Are you tempted by the dark side of An Tir? Have you been wanting to plunge into the Tablero Pits of the Noisy Section, but that weird screaming puts you off? Well, c'mon in, the beer's fine!

Whether you're a grizzled old-timer in a tunic and jeans, or a green-as-grass newbie in a tunic and jeans, there's something for you in "Baron Steffano's Guide to Tablero".

Why soar all day with the pigs when you can learn to wallow all night with the eagles?

The Critics praise "Baron Steffano's Guide":

"Now, there'sa two good books"
--Giorgio Ringo XXIII, R.I.P.

"It's much quieter than actually playing the game"
--Scellanus of Skye, KSCA

"Here's to the Queen! Wooooooooooyeeehahaaahoooooo(etc.)!!!!!!!!"
--Bog, Cardinal yi Dakhan

"This is a stupid, stupid game"
--Baroness Kate O'Guinn

(Crass Commercial Announcement)
Also Available:
Guide for Newcomers
Chivalry & Etiquette - More Chivalry & Etiquette
Peers & Peerages - Office & Officers
The Society & The Empire - Fealty & Feudalism
Persons & Personae - Parties & Partiers

Baron Steffano's Guide to Tablero da Gucci

Being an examination of that most rare of entertainments, a medieval game that's actually fun to play! With descriptions of equipment, rules, terms, etiquette and advanced play by:

Baron Steffano
Cardinal da Gucci
al Khabeelah McGurn of Ravensfuri

Welcome to the fourth edition of "Baron Steffano's Guide to Tablero". This is a handbook for people who want to learn more about the best board game in An Tir - without having to camp with the people who know too much.

For many years, Tablero was a kind of "open secret". We took great pride in never writing down the rules because we wanted the game to evolve in a hundred different directions by word-of mouth. Well, it did! You can play Tablero at Pennsic, or at Estrella, or at just about any major event, anywhere, and every variant is different, even between households in An Tir.

The First Edition was a complete success, taking Cardinal Francesca and I to Clinton in great style. In fact, it sold out before I had a chance to bring any copies south of Lions Gate.

I hope the book is useful. You'll find instructions for the equipment and the basic game, plus expert tips, history of the game, and a big Glossary full of the special phrases that you need to be cool in any Tablero Pit. But, keep in mind, this book is not a substitute for real experience.

Every Tablero variant in An Tir is different and all are valid. New ways to play are constantly being developed and this is not even an exhaustive list of current variants. This one just happens to be written down, and by someone who was at the very first game, has played for ten years, and has run every Tournament thus far.

"So c'mon, you bugs, learn the game and I'll beat you like the cheap rugs you are"
--Baron Steffano Cardinal da Gucci al Khabeelah McGurn of the House of Ravensfuri

This is dedicated to Baroness Amanda:
Once, long ago, the Cardinals were threatened with banishment. She said, "If they banish you, they'll have to banish me, too." There are no words, lady...

Special Fourth Edition Dedication:
To the four previous Kingdom Champions of Tablero
Rashid al Khabeelah
Otis von Cook
Guy de Mont Ange
Katerina von Grithold

Here's to the Queen!

S.D.G.E

Quick Start

Get 4 beers and find someone who's already playing. Ask the winner to teach you with your beer. You can be as ignorant as you want if you're buying, especially with the Old Masters (people like me).

Basic Equipment & Supplies

--An Opponent (somebody else who wants to play).

--Four equal sized bottles (or measured containers) filled with something good to drink (beer, cider, wine). Two each.

--Seven glasses. They do not have to be of equal size. Some boards put a larger glass in the centre. Tablero glasses have been made from all kinds of shot glasses, liqueur glasses, small metal cups (hospitality industry condiment cups), beading cups (very small, good for hard liquor games) etc.

--Two 6-sided dice (2 dice, if you've never RPG'ed.).

--A board with a 7 by 7 grid of squares at least as large as the tops of the glasses used (I suggest a minimum of 2 inches).

