Pente Grammai (five lines) Board Game by grey_starr

Last crawled date: 3 years ago

Pente Grammai (five lines) Designed for the visually impaired to be able to play.
Recently at a game night, I was introduced to this awesome and simple game: Pente Grammai (five lines). I also met someone new at the event, who was blind. So playing was a bit of a challenge on the playing field we were using. This inspired me to create this visually impaired friendly version. They will be able to feel and identify the different pieces easily, and where everything is on the playing board without worry of moving pieces accidently. I also made the dice larger and with easy to feel dimples.
I have included a single file with everything to print at once... as well as each individual component.
History of the Game:
“Five Lines is one of the oldest board games known, coming from Ancient Greece where it was known as Pente Grammai. Around 600 BC the Greek poet Alkaios referred to the game in one of his poems; and gaming tables in terracotta with the typical five parallel lines have been found in graves dating to the same period. During the decades around 500 BC the Athenians imagined Ajax and Achilles playing the game during the siege of Troy. Five Lines, or 'the game of the heroes', was regarded as a noble game for centuries and was very popular; as it was during Roman Imperial times, when a number of descriptions of the game occur in contemporary literature, and boards with rectangular grids can be found scratched into pavements in Roman towns.”
Game Play:
Each player places five game pieces on opposing sides of the board, one at the end of each line.
The central line is known as "the sacred line".
Game pieces move counter-clockwise alternately on the roll of a single die.
Game piece may land only on a vacant line, or on the sacred line.
If there is a legal move, you must move. Even if you are on the sacred line. You may not be able to move at all, so next players turn.
The winner is the first to assemble all their game pieces on the sacred line opposite their starting position.
If you're in the SCA - this is a perfect game to play at Pennsic War while drinking your mead ;)