Alvatafl is a northern Imperial boardgame played on a 15x15 squared grid. It has an army of 48 Dwarf pieces that surround a centrally-placed army of 12 Elves with an Elven prince in his castle at the centre.
Said to be as old as the grudge between the two Elder Races, as the game mechanics mimic the events of the decisive battle of the War of the Beard, the siege in which the Phoenix King Caledor II perished, Alvatafl has the Dwarfs moving very slowly at a single square per go, and the Elves moving swiftly in straight lines. The Dwarfs are trying to kill the prince or capture his castle before he manages to escape the board. Popular in Nordland and Ostland, carved sets of Alvatafl are found in most northern taverns and inns in the Old World.[1a]
Larger versions of the game are also common in Kislev -- there the game is called Zasada and instead depicts 15 centrally-placed Gospodar Winged Lancers with an Ice Witch surrounded by 60 Trolls.[1a]
Trivia[]
Alvatafl is based on hnefatafl games, a family of ancient Nordic and Celtic strategy board games played on a checkered or latticed gameboard with two armies of uneven numbers.[1a]