Burning Bright

It is notable that the modern tabletop hobby has such a wealth of mechanisms. So many indeed that we frequently shorthand the intricacies of each mechanism by mentioning games that became the prime example of each particular one: drafting like Sushi-Go, Asymmetry like Root, co-operative like Pandemic. Of course many of these mechanisms are older, much older, than these games. The Nepalese game Bagh-Chal, and its cousins across the globe, give us the origins of asymmetry. 

Bagh-Chal is a two player game of predators and prey, but who occupies each role is not always clear. One player takes on the role of the Tigers. This player starts in the corners of the board, stalking in to pounce on their prey. Those prey are the goat. This side doesn’t even start on the board, appearing just one at a time. They are cautious, cagey, and tactical. Unable to move until all the goats are played, they very slowly dominate the board.

Tigers see goats as a tasty snack. As the tigers move along the lines of the board, they can jump over a goat, providing there is space on the other side to land. When they achieve this the goat is captured and removed from the board. 5 times is the charm and victory for the yellow and black away team. 

Goats are vegetarian of course so Tigers are strictly off the menu. They do have 20 goats to the 4 tigers. In this mass of bleaters they can coordinate to corner the cats. When all the goats are placed they can move around, jostling to push the tigers into positions where they can no longer be a threat. If no tiger can move then the goats win.  

This gives us two asymmetric factions and a relatively simple set of movement mechanics with which to manipulate them. The goats always go first. For the games I played the goat player’s initial moves always kept them away from the rogers. Maybe that’s not the right approach though. Sacrifice plays are a common feature of a lot of classic abstract games like this. 

Although the mechanisms are simple, there is plenty of room for the kind of plays you might expect from a game of chess. Tigers can pincer two goats at once, forcing the goats to choose who gets got. Goats look to dominate corners, as they are safe as can be. They have to move out eventually though in order to shut down the tigers for good, a face the tigers can take advantage of. 

We figured out if the goats play too well, they get to a point where they have very limited options for movement. This leaves the tigers with more room for manipulation. Maybe you do want to make those sacrifices after all. I don’t know the answer to this, but that this simple game can make us think of these possibilities is interesting in and of itself. 

Now someone might come along and tell me that Bagh-Chal has been ‘solved’. Does that make it any less entertaining in a given moment of play? Of course it doesn’t. We can still enjoy games that have been technically solved. Chess and Go have been ‘mastered’ by computers, does that mean humans should give up playing? No. Of course not. 

For the average person it doesn’t matter if a game is ‘solved’ or not. The experience of a game isn’t just in the raw mechanisms played perfectly. It is rare we ever achieve that. Our memory of a game is in the shared struggle over victory and loss, or the play that snatched it one way or another. 

I found that there was a narrative feel to the play of Bagh Chal. The tiger player initially feels powerful. They stalk in from the corners. Agile predators, ready to attack. Then the tide is turned. The goats, initially vulnerable, build quickly in numbers. Defences go up, cutting territory up as they see fit. Each side experiences the story of Bagh-Chal differently. Each game becomes its own narrative as the strong become the weak. The two sides fluctuate between hunter and hunted. 

Playing these ancient expressions of tabletop games makes me realise how much more I have to learn and explore. Games are an expression of the human spirit. They stand alongside cave paintings, tattoos, and adornment of ourselves as early forms of us expressing ourselves in a way that wasn’t just for survival. I urge you to experience them for yourself if you get a chance. I think they will charm, surprise, and educate. 

Bagh-Chal was sent to me by Masters Traditional Games. You can find a copy of the game on their site.

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