Play Merrells; a game enjoyed by Vikings

Some games are so good they stand the test of time. Merrells (also known as nine mens morris) has been enjoyed by many since at least the time of the Romans. By the Viking era the game was being enjoyed by peoples all across northern Europe.

Various finds of game boards have been found from this time and, not wanting to waste space, some boards have a different game on the other side, like Hnefetafl.

Details of a 9th century gaming board fragment found at Gokstad, Norway. The top shows merrells and the bottom shows another game (possibly a variation of Hnefetafl).

Merrells remained a popular pastime for nearly 2,000 years, however by the Early Modern period other games started to take over and it eventually fell out of popular culture in the West. Although apparently it is still played in some parts of the world i.e. Austria.

Some versions use as little as three counters each and some up to twelve each. The most well known version however, uses nine counters each and this is the version we are going to play today!

How to Play

Standard merrells (or nine mens morris) board.

This two-player game starts with all pieces off the board and play is divided into two main phases 1) placing the pieces, and 2) moving the pieces.

Each player has nine pieces and takes it in turns to place a counter on any junction (where two or more lines meet). We have put dots at each junction to remove any doubt. Your aim is to place three counters in a line (called a "mill") and stop your opponent from doing the same. If you make a mill you get to permanently remove one of your opponents counters from the board. If you make a mill and your opponent has some counters in a mill also, you must remove a loose counter first. If all remaining counters are in mill(s) then you may remove one of them.

NOTE: Three counters in a line is only a mill if it is along one of the drawn lines on the board.

The objective is to remove your opponents pieces until they are left with just 2. At that point you win the game.

When all of your counters are on the board proceed to take turns moving the counters one space at a time. Counters must travel along the lines to the next junction and may not be picked up and put anywhere.

It is possible for pieces to be blocked in. If you cannot move any piece then you must frfeit your turn.

You can find a downloadable template for merrells on the Viking and Saxon Resources page. You can either find your own counters or you can cut out the counters drawn below the board on the download.