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History

While often claimed that the game was played by Vikings, no firm evidence has been provided to denote the claim. There is evidence of games called kubb being played in various regions of Scandanavia as early as the 20th century, but no evidence supports the rules being the same.

The game has now gained worldwide exposure, with large kubb tournaments becoming prevalent in Europe and the United States. The Kubb World Championships have been held since 1995 on the island of Gotland, Sweden. The U.S. National Championships are held in Eau Claire, WI, which on December 13th, 2011, became the Kubb Capital of North America.

Game Components

Setup

Corner stakes are placed so that a rectangle is formed, measuring 5m x 8m. The center stakes are placed in the middle of the sidelines (long edges of the rectangle). The king is placed upright in the center of the pitch, and the kubbs are placed on the baselines (short edges of the rectangle), 5 kubbs on each side equidistant from each other. Kubbs starting the game on the baseline are referred to as base kubbs. The baseline should run through the center of the kubb.

Play Overview

After determining which team throws first and which side each team will be the defenders, the game begins with the attackers throwing the batons from behind their baseline, attempting to topple the base kubbs on the defenders baseline.

Once all the batons are thrown, the opposing team gathers any base kubbs toppled during the turn, and throws them into the upfield (the far half of the opponent’s pitch). Kubbs thrown into the upfield are called field kubbs, and are raised by the first team (now the defenders) where they came to rest. The second team (now the attackers)throws the batons, first attempting to topple any field kubbs, then any base kubbs, then the king.

If they are unable to knock down all of their kubbs and the king then the first team picks up all toppled kubbs, throws them into play as field kubbs, and play continues to a second round. Rounds are continued until the game ends. The game is won by the team who knocks down all the kubbs in the upfield and on the baseline then topples the king. However, if a team topples the king at ANY TIME prior to toppling all field kubbs & base kubbs then that team immediately loses the game. In a match the winner of best-of-3 games is determined to be the winner.

Initial Baton Throw

To determine who throws first, and what side each team will play from, the initial baton throw is performed by throwing a single baton towards the king at the same time by a representative from each team. The team closest to the king can either choose to throw first, or to choose a side. On the second and third game of a match teams switch sides and switch throwing order.

Throwing Batons

The following rules are followed for throwing batons:

• The baton must be thrown underarm.

• The baton is thrown so that the spinning motion is vertical. "Helicopter" or "Propeller" throws are not allowed. How much off the vertical plane varies between the US National Championship rules and World Championship rules.

• Batons must be thrown from in bounds. To be in bounds you must be behind the baseline (or advantage line, if applicable) and between the corner pins. Leaping or taking a step while throwing is okay as long you start and end your throwing motion in bounds.

• Field kubbs must be hit with the batons prior to hitting the baseline kubbs. If a baseline kubb is prematurely toppled, simply place the baseline kubb back to its normal position.

• If your last field kubb is hit first and topples, then a baseline kubb also is toppled, the baseline hit is legal and counts.

Throwing Field Kubbs

The following rules are followed for throwing kubbs:

• Kubbs may be held and thrown in any manner, but must be thrown with an underarm motion.
• Kubbs may rotate in any direction on any axis, when thrown.
• Throwing kubbs must be thrown from in bounds, similar to batons.
• Kubbs must land in a manner that they can be stood in the upfield and in bounds. If a kubb cannot be raised in bounds, it is rethrown
• Rethrown kubbs that land in a manner that they cannot be stood in bounds become a punishment kubb.

Raising Field Kubbs

After all field kubbs have been thrown, and rethrown as necessary, they are to be raised upon one end, like a hinge. Kubbs must also adhere to the following rules:

• Any field kubb that can be raised in bounds must be raised in bounds.

• Kubbs that land on other field kubbs are resolved first, and must be lowered directly to the pitch, touching the lower kubb.

• Kubbs that are leaning are raised upon the closest end to the field.

• Once all kubbs are raised, place any Punishment Kubbs anywhere on the field as long as it is placed one baton-length away from the king, or any field marking pin.

Advantage Lines

Advantage lines are created when a team fails to knock down all the remaining field kubbs in the upfield. The un-toppled field kubb closest to the centerline becomes the new line to throw from.

Winning The Game

A team wins when the king is knocked over with a baton, after all opponents kubbs have been toppled. Advantage lines cannot be used when attacking the king.

Rulesets

There are two official tournament rulesets available for kubb, the World Championship Rules and the US National Championship Rules. Below are the minor differences between the two:

Learn more

• Details on Kubb Strategy.
• There are many variations of Kubb that people find fun as well.

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