KLINKER

Klinker
by Fred Horn 15/05/2010 

Story or ‘Fairy Tale’ ? Once upon a time in the small Village of  ………in the land of  .………  two Bricklayers are at work, paving the Central Square of their Village. Trees, some Benches and a Stone-Table with a mosaïc surface are already planted or placed and the two craftsmen, KEES &KOOS, are now finishing the place by laying down KLINKERs in beautiful patterns.

 

“Let’s take some rest” KOOS says, while taking a seat on one of the Benches next to the Table.

“Look !”, KEES says, while also taking a seat and pointing at the Table, “our KLINKERs fit perfectly on the Tiles of the Table’s mosaïc !”.

“You’re absolutely right” KOOS replies “and when I place my KLINKERs in one direction and you will do the same in the other, I bet, I can place more KLINKERs onto the Table than you may do”.

“Don’t count on that” was KEES’ answer and they started to play as follows:

 

 

max 40 Kinkers:

The Player knownn as KEES begins and lays down his KLINKERs, according to the grid of Tiles, in the left-right-direction:

The other Player, known as KOOS, plays the 90-degrees-direction

When KEES has played his first KLINKER and KOOS knows for sure this will give KEES too much advantage, KOOS takes this direction and the starting KLINKER, and KEES plays second in the other direction. Otherwise, when KOOS agrees to KEES’ first placement he has second Turn.

In their alternate Turns KEES & KOOS lay down 1 KLINKER per Turn, according to the grid in their direction anywhere (to they) wish on the Table.

Play continues till one of the Players is unable to place a KLINKER, according to the Rules,  in his direction.

This Player has lost the Game and his opponent is declared THE WINNER.

While playing the Game, more and more Inhabitants of the small Village of  ….. gather  round the Players , watching and wondering what:  ‘It’s all about’. Everybody likes the Game so much that KEES & KOOS do leave a pile of KLINKERs next to the Table after finishing their paving-Job. To this day the pile is still there, waiting for some Players to start to play that Game, a Game  the Inhabitants only know as: “the Game of KEES & KOOS’. And, when passing by this remote Village,do not forget to visit it; sit down on a Bench at the Central Square; and start to play.

Game of the South-African War

Fred Horn sent me pictures of a game about the Boer war which seems to be in the family of the Fox and Geese games. There is a mixture of Cyrillic and German text.

There is one Boer piece and three English pieces. The Boer starts in the middle and the Englishmen are placed on any other positions on the board. The Boer goal is to move back into the center or try not to be surrounded by 30 turns (surrounding is only possible in the outer circle). Otherwise, the Englishmen wins.

The german text: "Der schwarze Stein (Bur) wird ins centrum gesetzt, die drei gelben steine (Englander) auf beliebige Felder. Der Bur hat den ersten Zug; die Aufgabe der Englander ist, den Bur nicht wieder das Centrum besetzen zu lassen, sondern ihn in einem der aussersten Felder einzuschliessen. Gelint es dem Bur das Centrum zu besetzen, so hat er die Partie gewonnen; hat er nach dem 30-ten zuge der Englander noch einen Zug frei, so hat er gleichfalls gewonnen."

Thierry Depaulis noticed the similarity with the Gioco dell'orso game from Piedmont

 [link]

Not Made in Germany

Fred Horn sent me this old board game that he found in the collection at Slot Zuylen nearby the town of Utrecht.

Rules:

The game is for two players, each moving in turn.

There are nine pieces required on each side, each piece having a letter or a flag on it, and they must be placed along the first row of squares, so as to form the words 'england' on one side, and 'germany' on the other, with a flag at both ends of each word.

setup from original rules

Each piece moves one square in any direction, straight, diagonally, backwards, forwards or sideways.

Each player must gradually work all his pieces across the board, so that they form the words 'england' or 'germany' with a flag at each end on the last row of squares, and the one who first succeeds in doing this has won the game.

At the end of the game, the pieces must spell the words 'england' or 'germany' correctly to their respective players, while they are upsidedown to their opponents.

Any piece may leap over any other piece which is next to it, if there be a vacant square behind it, in any direction provided always that the square to which the piece moves is in the same straight line with the square from which it is moved.

A piece may also leap over a succession of any number of pieces provided that there is one vancant square between each.

A piece may leap over pieces of its own colour a well as the opponents pieces.

In leaping over a succession of pieces, the leaps are no bound to be all in the same direction, some may be diagonal, while others may be straight.

Leaping over pieces should be done as much as possible, as it enable the pieces to cross the Board much quicker than moving one square at the time.

No piece may move on to or over the ornamental square, but must cross the Boad through or over one of the two pain sqaures in the middle row.

No piece may be captured or removed from the Board,

It is not compulsory to leap over any piece.

KOERIER

A strategic Booard-Game for 2 Persons © Fred Horn 1982

by Fred Horn: In the early eighties of the last Century I came in contact with the famous game-inventor from New York mister Sid Sackson and we did exchange some ideas about games, but mostly I did, in those days by mail and sometimes with a telephone-call, provide information on (to him) unknown Dutch games out of my Colllection. I also send him some of my own invented games I had worked on in the years before, to get his valuable opinion and commentary. This game was an adaption of the game “Blue & Grey” out of his book ‘A Gamut of Games’ for  the ‘Dambord’ 10 x 10 which I had developed for Hans van Maanen as a possible item for his booklet “Geen Wolf en Zeven Geitjes”. But it was too complicated, because of the drawing on the board, for issue in that book. From Sid I got a nice review.

 

The goal is to bring your ‘Koerier/Courier’ from his start-corner to the opposite corner of the board along the the squares with a blue line.

Board:

Game- Pieces:

Each Player receives 10 Pieces in his colour RED or YELLOW:

• 1 Courier
• 3 Guards
• 6 Horsemen

Setup:

• The Courier is placed on the square in his Corner of the corresponding colour.
• The six Horsemen are placed on the squares in the Outer-Court (of the Castle) with the corresponding colour.
• The three Guards are placed on the following squares inside the Castle. 
• For RED: A9; B9; B10 and for Yellow:  I9; J9; J10

Movement of the Pieces:

• The Courier moves one square along the squares with a straight (no dots) blue line, always forward, in the direction of its Castle.
• The Guards move over empty squares along a diagonal line two squares.
• The Horsemen move over empty squares (jumping is not allowed) one square orthogonal and thereafter one square diagonal in the same move.
• Only the Guards and the Courier are allowed to go into and stay inside a Castle.
• YELLOW starts then Turns alternate.

Blocking:

• If a Piece occupies a square with a blue line it blocks the movement of the Courier.
• N.B. This means for the Couriers that they must take a different route through the middle.
• If a Guard blocks the blue line in a Castle just in front of the Courier, he has to wait a Turn and than captures the blocking Guard.

Capture:

• The Courier cannot capture or be captured, only blocked.
• Only inside the Castle a Courier is allowed to capture a blocking Guard à see above.
• All other Pieces capture or be captured by ‘replacement’.
• When it is possible in a Turn to reach the square occupied by an opponents’ Piece, this Piece may be captured (not obliged).
• A Horseman can capture Horsemen and Guards outside the Castle.
• A Guard can only capture Guards also inside the Castle.

Win:

• The first Player reaching his opposite Corner, wins.
• If RED manages to go to his Corner in the direct following Turn, it is a draw.