The board should be able to withstand being wet with beer. Big chess boards work, but the beer will damage most of them. Tablero boards have been drawn on tunics, shields, scrap cloth, scrap lumber. They have been embroidered, carved in leather and plastic, etched in mirror, made with tape on tables and even found! (there's a usable grid on some manhole covers - we call the one at the Lions Gate Bardic site the "Iron Age Tablero Site").

--A place to play. A flat place for the board to rest and places for the players to sit. There should be room for spectators as well. A good source of light is important so that players can read the dice and potential spectators can tell that there is something interesting going on. Choose a place where beer, noise and company is acceptable.

The best place to play is beside a game that is already in progress. In the Gucci tent we've had up to 6 games going simultaneously, with the boards strung out in a line across the floor of the tent. Result: a party!

Initial Setup

Each fills three glasses. These go on the three baseline squares to your right of centre. The seventh glass goes on the middle square of the board, empty.

Determine the Queen's number

Have the lady of choice (highest ranking in the estimation of the challenged player) roll both dice. The result is the Queen's Number. If this is rolled in your turn, special rules apply. Call it "5" for these examples.

Determine Who Goes First

Each rolls one die. Ties are re-rolled. High roll may fill the fourth glass, place it on the centre square of their baseline and have the first turn. High roll may choose to have the Opponent go first, instead. The Opponent would then fill the seventh glass, place it on their baseline and take the first turn.

First Roll

The Player got the high roll and chose to fill and take the first turn.

Player rolls a 3 and a 3. Not the Queen's Number (5), or a Pass number (7,11,12), so the Player moves. One glass is moved 3, to A, another is moved 3 to B.

Any glass can be moved by either competitor, but each die in a roll must be moved with a different glass.

Second Roll

Player rolls a 4 and a 5. Not the Queen's Number or a Pass Number. This adds nothing to the line that's already established, but it allows the next roll. One glass is moved 4 to C, the other moves 5 to D.

Third Roll

Player rolls a 1 and a 3. Not a Pass Number or the Queen's Number. So one glass is moved 1 to E, joining the line, and another is moved 3 to F, joining the line.

Fourth Roll

The player has 4 touching on the same line. The player needs 6 to drink them. 6 is the minimum "pull" unless you're being "skunked" (losing badly). The best roll would be a 2 and a 3, allowing a Queen's Number to be enjoyed, followed by a pull of 6. But the player rolls 5 and 2, a 7 (a Pass Number) and must pass the dice without moving.

Opponent's First Roll

The Opponent wants a 2 and a 3, just like the Player did. Opponent rolls a 4 and a 1: 5, the "Queen's Number!". The Opponent chooses a glass (the one on the square marked Qn) and drinks it after exclaiming "Here's to the Queen!".

The empty glass is returned to the Player's baseline and re-filled. Then, the Opponent moves two glasses, one 4 to G, and the other 1 to H.

Second Roll

3 and a 1 is the desired roll. Opponent rolls a 3 and a 1! One glass is moved 3 to I, one is moved 1 to J, and the Opponent has assembled a pull of 6. So the Opponent decides to take them.

Time to Drink!

You must drink at least half of the shots you pull off the Board. So the Opponent gives one to his faithful vassal, one to a winsome lady who's watching, and one to the Player. He then drinks the other 3. All are returned to the Player's baseline to be re-filled. The Player refills them and then it is the Player's turn to roll once again.

You can see the basic flow of the game - roll, move, avoid Pass Numbers and try to build lines. Now it's time to look at some more complex scenarios.

Some Specific Situations You May Encounter

Unable to Move (a)

No matter whose turn it is, any roll that includes a 6 would force a Pass in this situation. There are no glasses on the baselines, so there is no glass that could move a 6. If either die cannot be moved, both must be passed.

Unable to Move (b)

6 and any number can be moved. However, a pair of 5's would force a Pass.

Saved by the Queen

The effects of a Queen's Number are resolved before actions based on the numbers rolled. The empty Queen's Number glass is placed on the opposing baseline and filled before moving/passing. So, rolling the Queen's number could provide a glass able to move 6 (in a) or move the second 5 (in b).

