Thom27: Thanks!

dams: it is draw. That is why this variant is so drawish (about 19% of the games)

Put this in another board as well.

What happens if one side runs out of moves, but the other side doesn't? Does the latter side win, or is it a draw? Thanks.

Encore une autre variante des échecs où les pièces mineures des blancs sont des cavaliers , ceux des noirs des fous , et la dame blanche est remplacée par un maréchal et cumule la marche de la tour et du cavalier (la dame noire garde sa marche habituelle) .

Les pions peuvent être promus en tour ou maréchal ou cavalier pour les blancs , en tour ou fou ou dame pour les noirs
Toutes les autres règles sont celles des échecs classiques .

Variante des échecs où la dame est remplacée par un maréchal se déplaçant comme la tour et le cavalier .

toutes les autres règles sont celles des échecs standards

Encore une autre variante des échecs los alamos , cette fois sans les fous blancs ni cavaliers noirs , et avec les règles des échecs los alamos (ni pion avançant de deux cases ni roque ni prise en passant)

Une autre variante des échecs los alamos qui se joue sans les cavaliers , avec les mêmes règles que les échecs los alamos (ni pion avançant de deux cases ni roque ni prise en passant)

Ceci est une variante des échecs los alamos qui se joue sans les tours , et les règles sont ceux des échecs los alamos (ni pion avançant de deux cases ni roque ni prise en passant)

Chaque joueur dispose d'un roi (à son emplacement habituel) et de 31 dames (partout ailleurs sur les quatre premières rangées du point de vue de chaque joueur) . Le premier coup des blancs est forcément une capture (toutes les cases sont occupées) . Le but du jeu est de mater le roi adverse comme aux échecs standards .

Aux échecs de tutti frutti , il y a trois pièces qui ne sont pas utilisées dans les échecs standards , avec les cumuls de déplacement suivants : :
La princesse (sur la colonne G) : fou et cavalier
L'impératrice (sur la colonne A) : tour et cavalier (le roi peut être roqué avec cette pièce , en respectant les règles du roque)
L'amazone (sur la colonne D , à l'emplacement habituel de la dame) : dame + cavalier (tour + fou + cavalier)
La colonne F est le nouvel emplacement de la dame (de l'autre côté du roi par rapport à son emplacement habituel)
Le fou restant se situe sur la colonne C , le cavalier sur la colonne B et la tour sur la colonne H
Un pion peut être promu en dame ou tour ou fou ou cavalier ou princesse ou impératrice ou amazone
Toutes les autres règles sont celles des échecs standards

Currently looking for players to play in my fellowship chess games tournaments that start on Saturday Feb. 15. So please send me a request to join Brian's 1971 pub to play in our chess and its variants tournaments.

chess 1,625,702,400

Chess 40,320...Pawns are placed randomly!

Many of you must be familiar with Grasshopper Chess, offered on a different site. That site has no discussion boards.

For those familiar: do you find bringing the knights into play difficult too?

Energizer: Seems very interesting!

Energizer: Some game examples played by strong players can be found here: http://users.ics.aalto.fi/tho/chess.html

Progressive chess is a chess variant in which players, rather than just making one move per turn, play progressively longer series of moves. The game starts with white making one move, then black makes two consecutive moves, white replies with three, black makes four and so on.

There are two main varieties of progressive chess: Italian progressive chess and Scottish progressive chess (otherwise known as Scotch chess). The two have the following rules in common:
•A check must be escaped from on the first move of a series--if this cannot be done, it is checkmate and the game is lost.
•En passant captures of pawns are allowed if the pawn in question moved two squares in one move, but no further, at some point during the last turn, but the capture must be made on the first move of a series.
•If ten consecutive turns are played with no captures and no pawn moves, then the game is declared a draw unless one of the players can force a checkmate (this is the progressive chess equivalent of the fifty move rule in orthodox chess).
•If at any stage a player has no legal moves but is not in check, the game is a draw by progressive stalemate.

Italian and Scottish progressive chess are distinguished by rules on when a player is allowed to give check:
•Scottish progressive chess: check may be given on any move of a series, but a check ends the series--all further moves that would otherwise be allowed are forfeited. This has no effect on the other player's next series--he will receive as many moves as he would have had the other player played his full series.
•Italian progressive chess: a check may only be given on the last move of a full series (for example, on move six, a check can only be given on the sixth move)--giving a check at any other point in a series is illegal. In particular, if the only way to escape a check is to give check on the first move of the series, then the game is lost by the player in check by "progressive checkmate".

Progressive chess, like orthodox chess, is notated with algebraic notation. However, the numbering of moves is handled slightly differently. Rather than one white and one black move being given under each move number (leading to notation in orthodox chess like 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6), each move by each player is given its own move number (leading to notation in progressive chess like 1.e4 2.e5 Nf6 3.Bc4 Qh5 Qxf7#). In this way, the move number is equal to the number of moves in a series available to a player on that turn.

