Herooj
Herooj Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Setup
Place the game board between the two players. Columns are lettered a-h (left to right) and rows numbered 1-8. White sits at rows 1-2, black sits at rows 7-8. Each player sets up 10 pawns and 4 masters as follows:
White (rows 1-2):
- Row 1 (back row): pawns on a1, b1, d1, e1, g1, h1; masters on c1 and f1.
- Row 2: pawns on b2, c2, f2, g2; masters on d2 and e2. Squares a2 and h2 are left empty.
Black (rows 7-8):
- Row 8 (back row): pawns on a8, b8, d8, e8, g8, h8; masters on c8 and f8.
- Row 7: pawns on b7, c7, f7, g7; masters on d7 and e7. Squares a7 and h7 are left empty.
Each player's safe zone is their own two back rows (rows 1-2 for white, rows 7-8 for black).
Rules
Pawns
A pawn can move 1 or 2 cells orthogonally or diagonally forward (backwards and sideways moves are not allowed for pawns).
Pawns capture by jumping orthogonally (in a straight line) over an adjacent friendly piece and landing on an immediately adjacent enemy piece, which is removed from the board. Backwards and sideways captures are allowed this way, but not diagonal captures.
It is not allowed to jump over enemy pieces. Also, it is not allowed to jump over friendly pieces unless you are making a capturing move.
Masters
A master can move 1 or 2 cells in any direction, orthogonally or diagonally, forward and backwards.
A master can also capture the same way pawns do (jumping over an adjacent friendly piece and landing on an immediately adjacent enemy piece), but in any of the 8 directions, including diagonals.
Herooj (promoted pawns)
When a pawn reaches the far rank of the board (the opponent's first row), it is promoted to "Heroo". A Heroo can move sideways and backwards, orthogonally and diagonally, but NOT forward. It captures the same way pawns do.
Goal
The goal of Herooj is to promote a pawn to Heroo and bring it back to the player's safe zone (the player's own 2 first rows).
A player can also win by eliminating all of the opponent's pawns and Herooj, or by leaving the opponent without legal moves.
Master Herooj Variant
The "Master Herooj" variant is played the same way as the original Herooj game, but with subtle differences:
The game starts without Masters. Each player sets up 14 pawns and no masters:
- Row 1 / Row 8 (back rows): pawns fill all 8 squares (a through h).
- Row 2 / Row 7: pawns fill the 6 squares b through g; the a and h squares are left empty.
A pawn promotes to Heroo when it reaches the far rank of the board (the first row on the opponent's side), exactly as in the base game.
When a Heroo reaches the safe zone (the player's own 2 first rows), it promotes to "Master".
Goal (Master Herooj)
When one of the players places their second Master on the board (even if the first one was captured), the game ends and that player wins.
If a player has only one piece left on the board, that player automatically loses the game. A player can also lose if they have no legal moves.
Credits
Herooj is a free abstract board game designed by David Crespo.
Creative Commons: BY-SA-ND.
Artwork and rules-set by David Crespo.