. (more)

Modar's reconstruction of As Nas -- Based on work by Brusten de Bearsul (more)
Galleron's reconstructed Pochspiel board -- Posted by Master Galleron de Cressy on DeviantArt. (more)
Irving Finkel's detailed reconstruction of the game -- A more-than-typically detailed writeup of the game, the available source material, and how to interpret it. (more)
Description at Chess Variants -- Includes a dicing variant. (more)
The Viking Answer Lady on Tafl Games -- A lovely, detailed article on the Tafl family in general, outlining the major variants. (more)
Dagonell on Rithmomachy -- (more)
Dagonell on Kubb -- (more)
Hazard on the Landsknecht page -- (more)
Ruben's reconstruction of Flor -- (more)
Mats Winther on Halatafl -- As usual, he states his case strongly and includes a software implementation. Not clear to me whether he's correct, but he does include a previous reconstruction as well. (more)
So You Have This Chess Set -- A quick PDF introduction to several period Chess variations. (more)
An alternate version on Chess Variants -- (more)
Parlett on Costly Colors -- Goes into some detail about what little we know about the game (more)
Parlett on Karnoeffel -- (more)
The Loop Within Circular Three Men's Morris -- An analysis of the possible situations within this ancient Morris variant. (more)
Mats Winther's description -- Via the Wayback Machine. (more)
Description on Chess Variants -- (more)
Parlett on Laugh and Lie Down -- (more)
Parlett on Reversis -- (more)
How to Play Cribbage -- Includes several more-recent variations. (more)
Justin's reconstruction of Picket -- (more)
Parlett on Ombre -- (more)
A brief description on the Landsknecht info site -- (more)
Dagonell on Curling -- (more)
Dagonell on Teetotums -- He reasons that the game is probably similar to Dreidels. (more)
Description on Chess Variants -- (more)
Description at Chess Variants -- (more)
Magnus' reconstruction and implementation of Metromachy -- Pulling together Justin's transcription and Steffan's translation, Magnus tied it all together, reconstructed the rules, and built an online implementation. (more)
Fidchell in Dreoilin's Weblog -- A discussion of the game of Fidchell, plus a lot of cultural background. (more)
Dagonell on Morris Games -- (more)
A news article about reconstructing Kottabos -- Talks a little about the reconstruction process, and has a video of people playing at the game. (more)
Dagonell's description -- (more)
Description at Chess Variants -- (more)
Dagonell on Dwyle Flonking -- (more)
Modar's reconstruction of Karnoffel -- Based on work by Brusten de Bearsul (more)
Smithsonian Learning Center on Hnefetafl -- (more)
YouTube video teaching Ludus Latrunculorum -- (more)
Justin's reconstruction of Seven-Sided Backgammon -- One of my prouder achievements, this reconstruction has caught on pretty widely. (more)
Michel Wolffauer's writeup on Tarot -- PDF, adapted from Justin's version (more)
Modar's reconstruction of Tarok -- An Eastern European variant. (more)
Backgammon Galore on Irish -- (more)
Sonja Musser Golladay's dissertation on the Alfonso MS (hardcopy) -- This link is a search into University Microfilms' dissertation service. Golladay's dissertation is the masterwork on the Alfonso MS, including a full translation, copious notes and reconstruction details, and all sorts of information about the art and culture surrounding the book. It is a must-have for anyone researching this text. (more)
Description from the British Chess Variants Society -- Mostly a little bit of analysis of the game. (more)
The Reasoned Dictionary of Trictrac -- A big site, mostly arranged as an enormous dictionary of terms and concepts of Trictrac. Theoretically in both English and French, but in practice the English support is quite weak. Includes an Initiatory Course in Trictrac. (more)
Michael Wolffauer on Poch -- (more)
Parlett on Maw -- (more)
Modar on Tablut -- (more)
Description at The History of Chess -- Goes into more detail about this game than most sites. (more)
Description on Chess Variants -- (more)
Bowls at the Virtual Museum -- Based on the Brueghel painting. (more)
So You Have This Backgammon Board -- A brief PDF introduction to several period Tables variations. (more)
Anton de Stoc's reconstruction of Trump -- This is a transcription of a brief fragment of a language text, and a reconstruction of Trump based on it. (more)
Rhythmomachy Basics -- An introduction to the common concepts of the game (more)
Description at The History of Chess -- (more)
Still More Fifteenth and Sixteenth Century Card Games -- Part of a series by Earl Dafydd ap Gwystl, this includes reconstructions of several games. (more)
A period-style description of Piquet -- Not actually period -- a modern writeup of the game, using Elizabethan-style English (more)
Mats Winther's reconstruction -- Specifically discusses the dicing variant. As is Mats' usual interest, spends some time discussing the possibility of using the game for divination. URL via the Wayback Machine (more)
Dagonell's discussion of Bowling -- (more)
Modar on Game of the Goose -- Illustrated with the Kadon Enterprises board. (more)
Discussion on The History of Chess -- (more)
YouTube video teaching Latrunculi -- (more)
Balls! -- A general page on the manufacture of game balls and some of the games played with them in period. (more)
Modar's reconstruction of 4-player Alouette -- Based on work from Brusten de Bearsul (more)
How to Play Whist -- Includes a number of variations from various times. (more)
A brief description of several games, at Tattershall Arms -- (more)
Damian Walker's Hnefetafl Site -- A large and deep site on All Things Hnefetafl, and really, on the Tafl family in general. Especially strong sections on Archaeological Finds, Literary Sources, and stuff like that. (more)
Description on Chess Variants -- (more)
Parlett on Penneech -- (more)
David Levy's Trictrac Homepage -- Via the Wayback Machine. (more)