This is more likely to occur when the Queen's number is high. This is because high numbers are the ones most likely to prevent movement.

Queen's Number is a Pass Number

When the Queen's Number is a 7, 11 or 12, strategy is quite different. Normally, a Queen's number helps you to build pulls. When the Queen's number is a pass number, use it to tear apart any partial pulls that you have built, before you pass the dice. Even though the dice roll (7,11,12) requires a Pass, the Queen's number is chosen, emptied and refilled before that Pass. So it gives you a chance to hand your Opponent a worse situation than they are expecting. This makes for fewer pulls and a long, weird game.

Queen's Number is 7

7 is the most likely roll of two dice, occurring once every six rolls on average. If the Queen's Number is 7 you can expect it to be rolled constantly.

Queen's Number is 2 or 12

2 and 12 are the least likely, occurring once in every 36 rolls on average. If the Queen's Number is 2 or 12 it will happen very rarely.

I Hate Beer, You Hate Cider

There is a variant available when you don't want to drink the Opponent's drink but you want to play:

exchange bottles

play with empty glasses

when you get a pull or a Queen's Number, have the Opponent fill the glasses (from the bottles you gave them) right before you drink.

first one to empty the bottles held by their Opponent wins.

This can be used instead of the Designated Drinker rule, or for pop vs alcohol games, but keep in mind that Parents and Autocrats may be leery of minors even touching alcohol, though they aren't drinking it.

Etiquette: Paranoia is a strategy that serves Parents and Autocrats very well. If you don't yield to it, they will act against you. So yield to them on Minor issues.

Noise

Tablero generates parties. Parties generate noise. Noise generates complaints. Should you resolve them, and how?

"Can you guys turn the volume down a notch?"
Response: make the real screamers control the joy associated with "Here's to the Queen!" and "Set 'em up and KNOCK 'EM DOWN!"
Answer politeness with politeness.

"I asked you to be quiet"
Response: if the screamers are still loud, calm them. If the noise is just general party noise, ignore the complaint. It is the Noisy Section, after all. Answer power with power.

"We're getting noise complaints"
Response: to a minor functionary "That's why it's called the Noisy Section". To a major functionary "We'll tone it down".

"This party is shut down"
Response: if the complainant has real power, then comply and resent. If the complainant has no real power, ignore. Remember, a party that has moved is a new party.

Noise Rules of Thumb

Choose your site wisely. Bad site choice/layout is the real cause of most noise conflicts. If you're noisy, camp deep in the Noisy section. If you need quiet, camp deep in the Quiet section. If you're an autocrat, make sure this is possible for both groups and make sure they do it!

High ranking partiers beat low ranking complainers. However, nobility is prone to fits of conscience and can't be depended on to stick up for the right to have annoying fun.

Compromise early to party late. They can ruin your Tournament. It takes time for the bureaucracy to wake up the people who can really roast you, but they will do it, eventually. The best compromise is "we won't scream after midnight if you don't try to shut our party down ever".

If you're a complainer: "My children can't sleep" works better than "I can't sleep" because it's not the kid's fault that you camped too close to the Noisy Section and can't hack it. The best move is to carry over a child who can't sleep and show the drunks the poor little thing. Even crazy drunks yield to an unhappy little kid.

Winning A Tournament

Traditionally, the major tourneys are co-sponsored by the reigning individual for the area.

After the Tournament, the winner is presented to the co-sponsor. The co-sponsor pours seven shots of beer over them, proclaims them Champion, and gives them a trinket to wear. However, Tablero Tournament organizers tend to play to win, so there is often a marked lack of organization at these events.

Organizing a Tournament

You'll need light, beer, a place for empties and something to record scores on. It's more glamourous if you have a public place to display scores on an ongoing basis. This encourages more competition (more play). A prize helps as well. Keep in mind that, while Tournament entrants are drinkers, the last thing they're gonna want to see after they win is an alcohol prize.

To have a sanctioned A.T.A. Tournament you must tell the head of the A.T.A. (me) about it at some point, then give me beer until I believe you and accept the results of your Tournament. Many jurisdictions require the Autocrat or co-sponsor to be notified, but being an Ecclesiast I scoff at such things. You, however, should probably check with those who might get pissed off, first. If they co-sponsor, they can be your ally in noise battles.

