Queen Bee

Queen Bee is a 1974 game by Keith Budden, published at Clipper.

The game is played on the intersections of this hexagonal board:

Each player has one Queen, four Workers and three Warrior bees.

The rules:

• Initially player position their pieces on opposite board edges: the Queen is placed at one of the six markers, the Workers at the Queen's left and right, and the Warriors at the remaining intersections around the Queen's hexagon:

• On his turn, the player moves one friendly bee
• The Queen moves to an adjacent empty intersection
• The Worker moves exactly two intersections
  
• The Warrior moves exactly three intersections
• A bee cannot move forward and backward passing twice in the same intersection (one consequence is that players cannot pass their turns)
  
• The center of the board (the hive) can only be entered by a Queen; the hive is the only board position that is not an intersection
  
• Bees capture enemies by replacement, and cannot jump over other bees
• Captures can occur in any of the intersections within the bee's move range
  
• Wins the player that moves his Queen into the hive, or by capturing the adversary Queen

The game allows three or four players. In those situations, after a Queen is captured, the remaining bees of that army remain immobile and can be captured by the other players. Since in matches with 3+ players, some enemy bees will start very close together, the rules don't allow captures in the game's first turn.

Here's a review from Games & Puzzles:

The publisher did a rebranding in 1976, changing the game's theme to medieval Japan, and renaming it to Kendo (a Japanese martial art):

Here are the rules of Kendo (in German).

Discon

Discon is a 1969 uncredited game, published by Doppler Games.

The game is played on a 10x10 board, with four starting corners (the game is for two to four players),

 

There are 96 stones of four colors (16 ivory, 24 pink, 24 blue and 32 purple), plus 24 roofs, six of each labelled 1 to 4,

 

This is a scoring game, where players try to build stacks with as many points as possible. The roofs move like knights and collect different color pieces to make stacks (which can optionally travel with the roofs). There is a complex scoring table for players to account for their points, which is not the most elegant solution...

Here are the official rules:

You can read an extensive review of this game at BGG, I am not a number, I am a free man!, written by @srand user.

Gomoku Clones

Commercializing traditional games, which have no copyright, is at the same time less expensive because of the lack of copyright, but also a homage to the public commons and to old cultural traditions.

Gomoku is a traditional game with simple rules, and yet it is deep enough to be quite challenging and highly replayable. It's no wonder that so many games have been marketed based on the moku ludeme.

This post refers to some less known older games that are a plain rebranding of Gomoku.

Peg A Ro 

A 1920s game published in England. It comes with a 16x16 board and four sets of pieces (around 27 pegs per color) so that it can be played between two and four players.

Spoil Five

Published also in the 1920s by Chad Valley Co.

This game comes with a 14x11 board and with four colors. Each player only gets 16 pieces for each color, which is not enough to play the game (even if each player uses two colors). I wonder if even a 4 in-a-row would be easy to do in a match with four players.

Notice that the last suggested game in this ruleset in none other than the Game of NIM (in the misère version), one of the seminal games that started Combinatorial Game Theory.

Peg'ity

Another clone is Peg'ity from 1925, from Parker Brothers,

 

In the 1953 edition, there is the following supplement with three extra games/puzzles:

This last one is again misère NIM.

Quintro

Quintro is a 1935 version of Gomoku from Spear's Games.

Quinio

Quinio is a 1956 uncredited Gomoku game, published by Jumbo:

And a bonus, 1957's Chek-ro which is Pente before Pente:

 

Line-Ups

Line-Ups is a 1979 game by Phil Orbanes, published at GAMES magazine #11.

The rules came with two 12x12 boards to be played in the magazine itself using pencils (it was part of the recurring Pencilwise section).

Line-Ups is thus a pencil and paper game, and a curious mix of moku and scoring ludemes.

Quandary

Quandary is a 1970 uncredited game, published at Spear's Games.

The game is played on a 12x12 multi-colored board:

Each player has four pieces that must be placed in his first row. The game comes with 12 numbered cards (1 to 12) that must be shuffled for each player that draws four of them that determines the piece's initial position.

Rules:

• On his turn, the player moves a friendly stone forward (vertically or diagonally) to an empty square
• However, the move is only valid if the square the player moves into is of the same color to any one of the four squares directly in front of an enemy piece (it does not matter if those squares are occupied or not)
• If there are no valid moves, the player passes
• Wins the player that moves one friendly piece to his last row

Here are the original rules:

I don't see how the use of cards is necessary for the game to work properly, besides forcing matches to start in different initial positions. We could replace the random mechanism by initially making players drop one piece per turn in their first rows.

