In this project, make a roll-up game board for the game of Fox and Geese that includes a pocket for storing game pieces. The game board is made of paper and felt using iron-on adhesive, and requires no sewing.
Fox and Geese is a classic hunt game where a single fox tries to capture 13 geese and the geese try to trap the fox. The game requires some strategic thinking and the ability to look ahead a few turns. Included at the end of the project are rules for playing the game of Fox and Geese and some history about the game.
Other hunt game boards: See the Catch the Hare craft project for printable patterns for more felt game boards. This Moorish hunt game is known as Cercar La Liebre in Spain.
Related craft: Use Modeling Dough to make game pieces.
Related craft: The English version of board solitaire uses the same game board as Fox and Geese. Use the game boards in this project to play board solitaire or make the game boards in the English Board Solitaire craft project for playing Fox and Geese.
Choose a game board to make. Download and print the pattern. The
game board is offered in two configurations, with and without
diagonals, that are played with slightly different rules. You might
make one of each to see how the different rules alter the game.
Choose a design that prints in color, or select a
black & white pattern and use your creativity to add color and
designs.
Easy Game Board: These patterns can be used to make a simple "print, cut and play" game board. Just follow the instructions in the English Board Solitaire craft project.
Patterns are Adobe PDF files. The Adobe Reader is available for free.
All of Aunt Annie's project patterns are designed to be printed on standard letter-size paper (8.5"x11" or A4). When printing from Adobe Reader, you may need to select Auto-Rotate and Center or Choose paper source by PDF page size to ensure the best fit.
Color the game board with any colors you like. Pick two or more contrasting colors, using a different color for the center space where the fox piece starts.
Tip: If you printed a colored version of the board, you can still add a personal touch by decorating the border around it.
Trim the printed pattern to a square shape with equal borders on all sides of the game board. Cut a piece of iron-on adhesive the same size or a bit larger. If needed, cut the felt to 9" by 12".
Tip: Choose a color of felt that complements the game board colors. Dark colors usually work best. The ribbon should coordinate with the felt's color.
On one of the short sides of the felt, fold over 1½" and press the crease with your fingers. Cut two short lengths of hemming tape and apply between the two layers of felt on both sides. Press with your fingers to ensure a good hold. This makes a pocket for your game pieces.
Tip: Make a sharper crease in the felt by ironing the fold. Use the iron's synthetic or wool setting depending upon the type of felt you are using. Be careful! Irons require adult supervision!
Place a pillowcase folded in half on a Formica counter or ironing board. Following the craft adhesive instructions, apply the adhesive to the back of the game board square. After it cools, remove the paper backing and flip it over and place it on the felt with even margins. Iron the game board to the felt using the synthetic setting. Be careful! Irons require adult supervision!
Tip: Be sure to carefully read and follow the instructions that come with the iron-on craft adhesive.
Cut an 18" length of ribbon and lay it out on the table. Place your game pieces in the board's pocket, and fold the pocket over. Now, loosely roll up the board, no more than a couple of turns. Place the roll on the center of the ribbon and tie it up with a bow. Loosen the tie and unroll the board to play a game of Fox and Geese.
Tip: Some craft adhesives are stiffer than others. If the board resists being rolled, don't force it! In that case, just fold the board over and tie it closed. The pieces will still stay in the pocket.
Tip: If one end of the board curls when you unroll the board, simply roll it the other direction to flatten it out.
You will need 14 playing pieces in two different colors (1 fox and 13 geese) to play Fox and Geese. You can use pieces from other games, coins, marshmallows, or dry cereal (Trix). You can even make your own pieces with homemade Modeling Dough.
The object of the game is for the geese to trap the fox and the fox to avoid being trapped. The game is played by two players, with one player using the single fox piece and the other controlling the 13 geese. Don't worry that the fox is outnumbered—it has the special ability to jump.
The geese try to crowd the fox into a corner and trap it. The fox tries to capture as many geese as possible. When the fox is trapped (can't move), the game is over and the geese win. The fox wins when it becomes impossible for the geese to trap it.
That's it! Have fun playing your
hunt game!
Fox and Geese comes from Iceland and was invented during the
Viking era. Its Icelandic name, Hala-tafl (the Fox Game), can be found
in literature from over six hundred years ago. The game came to England
in the 1400s. Queen Victoria liked to play it when she was young. Like
other hunt games, the sides are unequal in number. You would think that
the geese always win, but the fox has special powers. The fox can jump
and capture, and this makes the sides equal.
Other hunt games seemed to have originated in Arabia or Asia, and were brought to Spain by the Moors. The game of De Cercar La Liebre (Catch the Hare) was described in a manuscript, Libro de Juegos, from 1283. Modern Catch the Hare (De Cercar La Liebre) game boards do not include diagonals.
Leopard hunt games are played on triangular game boards. They are found in India, Thailand, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka. It is thought that these games developed independently from Fox and Geese.
There are many other versions of these games, like Kaooa, which is played on a star-shaped board with seven Kaooas and one tiger. Or a Japanese game called Sixteen Soldiers, which pits rebel soldiers against their former general.
Hunt games were originally played on the intersections of a lined game board. These boards were easily drawn in the ground. Modern versions of these games are now played on boards with spaces, more like a checkerboard.
Tip: The game board includes a pocket to hold the game pieces. The pocket is folded over to hold the pieces in when the board is rolled up.
Tip: Select felt and ribbon in colors that coordinate with the game board. Game pieces in similar colors are nice, too.
Tip: Hunt board games are played all over the world, see the Catch the Hare craft project for the Moorish hunt game known as Cercar La Liebre in Spain.
Tip: Roll the game boards loosely.
Tip: If the board seems too stiff to roll, just fold it over and tie with a ribbon.
Tip: An alternate version of Fox and Geese features a game board without the diagonal lines. The rules are a bit different, too. The geese aren't allowed to move backward!
