Reply #2: When I read this, I recalled Tolstoy's "The Coming of the King".

[Bonobo]

In it, Merlin plays a chess-like game with some God, if I recall.

After a quick search, I found this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fidchell

Fidchell, or Celtic chess, is a game played in ancient Ireland at least 2,000 and perhaps 2,500 years ago. It is very similar to the Welsh game of gwyddbwyll. Both names translate as “wooden wisdom” or something similar.

Fidchell is mentioned quite often in ancient Celtic legends and lore, but the exact form of the game is open to speculation, due to the lack of detail on the rules, playing pieces, and even the board, to some extent. This much is clear, it was played on a board, with opposing sets of pieces, and unlike modern chess, involved a king in the center, with his defensive pieces protecting him from attacks by his opponent.

The legends describe fidchell as a game played by royalty, and even the gods, as it was supposed to have been invented by Lugh, the Irish god of light,<1> and was played very skillfully by his son, the hero Cuchullainn. A series of fidchell games also forms an important episode in Tochmarc Étaíne.