Having a Great Tournament

Record the scores of everyone who plays, regardless of whether or not they see themselves as a contender. Many people hesitate to enter a Tournament for fear of embarrassing themselves by not winning, when experienced players know that everyone in a Tablero Tournament ends up embarrassed, win or lose.

Encourage play that involves the spectators. Tournaments are a good place for spectators because the contenders are each trying to drink the minimum amount necessary to win each game so as to be able to play as many games as possible. This can create a really good party if there's enough light, beer and noise.

It can also be useful to have some garbage bags on hand for the mess that inevitably surrounds a Tablero Tournament. Really, though, if you have a problem with mess you should not be hosting a Tablero Tournament.

Some Famous Tablero Incidents

Baron Lee of Madrone -- learned to throw empty beers playing Tablero. Unfortunately, his first try smashed a full glass out of somebody's hand! So he gave us 72 shot glasses, which still make up the bulk of our glassware.

Randolph of Redstone -- came out of nowhere to almost win the first An Tir Kingdom Championship. He was leading until the recklessly sustained play of Cardinals Rashid and Bog knocked him down to finish third.

Sir Sam Shieldbait and Mahala de Sorbonne -- played with Yukon Jack. It was hard to watch, but they finished the game. Sir Sam hosted one of the first famous games, where we learned:

Don't play with Black Russians.

Don't make a board on the carpet from napkins, use plastic glasses, then dance on them and the Board until they are smashed into tiny pieces.

Don't be the one who has to pick the tiny pieces of plastic out of the vodka & kahlua soaked carpet the next day.

Sarah O'Guinn -- played a no-score game of Tablero from a keg with me for hours the morning after Gwillym was dethroned. Oops, I mean the morning after Darius won Crown. Sarah was a minor, so her mom, Baroness Kate, was the "designated drinker". Sarah had to quit, after sunrise, when Kate said those now-famous words "My nose is numb. My camp is gonna want breakfast in an hour, ha ha ha ha! This is a stupid, stupid game."

Rufen Glendower and Barak Ravensfury -- etched a board on a mirror and built a special box to hold glasses and act as a table. It was beautiful! Unfortunately, it was too beautiful to use, transport, or even really touch.

Zihar, squire to Sir Sam -- almost won a 12 bottle game of Tablero. Unfortunately, because of the Barf Rule, nobody won. Or perhaps it's more accurate to say everybody lost.

Tricks of Experienced Players

"Leave one on the baseline"
If you can't move both dice, you have to pass. Leaving a glass on the baseline as much as possible allows you to deal with 6's without passing.

"Avoid pairs"
When trying to complete a line, don't set up so that you need to roll a double to get it. This is because a specific double is half as likely to come up as any other specific pair. So "a 2 and a 3" happens twice as often as a pair of 2's or a pair of 3's.

"Avoid the Crossbow"
The classic Crossbow is 3 glasses on a line, one in the middle on a baseline, and 3 more in the line. This is a problem because there's no way to get 7 in a row with one roll. Try to leave two glasses out of the line at the end of any move where you're not gonna take a pull.
Etiquette: if you face the crossbow, the appropriate line is "If it was good enough for William Tell..." said with a jaunty, devil-may-care attitude.

"Tournament Winner's Tricks"

Play as many games as possible against non-contenders. Points are scored for losses, so you do a fellow contender a favour by beating him rather than playing someone else.

Four contenders can rig a Tournament by playing games and switching partners after each game. You play the same people without playing them twice in a row, so you can get in lots of games without cheating. This is very effective once everyone else is asleep. You still, of course, have to play all those games...

Don't drink the Super Bonus liquor in Super Bonus games.

Don't play with hard liquor.

Be good to the crowd and the crowd will be good to you. There's more to Tablero than merely winning a particular game, and there's more to winning a party evening than just winning several games.

