Cómo funciona Kubb

Kubb (rima con tubo y significa "bloque") es, en última instancia, un juego en el que intentas derribar bloques de madera. Eso es todo. Sin embargo, este es un juego de césped de proporciones potencialmente épicas, y uno con una historia potencialmente horrible y espeluznante, para empezar.

Kubb es una hábil combinación de simplicidad, habilidad, fortuna y estrategia que ningún juego de pufs puede igualar. Los juegos pueden durar desde unos pocos minutos hasta más de una hora. Puedes jugar en cualquier lugar. Y aunque parezca un poco complicado al principio, kubb es en realidad una búsqueda sencilla. Para muchos jugadores, también es ridículamente adictivo.

El juego a veces se llama un cruce entre herraduras , bolos y golf. ¿Ya bostezando? No hagas clic todavía, porque kubb combina los mejores elementos de esos juegos para un desafío extrañamente primitivo.

En Kubb, hay tres tipos de piezas de juego: seis bastones, 10 kubbs y un rey. Los bastones son cilindros de 12 pulgadas (30,5 centímetros) de largo. Los kubbs son bloques de 2,75 pulgadas (7 centímetros) cuadrados y 6 pulgadas (15,2 centímetros) de alto. Y el rey es un bloque de 3,5 pulgadas (8,9 centímetros) cuadrados y 12 pulgadas (30,5 centímetros) de alto, y a menudo está rematado con una alegre corona.

Los equipos contrarios, que constan de uno a 20 jugadores, se turnan para lanzar bastones en un intento de derribar los kubbs del otro equipo, que se colocan en los extremos opuestos de un campo rectangular. Una vez que se derriban los kubbs, puedes atacar al rey. Derriba al rey y ganas el juego.

Sin embargo, hay más en kubb de lo que se ve a simple vista. Con detalles intrincados que pueden cambiar el rumbo de un juego en cualquier momento, kubb es lo suficientemente simple para los niños y tiene suficientes capas para involucrar a los adultos durante horas seguidas.

Sigue leyendo y verás más sobre este juego extrañamente estimulante. ¿Ladderball y dardos de césped? Apenas te conocíamos. La locura de Kubb está en marcha en todo el mundo.

1. Usa tu sombrero vikingo
2. Reglas de Kubb
3. La batalla ruge
4. Puntos críticos de Kubb
5. Estrategia y tácticas de Kubb

Hay historias de que el kubb se originó en Escandinavia hace milenios. Estos cuentos a menudo aluden a la idea de que los vikingos aburridos necesitaban una forma de matar el tiempo, por lo que buscaron trozos de madera y crearon kubb, que a veces también se llama ajedrez vikingo.

Una versión más emocionante (y espantosa) de la historia indica que los vikingos usaron huesos humanos para los bastones y un cráneo para la pieza del rey. Esa es una forma de usar el botín de guerra.

Otro giro en la historia indica que el juego fue una creación del rey sueco Gustav Vikstrom III a principios del siglo XVII. Se dice que el rey usó kubb como una forma de resolver desacuerdos entre varias facciones en sus tierras. Si hay algo de verdad en estas leyendas, los perdedores lo pasaron mal: su ganado fue sacrificado, junto con sus familias. Baste decir que lo que está en juego en el kubb moderno no es tan escalofriante.

Nadie sabe realmente la génesis de kubb. Sin embargo, sabemos que los primeros y más incondicionales patrocinadores de kubb probablemente se originaron en Gotland, que es una isla frente a la costa este de Suecia. En la década de 1990, el kubb se hizo más popular en el continente y, desde entonces, se ha popularizado entre los amantes de los juegos en otras partes del mundo, particularmente en Gran Bretaña y Australia . En los EE. UU., las principales cadenas de tiendas venden juegos de kubb, un hecho que demuestra que kubb es todo menos un fenómeno aislado.

En estos días, hay clubes y torneos de kubb en numerosos países. El torneo del campeonato mundial se lleva a cabo anualmente (más o menos, las fechas no siempre son exactas) en Gotland. Casi 200 equipos de seis jugadores cada uno pueden llegar a este torneo para desafiarse entre sí por el trono de kubb.