Making the moves dependent on the board position, and especially of the adversary, hurts clarity a lot. Not sure how it is possible to plan more than one move ahead.

A comment by Clark Rodeffer:

Quandary can sometimes (always?) be played to a stalemate if one or both players intentionally limit color choices. The problem stems from the layout of the colored squares -- the closest any two squares of the same color are on the standard board is a knight's move apart. As a result, moving into colored squares that block your opponent's choices is relatively easy, leading to many mutually blocked games. The game can probably be fixed by making the movement of the pawns a knight's move (with four potential target squares) instead of the current forward one orthogonal or diagonal step (only three potential target squares), but I have yet to try this variant.

Quandary appeared on Jeux et Stratègie #47:

And in Games & Puzzles #15:

On Guard

On Guard is a 1974 uncredited game, published at Orda Industries.

The game is played on 7x7 board, and each player has 24 stones:

this is not the setup, the board starts empty

There is a setup phase where player drops their stones on empty positions, in alternate turns. The board center should start empty.

The official rules:

 

OBJECT OF GAME 

Game can be won in either of the following ways:

• Capturing all of opponent’s OFFICERS, or 
• Maneuvering so that opponent cannot make a move.

PLAY OF GAME

A. How Playing Pieces are Moved:

Individual playing pieces can be moved vertically or horizontally. Diagonal moves are not permitted.
A move consists of making an OFFICER (described below) or moving one playing piece, either a GUARD or an OFFICER, to a vacant space. NOTE: Only one OFFICER can be made per turn.

1. OFFICERS – OFFICERS consist of two GUARDS, one placed on top of the other. Only one OFFICER can be made in any one turn. OFFICERS can move any number of spaces, but all intervening spaces must be open. OFFICERS can jump over other OFFICERS as well as making 90-degree turns. But, OFFICERS cannot jump over GUARDS. When opponent’s OFFICER has been “jumped”, it is removed from the playing board.
2. GUARDS – GUARDS can move only one space at any time into any open space. GUARDS cannot jump.

B. Order of Play:

1. Both players randomly place all 48 playing pieces on raised circles of playing board — leaving center circle blank.
2. Both players must create an OFFICER on their first turn of play. NOTE: At least one OFFICER must be on the playing surface at all times or game is ended.
3. After first creating OFFICERS, play alternates. Players use OFFICERS to capture as many of opponent’s OFFICERS as possible. GUARDS are maneuvered to block opponent’s OFFICERS.
4. Play continues with each player moving in turn — placing his GUARDS and OFFICERS so as to accomplish one of the two methods of victory.
5. Game is won when:
• a. One player captures all of his opponent’s OFFICERS, or
• b. One player maneuvers his pieces so that his opponent cannot move any of his remaining pieces.

I assume that moves and captures are only in orthogonal directions (it would be very hard to stalemate, otherwise). The game is near Checkers, where promotions are easier to do, but the Officers are not as powerful as in standard Checkers. The setup phase is too long for modern online play, and it should be replaced with some standard position.

Gambit

Gambit is a 1973 game by David W. Currie, published at Challenge Games.

The game is played on the following 10x16 board:

The game has a Chess-like feel, with four types of pieces representing military vehicles, and three types of positions (!) representing land, sea and air. Winning can be done either by elimination or reaching the opponent's home position. There is a collection of interesting moves made possible by combining pieces.

These are the original rules:

note: the first page shows the initial setup with 19 pieces per player. However, the game came with only 18 pieces. There is an amphibian piece at the top-right corner, in the setup diagram, that is a misprint (correction mentioned by Patrick Kelley).

 

big thanks to Patrick Kelley for sharing these rules 

There's a comment on BGG's page regarding Gambit's board and cover:

The map for at least one printing is a bit of a curiosity. In it, the cover of the box shows a 10x10 board with alternating green and blue squares. The instructions note that the land squares are green and the sea squares are blue. However, the actual map provided is 10x16, has only black and white print on yellow paper, and uses the letters "L" and "S" to designate land and sea spaces. It would appear that the designer assumed he would be able to print color boards, but then had to fall back to a simpler black and white drawing printed on yellow paper.

Stax

Stax is a 1919 game by Chauncey H. Hatheway, published by the Stax Company.

The board and the company name are the only information at abstractstrategy.com/stax.html. Around 2006 I was able to find a bad digital copy of the rules.

Stax is a stacking game where each player has two types of pieces: the (twelve) Minors and the (twelve) Majors. The stacks can consist of pieces from both players, and its ownership is determined by its top piece. The goal is to capture or control (via stacking) all adversary pieces.

