King's Escape

The game the Vikings played for a thousand years

King's Escape is Tafl, the strategy game of the Norse world, rebuilt as a battle you can watch unfold. A small band of defenders shields the king at the heart of the board, and a larger host surrounds them. The defenders win if the king reaches safety. The attackers win if he falls.



Every piece moves like a rook and captures by surrounding. The rules take a minute to learn, but the game rewards a lifetime of play.

Features

• Seven historic rule sets, from tiny Brandubh (7×7) to the vast Alea Evangelii (19×19), including tournament Copenhagen Hnefatafl with shieldwalls, exit forts and encirclement.
  
• A computer opponent that plans like a general, with five tiers from Thrall to Konungr. Watch its intent as it seals corners, tightens the noose or runs for the edge.
  
• Practice mode that stops you before a blunder and shows you a better move, with hints and undo for learning.

• Play your way: against the computer, hot-seat with a friend at the same PC, or online through Steam. Invite friends straight from your Steam friends list.
  
• Twelve armies, from the King's Huscarls and the Draugr Host to the Goblin Horde and the Abyssal Court, each led by a towering king. Two march with you from the start; the rest are won through deeds and victories.
  
• Six battlefields to fight on, three of them unlocked by your deeds: a torchlit crypt, a fortress of ash, a misty barrow shore and more.
  
• Steam achievements and leaderboards: eighteen deeds to earn, including some hidden ones, and swiftest-victory boards for every rule set.