There is another form of progressive chess, English progressive chess, which makes quite a significant change to the rules: within each turn, no piece may be moved twice until every other piece which has a legal move has moved once; no piece may move three times until every other piece which can has moved twice; and so on. These restrictions do not carry over from one move to the next--so the opening 1.e4 2.e6 f6 3.e5 Nf3 Bc4 is legal (white's e-pawn may move again because its moves are on different turns), but the sequence 1.e4 2.e6 f6 3.e5 Ba6 Bxb7 is not (the bishop has made two moves, but there are many other white pieces which have not moved on that turn). There is no en passant capture under English rules, and rules on checks follow the Scottish rules.

I think there will be a Progressive Chess.It is a very interesting game.

Like Behemoth Chess, but the pieces killed by the Behemoth are returned to the players owning them. They can be dropped later, like in Loop chess, instead of a normal move. This is also valid for the Kings. If a player has the King in hand, they must drop the king first, before any other move. The game is won by capturing the opponent's King with an own piece.

I expect this to reduce the random factor, because the game is not over if the Behemoth kills some King, what happens frequently.

The pieces captured normally can be taken out of the game, to allow for endgames with few material, or given to the player capturing them, like in Loop Chess.

In May and Juni some small Superchess tournaments are being held in The Netherlands.
The Open Dutch Superchess Championship (with 4 or 6 superchess pieces) on 26/5 and the "Freestyle" invitational on 16/6 with a choice of 52 pieces. Both tournaments in Leiden.

Hello all,
You can play live Makruk on Playok:
http://www.playok.com/fr/makruk/

and live Chu Shogi (also Dai Shogi) here:
http://sdin.jp/en/browser/board/chushogi/

I've not found any website for Janggi liveplay. But there is turn-based Janggi at chessvariants.org and Dualpose.

facteurix: I did not know there was a site that had Chu Shogi live play. Which is it? I have played it on Richard's Games a few years ago.

http://www.gamerz.net/pbmserv/gamerz.php

It looks like it is still up and running. I have not visited this site in a few years. I do not remember my password or handle, though I might be able to find them if I look. It seems like this site is turn based.

Hello all, and first of all my best wishes for this new year,

I'm searching for people who would be interested to play some online live games of some chess variants which are not implemented here like:

-Chu Shogi
-Janggi
-Makruk

If you're interested, please contact me.

Regards.

It would be great to have a 2-player bughouse on this site. Please see http://www.chessvariants.org/multiplayer.dir/tandem.html "Bughouse per e-mail".

I think bughouse is the most popular of chess variants (if you don't count national variants like Xiangi or Shogi). It is usually played by 4 people, but I think 2-player version should be fun as well.

I found an interesting variant called "coin chess":

On the square e3 there is initially placed a coin. The coin moves always like the moving piece, with the same direction and distance. The coin must not move onto an occupied square or off the board, but may leap over pieces.

The player to move moves the coin first, then the piece. E.g. white can open the game with e3-e4, e2-e3, but the coin can't be placed onto the origin square of the moving piece.

Winning is by checkmating or stalemating the opponent.

Edit:

1) the coin should initially be on e4, otherwise White has a forced win e.g.: 1.e2-e3 e7-e5 2. Ng1-e2

2) there are two ways to handle check/checkmate: a) ignore the coin, e.g. if white has Re1 and black Ke8 and the coin is in the e-column and no other piece in between, black is in check b) don't recognize check; winning is by capturing the king or stalemating the opponent. Then in the example black is not in danger, white can't move e1-e8 because the coin would leave the board.

what about courier chess ? could you give them in real time ?

Is there loseres chess here? If there isnt, why not to include losers chess wich is a very popular chess variant? It is important to note that is a different variant than antichess (or suicide). In losers chess there is check. So you win when you got checkmated or stalemated or when you lose all your pieces, (but you cannot lose your king, because it ckant be taked.) See rules and some tactic ideas here: http://wiki.wildchess.org/wiki/index.php/Losers

pedestrian: you can also play Makruk on ThaiBG (Thai Board Games Online), along with the three other "big" chess variants and a couple of other games

pedestrian: Ok, update: I found this site where you can create an account and play:
http://www.playok.com/en/makruk/

I played a couple of quick games. It works this way: When all pawns are gone or promoted, you're presented with the option to start counting (I don't know if this applies to both players. I was behind in material). When one player is down to a bare king, the counting starts over - but this time it's automated.

Fencer: The way I read the rules, yes. Keep in mind that I don't know this game any better that you do, though. I'm just trying to make sense of it, same as you.

pedestrian: That's a good idea. Is it correct that counting can start only when there are no pawns left?