If you really want to win, make that the only thing you're trying to accomplish for the weekend. To win the first Kingdom tourney, Cardinal Rashid ate, slept and played strategically all weekend (And I mean all weekend).

Glossary

"Barf Rule" -- too much Tablero can have an unsettling effect on one's constitution. It's gross, but it happens. If a player gets sick within five minutes of the end of a game, the score for that game is lost. If a player gets sick on the Board, they're not allowed to play anymore and their Tournament Score is forfeit.

"Baseline" -- the rows nearest to each player. Glasses are filled on these rows and cannot be taken as pulls from these lines.

"Breaking the Skunk" -- forcing the Opponent to open their second beer, eliminating the chance of you being skunked and making it possible to skunk them if you haven't opened your second.

"Challenge" -- a game can be initiated with a simple "Want to play?", but more experienced players will taunt more experienced players in their challenge. So I might say to Cardinal Rashid, my friend and former Kingdom Champion, "Got two beers, you pathetic tiny bug? I'm gonna beat you like the gong you are!" He would laugh at my impertinent optimism, then respond in a similar vein, extolling his prowess and my pathetic inconsequentiality.
Etiquette: be polite to novices and strangers, be rude to your friends and more experienced players. Taunting done in fun, and taken in fun, is fun. Be careful, though, there's a trick to it.

"Courtesy Fill" -- if a player can fill all but one of an Opponent's pull, but is then out of beer, their Opponent can allow a courtesy fill of that one glass. The Opponent can provide it or allow a spectator to (if the Opponent is out of beer as well). It's a chivalric move, to allow the losing player one last chance. Courtesy fills are not mandatory. An Opponent may give as many courtesy fills as he or she wants. Spectators may not give courtesy fills without the Opponent's permission.
Etiquette: courtesy fills are common for single glasses at the end of a game. Courtesy fills should not be expected in Tournament play between leaders.

Designated Drinker -- an individual who does all of the drinking for another player. This lets minors play against adults, and teetotallers play against drunks. In Tournament play, a person with a D.D. must use the same one for the duration.

"Diagonal" -- seven glasses in a row on one of the two cross board diagonals can be taken just like seven in a line. Diagonals cannot be done with 5 or 6 glasses.

"Dice in the Glass" -- if you drop a die into a glass while rolling, your opponent gets to drink that glass and you must refill it and replace it where it was before you re-roll.

"Edric's Rule" -- If you can convince your opponent that something is a rule, it's a rule. This is the rule that was used to develop the Diagonal, among other things. Edric would set up a Diagonal, then convince his opponent that it was a legal move, then drink. Eventually, it became a legal move and his tactic became a rule.

"Four Player Tablero" -- a game invented by Antonio Cardinal della Sangomano where players sit on all four sides of the board. It takes a lot longer than Tablero and requires more concentration and strategy.

"Kendal" -- Baron G was a Tablero de Jesus shark. He finally explained that the key was to take the smallest lines possible (TdJ lets you take 3) as this was most efficient. Our Tablero has nothing to do with efficiency, so we scoffed at taking small lines. A Kendal is someone who tries to take 5 glasses as a pull if they are not being skunked, or 4 glasses in any situation.

"Ladies Hardcore" -- invented by Zazia al Khabeelah and Lorenzo da Gucci, this is a Tablero variant where no drinks are given to the spectators. It got its name because only ladies were crazy enough to play that way.

"Line" -- 5,6 or 7 shots removed for drinking. Same as "Pull".

"line" -- a row on the board. Nearest is your "Baseline". Centre is the "3-line". Farthest is your Opponent's "Baseline".

"Minors" -- minors are not allowed to drink. Minors who are fascinated with Tablero can be encouraged to play with pop, which gets them wasted on sugar and sends them clumsily running around and yelling just like adults drinking alcohol.
I think minors should be allowed to spectate if they behave themselves, but sneaking liquor does not count as behaving themselves. Having been an underage drinker at events long ago, I firmly believe that it is the adult's responsibility to try to catch the little bastards and the minor's responsibility to not get caught if they're drinking. And no pouting if you do get caught! (fool).

