hist-games: Brandubh ("Black raven")

[webmaster at historicgames.com]

Quoting Damian Walker <damian at snigfarp.karoo.co.uk>:

> Quoting webmaster at historicgames.com's message of Saturday:
>
>> http://www.unicorngarden.com/games.htm
>>
>> The author of that website seems to have created this game which he  
>>  seems to alternately call "Faery Chess" "Celtic Chess" and   
>> "Fidchell" On that page he seems to admit that he has no   
>> documentation for Fidchell being his circular game, but I thought   
>> it was worth giving people a heads-up that people are already being  
>>  confused by his application of "Celtic" and "Fidchell" to a game   
>> which seems to be a pure invention of his own.
>
> And this is much the same as the situation with Brandub.  But all
> people are doing is continuing tradition here.  Nobody seemed to care
> about accuracy of naming in the middle ages.  Henry IV's foxes and
> geese for a game of "merels", and Alfonso's three-in-a-row "alquerque"
> games spring to mind.  And Fidchell is a name that occupies among
> gamers the same situation as a piece of rope in a tug of war.
>
> -- 
> Damian - http://damian.snigfarp.karoo.net/

It's still frustrating, especially when you have people (potential  
customers...) ask for information about what they've been led to  
believe is an actual documented historic game. I had 2-3 E-mails to my  
obscure game business website asking about a circular "Celtic" chess  
game a couple years before I finally stumbled across this author's  
website.

Chas
--
MacGregor Games