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Overview

Wyrdstones is an abstract board game for two players. Each player has a stock of warriors, called thanes, represented by rune stones. These thanes move, fight, and use their abilities on the battlefield. The object of the game is to move one of your thanes into the enemy’s first rank, or longhouse.

Components

All downloads are in PDF.

• 1 game board, 8×8 squares (any chess- or checker-board will work; colors of squares will not have any effect on the game)
• 48 rune stones, 2 of each in the Futhark alphabet, in 2 colors (download labels here, suitable for printing to these)
• 2 opaque bags or boxes to conceal and randomize the stones
• 1 reference guide to thane abilities (download here)

The Stones

Each stone represents a thane, a warrior who has sworn fealty to you, their king. On the eve of battle, each thane comes to you with a prophetic dream, which manifests itself as a game ability. It is up to you to choose which of these premonitions of fate you will listen to, and which you will ignore. You can find a reference guide for thane abilities here.

Setup

Lay out the game board between the two players. The first rank, or row, from each player’s perspective is known as that player’s longhouse.

Each player chooses a color of stones and takes all 24 in that color, placing them in an opaque container. Each player randomly selects 8 of their thanes; these will be the thanes that start the game in play. Randomly choose a player to go first. That player places one of their thanes anywhere in their longhouse. The second player does the same. Thereafter, players alternate placing thanes on the board one at a time with two restrictions:

Each new thane must be placed orthogonally adjacent to a previously-placed thane.

No player may place a thane beyond their own fourth rank. 

Once all thanes have been placed, the player who began placing thanes second will take the first turn.

The Turn

Each turn has three parts, and turns alternate between the two players.

Draw a stone

Randomly draw one stone from your bag. Keep it hidden from your opponent. Decide whether or not you would like to place the stone on the board or keep it in your hand. You may keep a stone in your hand for as many turns as you like, but your hand has a limit of a single stone. If you choose to replace the stone in your hand with a newly drawn stone, the old one is returned to your bag. Note that neither player begins the game with a stone in their hand.

If you decide to play the drawn stone to the board, place it into any free square in your longhouse. If there are no free spaces in your longhouse to play a stone into, you must either keep the drawn stone in your hand or return it to your bag.

(optional) Use a thane ability

Return the stone in your hand to your bag and apply the effects of that stone’s ability immediately.

Move

To move, choose one rank or column. If a row is chosen, move every one of your stones (NB: only your stones) in that row one square to the right or one square to the left. If a column is chosen, move every one of your stones in that column one square forward or one square backward. All stones in a given row or column move in the same direction.

If a move would end with one or more of your stones off the edge of the board, then remove those stones and return them to your bag.

Diagonal movement is not allowed.

Combat

If one or more of your stones at any time occupies a square containing an enemy stone, then you have initiated a combat. Combat is resolved by removing both your stone and the enemy’s stone from the board; the stones are returned to their owners’ bags.

If a movement or thane ability results in two of your own stones occupying the same square, remove them both; for purposes of resolving thane abilities, this is not considered combat.

Winning the Game

When one of your thanes ends movement (whether by regular movement or a thane ability) in an open square of your enemy’s longhouse, you win the game.