Here are the pictures, after my attempt to digitally improve them:

RULES FOR PLAYING STAX  
Copyright 1919 by Chauncey H. Hatheway  

The game is played on the diagonal only — never straight forward or straight backward, or to the sides.

THE PIECES  

Minor Pieces — The dark red and dark blue men. These men are known as "Minors," and can be moved diagonally forward only.  

Major Pieces — The light red and light blue men. These men are known as "Majors," and can be moved either diagonally forward or backwards.  

A Stack — Two or more men of either or both kinds, and of either or both colors, piled or stacked together. These "Stacks" are built up and torn down during the course of the game. The top man of a "Stack" controls all the men in the "Stack" underneath him, no matter what kind or color they are, and the "Stack" is moved diagonally as one piece from circle to circle as if the top man only were on the board. When the top man is a "Minor," the "Stack" is known as a "Minor Stack," and can be moved forward only. When the top man is a "Major," the "Stack" is known as a "Major Stack," and can be moved either diagonally forward or backwards.  

At the beginning of the game, the twelve dark red and twelve dark blue men or "Minors" only are used. The light red and light blue men or "Majors" are brought into action later on as described hereafter.  

THE GAME  

The game is played by two players; each player choosing a color and placing the Minor pieces of that color on the circles of the first three rows of the board directly in front of him. As noted above, these "Minors" can "Move" or "Capture" forward only.  

Whenever during the course of a game, a "Minor," either by a "Move" or a "Capture," reaches the last row of circles on the opposite side of the board, it must be immediately removed from the board by the player, and be replaced by a Major piece of the same color, and belonging to the same side. As noted above, these "Majors" can "Move" or "Capture" either forward or backwards.

Likewise, whenever a "Minor Stack" (i.e., a "Stack" having a Minor piece on top) reaches, either by a "Move" or a "Capture," the last row of circles on the opposite side of the board, the "Minor" on top must be immediately removed by the player, and a "Major" of the same color, and belonging to the same side, be placed in its stead on top of the "Stack." The "Stack" then becomes a "Major Stack," and can then "Move" or "Capture" either diagonally forward or backwards. Remember the top "Minor" only is exchanged—not the whole "Stack," nor any of the pieces (whether they be "Majors" or "Minors") which lie underneath.

In the above cases, care must be taken to always exchange the top "Minor" for a "Major," and not to place a "Major" on top of a "Minor" without removing the "Minor." Each player at all times must have twelve men on the board, and if at any time during the game he has more or less than twelve men, then some mistake has been made in the method of substituting "Majors" for "Minors" as outlined above, and if this mistake cannot be immediately rectified, the game should be discontinued and a new one commenced.

It should be especially noted that this exchange of Major for Minor pieces takes place only when a "Minor" reaches the last row on the opposite side of the board, and never at any other time. This is the only time during the game when a piece is ever removed from the board.

When a "Major," whether it be a single man or a "Major" on top of a "Stack," reaches the last row of circles on the opposite side of the board, no exchange of pieces is made, nor is another "Major" placed on top of it. Otherwise each player would soon have more than twelve men on the board.

The play is of two kinds — "Moving" and "Capturing."

A "Move" is made by advancing a piece diagonally to an adjoining vacant circle. A "Move" is the first play on each side, and is thereafter the regular play except when a "Capture" can be made.

A "Capture" can be made by either a single piece or by a "Stack," and must be made whenever possible. This occurs whenever one of the opposing pieces occupies a circle diagonally adjoining a circle on which his opponent's piece stands, and an adjacent vacant circle lies beyond.

The "Capture" of a single man is made in the following manner: The player whose turn it then is places his piece, whether it be a single man or a "Stack," on top of his opponent's man, and moves both as one piece to the vacant circle. The resulting piece, or "Stack," is then controlled by the top man, and is moved from circle to circle as if the top man only were on the board. The following diagram illustrates the method of "Capture" of a single man:

Note that Red has placed his man on top of Blue's and has removed the resulting piece or "Stack" to the vacant circle. This "Stack" is then controlled by Red for his man is on top, and is moved by him as a "Minor Stack" or a "Major Stack" according to the character of his piece which is on top.