"No-score game" -- when a good steady source of beer, like somebody else's keg, is available, it's amusing to just play for the fun of it. You take turns playing and spectating, and just keep filling the glasses until everyone says "This is a stupid, stupid game".

"Orgasm Line" -- a variant where pulls taken from the middle row (the "3-line") are to be accompanied by enthusiastic fake sex noises. I don't understand it, but then, nobody understood when we used to play "Moan on the Throne" a game involving sitting on the Thrones in the middle of the night trying to fake the most convincing orgasm for the amusement of a crowd of drunks. It's an Arugula thing.

"Pass" -- giving the dice to your opponent without moving. This is forced by two situations:

Rolling a "Pass Number": 7, 11 or 12

Being unable to move both dice. If the position of the glasses makes it impossible to move a glass for each of the dice, no movement is done and the dice are passed to the opponent. Eg. if there are no glasses on either of the Baselines, a six cannot be moved by either player. So if a six is rolled, it forces a "Pass". A "pull" passes the dice, but after movement and drinking, so it is not a "Pass".

"Pull" -- 5,6 or 7 shots removed for drinking. Same as "Line". 7 is a "Full Pull".

"Queen's Number" -- Duchess Meagan, when she was Queen, loved to watch Tablero. She didn't like beer enough to play, but she liked the occasional Tablero glass full, so we created a number that was hers to drink if she was watching. If she was not watching, the player rolling the number got to drink the shot after a brief toast - "Here's to the Queen!".

Re-rolling Dice -- if one die is cocked, or lands in a glass, or lands off the board, both must be re-rolled.

"Royal Skunk" -- a loss where the Opponent has filled nothing but their first 4 shots (not even a Queen's number).

"Set 'em up and KNOCK 'EM DOWN!" -- said to celebrate a line of seven (a "full pull").

"Skunk" -- a loss where the Opponent has not opened their second beer.

"Sticky Boards" -- Tablero is a messy game. Don't play where you can't spill because you will spill. I, for one, believe that dice don't roll properly on a dry board, so I think sticky boards are best. Some players will pour beer all over the Board at the start of the game, especially if the Board is new, so that the dice will roll properly. Plus, it's fun to listen to the shrieks of the person who made a new Board as you pour beer over it. I always wonder what they think Tablero boards are for?

"Style" -- Tablero is about style. Winning well is stylish, but winning badly is worse than losing gracefully. A great Tablero player is a great entertainer with a little bit of luck and skill. Just as in fighting, chivalry is important -- the great players give their opponent every opportunity to win, then kick their asses.

"Super Bonus" -- if a bottle of hard liquor is available, such as rum or tequila, it can be used for a "Super Bonus". When a player gets a line of seven, their opponent gets a drink from the "Super-Bonus" bottle to stiffen their courage in the face of their mighty opponent. The person entitled may refuse it.

"Taking 'em" -- a "pull" is available to be "taken" when at least 5 shots are on the same line and contiguous (no spaces). A pull of 6 can always be taken. A pull of 7 is heroic. A pull of 5 can only be taken by someone who is being skunked - you must have opened your second and your Opponent has not. Otherwise, 5 or less is just so inappropriate as to be beyond consideration.

"Toast Round" -- when one player cannot fill glasses emptied by the other, the game ends. Then, the victor fills as many of the remaining glasses as possible and passes them out to the crowd. They are warned "Don't drink it yet, it's a toast".
The toast should acknowledge:
The Royalty

Any other Nobility you wish to mention

Your noble opponent (for losing, ha ha!)

Your self (for winning, hooray!)
Etiquette: gracious bragging, with a mixture of compassion for the poor sad loser and contempt for anyone who dares to challenge your obvious mastery of the game.

"Tournament" -- Basic rules:

Each player can play as many games as they want during the Tournament

Each player plays with 2 12 oz. containers per game.

You can only play the same opponent once in a row, but you can play the same opponent more than once during the Tournament.

Tournaments begin when the Sun is fully down on the first night. Games begun while the Sun is visible do not count for scoring. Tournaments end when the Sun appears on the last morning. Games in progress at that point should be abandoned.