Pero no tienes que viajar hasta Suecia para desarrollar el gusto por esta diversión en bloque. Puedes jugar casi en cualquier lugar, con cualquier persona, y no te costará casi nada. En la página siguiente, le mostraremos cómo comenzar su búsqueda de la gloria de kubb.

Las reglas de kubb son bastante fáciles de entender, pero son un poco más complicadas que las de un juego de bolsas de frijoles. La mejor forma de aprender es jugando. Así es como empiezas.

Puedes comprar un kit kubb en línea o en muchas ferreterías. Una nota importante sobre algunos de estos conjuntos de juegos: algunas tiendas venden versiones del juego que ni remotamente se parecen al original, así que asegúrese de verificar dos veces un producto antes de comprarlo.

You can even make your own set from lumber that you might already have lying around the house -- see the first page of this article for the dimensions.

With your kubb set in hand, you must mark the playing field (or pitch) using corner pins. In championship rules, the pitch measures 8 meters (26.2 feet) long by 5 meters (16.4 feet) wide. It's not uncommon for casual or new players to shorten the field to 6 meters (19.7 feet) by 4 meters (13.1 feet) to make the game easier and faster. Some players mark the out of bounds line with chalk or other material that doesn't interfere with game play.

You can establish your pitch nearly anywhere. Kubb works on a sandy beach, an ice-covered lake, or a fairly level part of your own yard. If you make your game pieces from foam, you can even play inside.

Then, each team sets up its five kubbs, placing them at even intervals at the far ends of the pitch, on the baselines between the corner pins. The king goes directly in the middle of the pitch, on the centerline.

To determine who goes first, one person from each team tosses a baton from their baseline towards the king. Whoever lands closest to the king without touching it may go first; for this example, we'll refer to this as Team Stark. The second team, who we'll call Team Lannister, may choose the side of the pitch it would like to play from.

Then, the battle commences. From behind its own baseline, Team Stark throws its batons, one by one, at the kubbs on Team Lannister's baseline. Each throw must be underhand and the baton must spin end over end. No overhand throws are allowed, nor are sideways or helicopter throws.

In a perfect game, Team Stark would strike down each of the Lannister kubbs and still have one baton remaining, which it would then use to knock over the king and then end the game. This almost never happens, though. On the next page you'll read about how a game of kubb proceeds.

It's possible that a game will end in the first six throws. However, it's much more likely that some of the Lannister kubbs will still be standing after the Starks run out of batons. In that case, once all of the Starks' batons are thrown, the Lannisters begin their turn.

In the most basic version of the game, toppled kubbs are removed from the pitch as they fall, until the king is finally taken down. However, in one of the most widely played versions of this game, toppled kubb go right back into play. Here's how:

After the Starks run out of batons, the Lannisters pick up their fallen kubbs and throw them into strategic positions onto the Starks' side of the pitch. Then, the Starks stand these kubbs right where they fell. These are now called field kubbs.

To begin their attack, the Lannisters must first topple all field kubbs. Once the field kubbs are down, the Lannisters may go after the Starks' baseline kubbs, and if successful, may then attack the king.

Let's say the Lannisters throw all of their batons and some of the Starks' field kubbs are still standing. Just as the Lannisters did before, Team Stark picks up all fallen kubbs and then tosses them to the Lannisters' side. There's one twist -- Team Stark leaves one of their still-standing field kubb in place.

Then the game changes in a hurry. Team Stark is allowed to advance to a temporary baseline created by the remaining field kubb that Team Lannister failed to overturn. This temporary baseline creates a tremendous advantage because Team Stark will likely be in closer range, making all of the kubbs on the Lannisters' side much easier to overturn.

If Team Stark knocks over all of the Lannisters' kubbs and then the king , it wins the game. If not, Team Lannister tosses back fallen kubbs to the Stark side and another round begins. This back-and-forth continues until one team is finally able to knock down all of the kubbs and then the king.

During all of this, many players take pride in the quality of their Viking trash talk, perhaps hoping to distract the other team (or maybe just to speak in a funny accent). As with all lawn games, kubb is often interrupted by tasty snacks and drinks, a fact that undoubtedly adds to its appeal.