Whenever, during the course of the game, an opposing "Stack" can be attacked by either an opponent's single man or by one of his "Stacks," it must be done in the following manner: The player, whose turn it then is, places his man or his "Stack" on top of the opposing "Stack" and "Captures" the top man ONLY of the opposing "Stack," leaving the remainder of the opposing "Stack" on the same circle on which it stood at the time of the "Capture." The remainder of the "Stack" then immediately becomes governed by the top man and is moved as if only the top man were on the board. If such top man is of different color from the man just removed from the "Stack" by the "Capture," then the "Stack" immediately changes hands, becoming a piece of the opposing side, and being moved by that side as a "Minor" or "Major Stack" according to the character of the top man which is on top. If the top man is of the same color as the top of this piece at which is on top. If the top man happened to be Blue, as is often the case, then this "Stack" would belong to Blue, and be moved by him as a "Minor" or "Major Stack" according to the character of his man which is on top. [...] The following diagram illustrates the method of attacking a "Stack"

Note that Blue has taken Red's man off the top of the opposing "Stack," and has carried it on the bottom of his "Stack" to the vacant circle. This leaves the remainder of the opposing "Stack" on the same circle on which it stood at the time of the "Capture." This "Stack" then belongs to Red for another of his men still remains on top, and is thereafter moved by him as a "Minor" or a "Major Stack" according to the character of his man which is on top. If after the "Capture", the top man happened to be Blue, as is often the case, then this "Stack" would belong to Blue, and be moved by him as a "Minor" or "Major Stack", according to the character of his man which is on top.

It should be especially remembered in "Capturing" that only a single man at a time can be taken. This is of course plain when a single man only is "Captured," but it equally follows when a "Stack" is attacked, for in the latter case the top man of the "Stack" only is "Captured," leaving the remainder of the "Stack" — whether it be only a single man (as is always the case when a "Stack" of two is attacked) or a "Stack" composed of several men — on the same circle it occupied at the time of the "Capture."

In any one turn of play a single "Major" or a "Major Stack" can never, after making one "Capture," return to the same circle from which it started that play by "Capturing" another man from the same opposing "Stack." In other words, an opposing "Stack" cannot be attacked twice in succession in the same turn of play.

A player must continue to "Capture" in one play as many of his opponent's single men or "Stacks" as is possible with the single exception that when a "Minor" or a "Minor Stack" reaches the last row of circles on the opposite side of the board, it must be immediately replaced by a "Major," and the play then ends. If the piece, however, be a "Major" or a "Major Stack," it must continue to make "Captures" as long as possible whether they take it into the last row or not.

Single men or "Stacks" belonging to one side can never be "Captured" by single men or "Stacks" belonging to the same side.

The game is won by one player "Capturing" all of his opponent's pieces or, in other words, by controlling all the "Stacks" on the board; or by blocking his opponent so that he cannot move.

HINTS ON PLAYING

The strategy of the game is for each side:  

1. To build up "Stacks" by having several of its own men (preferably "Majors") on top, and with them to wear down by "Capture" the weak "Stacks" of the opposing side.  

2. To imprison its opponent's men in "Stacks" which it controls and thus render them, for the time, being inactive.

A "Stack" with several of your opponent's men underneath and one of your men on top, is a weak piece and should be protected and used as a defense only, for your opponent by attacking it can "Capture" your piece on top and thus release his own men underneath. On the other hand, a "Stack" with several of your own men on top, or composed entirely of your men (especially if these men are all "Majors") is a strong piece and should be used to attack and wear down by "Capture" the weak "Stacks" of the opposing side.

When one side has a strong "Stack," it will often be found advantageous for him to move so as to force the opposing side to capture a man off the top of this "Stack" if by so doing he can, in the succeeding plays, "Capture" the controlling man off an opposing weak "Stack," and thus release his men which are imprisoned in this opposing "Stack."

During the first part of the game the play consists mostly of "Moves," "Captures," and "Recaptures" of the "Minors." Small "Stacks" are constantly being built up and torn down, and it is very seldom that a "Stack" of more than two men is built up at this stage of the game. The strategy which should first govern the game consists of maneuvering so as to "Capture" an opponent's main piece every man of yours which he "Captures," and to build up a "Stack" with two of your own pieces every time your opponent builds up a "Stack" of two of his pieces. As soon, however, as a "Minor" on each side reaches the last row of circles on the opposite side of the board, and is replaced by a "Major," the "Stacks" composed of three, four, five, or even more pieces begin to pile up rapidly, and as the game progresses the "Minors" gradually disappear from the board, so that towards the end of the game, if it be a hardly contested one, nearly all the men on the board will be "Majors."

In not only a few games will all of the twenty-four "Major" pieces furnished in the set be used. They are provided, however, in case the game is very close and they are all required. In such a game, of course, during the play every "Minor" has been retired from the board.

The STAX Company
Greenwich, Connecticut