Modar's description -- (more)
Jean-Louis Cazaux' speculations about Ashtapada -- This page has an in-depth discussion about why the author disagrees with HJR Murray's reconstruction, and provides his own best guess about how the game way played. (more)
Period-style intro to Rhythmomachy -- From the Ace's Boke (more)
The Battle of Numbers -- An overview of Rhythmomachy, focused on the mathematical aspects, published by the American Mathematical Society. (more)
Game Cabinet on Tablero -- Apparently Tablero da Gucci has leaked out into the public as "Toblaro", purportedly from Scotland. The folk process in action... (more)
Medieval European Chess at The History of Chess -- A very good, not-too-long description of core SCA-period chess. (more)
Full Tamerlane Chess at The History of Chess -- Yet a further variant of Tamerlane's, with even more pieces. This is the most brain-breakingly baroque version of Chess I have yet encountered. One of these days, I may try making a set, just to try this mess out. (more)
Justin's description of Early French Tarot -- Largely based on Michael Dummett's The Game of Tarot (more)
Justin's reconstruction of Bone-Ace -- (more)
YouTube video teaching Hnefatafl -- Slightly clumsy presentation style, but useful for folks who learn best from a live presentation. (more)
Description on The History of Chess -- (more)
Ragnar Thorbergsson's Analysis of Tafl -- One of the more important articles on the subject, this doesn't just use the sources, it also does some analysis of the playability of different reconstructions, in order to find the most plausible reconstruction. (more)
YouTube video teaching Gluckhaus -- (more)
Justin's preliminary reconstruction of Ruff and Honours -- (more)
A reconstruction from the Avacal Games Guild -- (more)
Backgammon Galore on Doublets -- (more)
Description at The History of Chess -- (more)
Michael Wolffauer on Wari -- (more)
Description on Chess Variants -- (more)
Backgammon Galore on Tabula -- (more)
Ringing the Bull at Traditional Games -- (more)
Rithmomachia on Game Cabinet -- (more)
YouTube video teaching Three Men's Morris -- (more)
A reconstruction of La Bete by the Low Company -- At this point, I regard this reconstruction as seriously questionable; I'll put together a more plausible one when I have time. (more)
Jeff Johnston's reconstruction of One-and-Thirty and Bone-Ane -- (more)
Traditional Game Rules -- James Masters' site, some of which is indexed by game here. Some of this is period, but not all. (more)
Description at Chess Variants -- Includes a Zillions implementation. (more)
Modar on Bocce -- (more)
A preliminary reconstruction of Maw by Glenn Overby -- Dead page -- this pointer is to the Wayback Machine. (Please support the Wayback Machine -- it is an invaluable service to all researchers.) (more)
Eachna's Celtic Knucklebones Page -- Has some nice practical information about crafting early sorts of dice, and a concise description of the Roman dicing game Tali. (more)
Dagonell on Hazard -- (more)
Susan Granquist's page on Tafl -- A relatively brief description. (more)
Justin on Irish -- (more)
A period-style description of Tarot -- Not a primary source; this is a modern reconstruction written in Elizabethan-style language, from the Ace's Boke. (more)
Description on Chess Variants -- (more)
YouTube video teaching Nine Men's Morris -- (more)
Jean-Louis Cazaux' History of Chess -- An excellent in-depth site, giving lots of information on the topic. Discusses the history, the archaeology, lots of papers about chess, many variations (including a lot of Eastern variants), etc. (more)
Michel's reconstruction of Gleek -- An in-depth PDF about Gleek (more)
Description on Chess Variants -- (more)
Edward of Effingham on Sugoroku -- A page on Effingham's Online Japanese Miscellary, which goes into all sorts of topics about SCA-period Japan. (more)
Justin on Dublets -- (more)
Wareham Forge on Hnefetafl -- Includes a bunch of links. (more)
Justin's description of Bryncir -- Based on Brusten's reconstruction (more)
Dagonell on Hopscotch -- (more)
Cats at Cards -- A site focused on teaching the rules for a wide variety of card games. Mostly post-period, but includes good descriptions of several period games. (more)
Description on Chess Variants -- (more)
Discussion at The History of Chess -- By far the most detailed discussion of this game that I know of. Mainly focuses on debunking the myths about the antiquity of this variant, arguing strongly that, while it is SCA-period, it isn't as ancient as folks usually claim. (more)
David Parlett on Noddy -- Nicely detailed description, including some history (more)
Justin's reconstruction of Laugh and Lie Down -- (more)
Backgammon Galore on Fayles -- (more)
Le Jeu de Trictrac -- A substantial page in French, focused on Trictrac. (more)
Norse Games -- An interesting article from Ravensgard. (more)
Mats Winther's Board Game page -- Via the Wayback Machine. (more)
The Asia Society on Sugoroku -- Brief, but useful. (more)
Merels at the Museum of Games -- (more)
Mats Winther on Gala -- Via the Wayback Machine. (more)
Michel Wolffauer's handout for his Go class -- PDF, three pages (more)
The Chess Variant Pages -- The most important site on the subject, covering an enormous spectrum of chess variations, both period and modern. Note particularly the Historic Chess Variants page, which collects all historical versions. Many of the Variant links go into there. (more)
Inn and Inn from the Ace's Boke -- Period-style text (more)
Period-style Elizabethan Rhythmomachy Rules -- An Ace's Boke rewrite of my reconstruction of 16th century Rhythmomachy (more)
Ruffe and Trump -- A concise summary of the rules of the game. Seems reasonably accurate, aside from referring to the game as "medieval". (more)
Merels in the Ace's Boke -- Period-style text, but not actually period. (more)
Modar's reconstruction of Basset -- Based on work by Brusten de Bearsul (more)