Fencer: The point of counting is to obtain a draw. Counting is voluntary. Stopping to count is voluntary too (in case you change your mind and don't want a draw anymore). This much seems to be clear.

Couldn't you simply interpret the rules like this: Whoever starts counting, thinks he's at a disadvantage. That means that theoretically, both players could count if they wanted to - but they would probably both be happy with a draw in this case!

I see your point. Take a look on facebook group. There are a bunch of kids playing it. There must not be so difficult.

Ukimix: You know, the more the rules are complicated, the less people actually play the game. I must think it over and decide if it is worth my time do implement all these counting rules and be prepared for a lot of bugs that will probably appear later.

Fencer:

"one player has less pieces (ergo, the disadvantage), then manages to capture some opponent's pieces and turn the advantage to own side, etc."

The counting begins again, in that case.

Fencer:

Yes, good idea. I think that there is some groups in facebook that could help.

I found this site to play on line: http://www.pathguy.com/chess/ThaiChss.htm. We can use it to figure it out.

Ukimix: I sense problems here because of the disadvantage condition. I can be kind of variable, e.g. one player has less pieces (ergo, the disadvantage), then manages to capture some opponent's pieces and turn the advantage to own side, etc.

It would be nice if some Thai players give us an enlightenment on this.

Fencer:

The site says:

"Drawn Games:

Many games of makruk end in draws, and this is because of special rules in the endgame which permit the disadvantaged player to claim a draw in very peculiar, and sometimes rather complex, ways. "

This means that those special rules apply only when a player is in disadvantadge condition. If there is not such a player, the rules doesnt apply. That is what I interpret, tought I have never played. Better to verify it.

Fencer:

I was wondering about it. I wil try to find info.

Ukimix: What if both players have the same pieces when the last pawn is captured?

Fencer:

Accourding to: http://ancientchess.com/page/play-makruk.htm, the disadvantaged player is the player with the less powerfull group of pieces. Take a look on the site, it could help.

Ukimix: Very well, so how is it really used? For instance: "When neither side has any pawns left, mate must be achieved in 64 moves. The disadvantaged player does the counting."

How do you determine the disadvantaged player?

Fencer:

Yes, I was about to tell you about wikipedia, that explains it. :-)

Ah-ha! Wikipedia is our friend. That's what it says:

When neither side has any pawns, the game must be completed within a certain number of moves or it is declared a draw. When a piece is captured the count starts again from scratch only if it is the last piece of one side in the game.

* When neither side has any pawns left, mate must be achieved in 64 moves. The disadvantaged player does the counting, and may at any time choose to stop counting. If the disadvantaged side checkmates the advantage side and did not stop counting, the game is declared a draw.

When the last piece (that is not the King) of the disadvantaged side is captured, the count may be started, or restarted from the aforementioned counting, by the weaker side, and the stronger side now has a maximum number of moves based on the pieces left:

* If there are two rooks left: 8 moves
* If there is one rook left: 16 moves
* If there are no rooks left, but there are two bishops: 22 moves
* If there are no rooks left, but there is one bishop: 44 moves
* If there are no rooks or bishops left, but there are two knights: 32 moves
* If there are no rooks or bishops left, but there is one knight: 64 moves
* If there are no rooks, bishops, or knights, but queens: 64 moves

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

Ukimix: Ah, there seems to be a problem:

"Object of the game is to mate the opponents king. Stalemate is a draw. Also, when a player has no rook, bishop, or knight anymore, the other player must mate him within a certain number of moves, depending on how many `big' pieces the player has, otherwise the game is declared a draw. The precise numbers are omitted here (also, my sources on this seem to contradict - is there a native player of this game who can provide full information on this topic?). "

The rules at Chessvariants are not certain about this subject. Would you have any other source of reliable information?

Ukimix: I was thinking of than, along with Changgi (Korean Chess). Actually, I didn't want to release new games until BrainKing 3.0 is completed, but since Makruk seems to be easy to implement (and, unlike Changgi, does not require any new images of pieces), I can try to spend some time on it, heh. No promises, though.

What about Makruk or Thai Chess? It would be really nice to add it to BK, since we have already shogi (japanese chess), and xianqi (chinese chess), not to speak about go.

World Champion Vladimir Kramnik says about this variant: "Makruk Thai is more strategic than International Chess, [...] You have to plan your operations with total care since Makruk Thai can be compared to an anticipated endgame of International Chess."

Take a look of Kramnik playing makruk here:
http://www.chessvariants.org/oriental.dir/thaikramnik.html

AbigailII: It might add a lot being on a smaller board than those other games. The name lags in my opinion, but the game might be a good game. Lots of concentrated power and yet still a Chess game.