"Tournament Scoring" -- 3 points are available in each game:

Victory: Loser is dry, winner has opened second beer
Winner: 2\tab Loser: 1

Skunk: Loser is dry, winner hasn't opened second beer
Winner: 3\tab Loser: 0

Royal Skunk: Loser is dry, winner filled no glasses since the start
Winner: 4\tab Loser -1
Winner should report scores to scorekeeper. Winner must know the name of the loser for the score to be recorded.

"Turn" -- all of the rolls and moves done by one player from receiving the dice to passing them to the Opponent. A turn can be ended by drinking a line, by rolling a Pass Number, or by being unable to move both rolls.

"Ya' spill, ya' fill!" -- if you knock over a full glass, or cause one to be spilled, you have to refill it.

World Championship of Tablero Ends in a Tie!
124 contestants played 476 games over the course of 3YC!

Sgt. Squire Andre Lessard and Bog Cardinal yi Dakhan become the first World Champion(s)!

World Ladies Champion -- Talia al Khabeelah
Centurion (first to 100 points) -- Katerina von Grithold
Most Chivalrous -- Mahala de Sorbonne
Attila V.C. Memorial Award for Recklessness -- Andre Lessard
Champion of the West -- Dirk von Echols
Champion of Atenveldt -- Viscount Sir William Gallowglass, O.P.
Champion of Summits -- William Christopher

The Top Ten
Andre Lessard & Cardinal Bog -- 121
Katerina von Grithold -- 111
Willie Cyricsfriend -- 62
Talia al Khabeelah -- 43
Pantar -- 41
Sir Bill (A) -- 40
Dirk von Echolz (W) & Otis McGurn -- 39
Baron Steffano -- 34

Jarnsaxa McGurn led Friday night, but then was unable to play for several days afterward -- she sprinted when she should have jogged. Baron Steffano took the lead Saturday and held it until Monday night, when Andre, Bog, Katerina and sleep deprivation all overcame him. Tuesday and Wednesday saw Bog and Katerina passing the lead back and forth, with Andre third. Thursday morning, Andre was at 67, Katerina at 61 and Bog third with 55. Friday morning Andre had 80, Bog had 73 and Katerina had 66. When the smoke cleared, Sunday morning, Bog and Andre were tied at 121, with Katerina second at 111 and Willie third with 62 points.

Prizes included: A hand carved leather Tablero board made by Lady Jodan of Eagles Crag, with dice and 3YC glasses -- 3YC glasses and a cloth board from Lady Asthor Ross -- A sterling silver pendant from Dirk von Echols -- A reversible hood by Lady Suki di Pavia -- Brass Champion's Medallion by Otis McGurn -- Champion's necklace, Ladies Champion's Shawl and Centurion's Crosses by the Tablerocrat, Baron Steffano.

Honourable Mentions: Lady Teal and Yasmina, the delightful Atenveldt Babes! -- Gabriella, from heretical critic to Mother Superior in 48 hours, she cleaned the tent alone at 5 A.M. as a gift! -- Sir Bill, the coolest Peer in the World. Period. "Here's to the Queen's mustache!" -- Countess Octavia, who returned to An Tir to be our Celebrity Patron -- Bjorn & Fi, our uncomplaining neighbours from the Outlands -- Zorgon of Arugula, the Amazing Naked Man -- the 100 others who played -- and most especially the people who listened to it for 9 days and never complained even once!

Thank You All!!

Postscript

This electronic document is for public distribution.
It can even be output on paper, BUT
No one is allowed to sell it in any form, or take money (even copying costs) for reproduction. You are allowed to ask for a beer, however. I would.

Copyright 1999 Steve Gray, aka
Baron Steffano
Cardinal da Gucci
al Khabeelah McGurn of Ravensfuri
Email Steffano
Note from Lil:
It was my supreme privelege and pleasure to meet Baron Steffano at An Tir's July Coronation AS XXXI. I'm honored and thrilled to be able to post the Official Online Guide to Tablero, a gift from the Baron to the populace of the Knowne World.