2 players
Saxun
Sáxun
- Game family
- chaturanga
Overview
Sáxun is a game played by the Aleut peoples in what is now Alaska. Judging from the names of the pieces, it appears that the game was adopted from the Russians. It employs a unique starting position.
Source rules (English)
8x8 checkered board. The pieces move as follows: Álix' ('old man'), x1: moves one space orthogonally or diagonally; Férsix' ('fers'), x1: moves any number of spaces orthogonally or diagonally; Lúdkax' ('boat'), x2: moves orthogonally any number of spaces; Slúnax' ('elephant'), x2: moves diagonally any number of spaces; Kúnax' ('horse'), x2: moves like a Chess knight; Layakúcan ('little boys'), x8: move forward one space, capture diagonally forward. Captures are made when a piece moves onto a space occupied by an opponent's piece. A player's Álix' is checked when it can be taken by the opponent on their next turn, and this possibility must be removed before the opponent plays. If a player's Álix' is checkmated, the opponent wins.