Now that you know the basics of kubb, read on for some of the finer points on game play.

There are a few detailed kubb rules that make the game more sophisticated than just a bunch of block bludgeoning. Here are key points to remember:

In kubb the king is ... well, king. As with the 8 ball in billiards , the king must always fall last. A team that advertently fells the king prematurely automatically loses; in another version of the rules (in which a resurrection king is allowed), it means that team forfeits the rest of its turn, the king is righted, and the other teams goes on the attack.

Each match consists of three games (also called sets). To win the match, you must win two of the three games.

When a team throws kubbs into the field, sometimes they bounce out of bounds. You get a second chance to throw an out-of-bounds kubb. In the event that it goes out of bounds once again, the opposing team takes control of the kubb, which is now called a penalty kubb. A penalty kubb presents an interesting opportunity for the defending team, because they can place this kubb wherever they like. The only restriction is that the penalty kubb must be at least one baton length from the king or the corner markers.

Stacking (also called piling) is still another option that changes game play. When stacking is allowed, any thrown kubbs that hit each other are subsequently stacked (in a Jenga -like tower) in the field. These stacks obviously make field kubbs a lot easier to strike down, as multiple kubbs will fall easily when a baton strikes them.

In formal play, there must be at least two players for each team. In championship play, there are normally six players per team. The batons are distributed equally amongst team members, so teams with a greater number of skilled throwers have a substantial advantage.

In informal play, there can be any number of team members in each team. What's more, people can join or leave the game whenever they feel like it -- in other words, whenever they decide it's time to grab another grilled hamburger or beer. Because no one has to keep score, it's easy for random people to enter or exit the game at any time.

In the bean bag toss or ladderball, one team is always on the offensive, and short of screaming or physically interfering with a throw, there's nothing the other team can do stop the attackers. In kubb, however, there are a number of defensive moves involved.

For one, you must think strategically when you're throwing kubbs. If you throw kubbs close to the centerline and then fail to overturn them, the other team suddenly has an opportunity to advance forward to a temporary baseline and knock down all of your kubbs from close proximity. On the other hand, if you throw your kubbs deep into their territory, they may be harder for you to knock down. But as a consolation, the opposing team won't get great field position.

Like batons, you must throw kubbs underhanded. Unlike batons, you can spin the kubbs in any direction you like. Adding directional spin can be extremely useful when you're trying to place kubbs in tricky or tight positions. Spinning the kubb precisely is often called drilling, and there are endless tactics you can use to group field kubbs as tightly as possible so that you can knock them down more than one at a time. Some kubb fanatics consider drilling to be the skill that separates amateurs from assassins.

Also, when it comes to raising field kubbs, you'll need to think ahead. The rules state that two corners of the kubb must remain touching the ground as you raise it. Because kubbs are four-sided, this means each kubb has two possible positions, or footprints. When there are multiple field kubb in question, it's generally best to separate them with as much horizontal space as possible. In doing so, you make it much harder for an attacker to overturn more than one kubb at a time, dominos style.

Penalty kubb placement also adds spice to the game. Place penalty kubbs close to the king and your opponent will worry about accidentally hitting the king. In addition, you can change the angle of the kubb. With the flat face towards your opponent, the kubb is easier to overturn, but if you turn the kubb's corner toward your enemy, you make it just a little harder to knock down.

No matter how much you hone your throwing skills, there's always an element of luck in kubb. The variation of playing surfaces means a lucky -- or unlucky -- bounce can turn a bloody rout into a heartbreaking defeat in an instant.

These elements are the essence of kubb. For many people, this is more than a lawn game: It's an obsession. It's a worldwide game with a weird name, and it's coming to a yard near you.

Author's Note: How Kubb Works

Full disclosure -- I had never in my life heard of kubb until I started researching this article. As someone who loves to play ladderball (but struggles to keep track of the score) I was immediately drawn to the elegance and simplicity (and touch of brutality) that is kubb. So of course I proceeded directly to a store to buy a game set. It does take some finesse and accuracy to throw batons, but after a few games I started to zero in on the kind of wrist flick it takes to zing kubbs. Although I'm very much a kubb novice, I can see just how enthralling this game must be for true devotees.

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