BrainKing - Forums de discussion (Chess variants (8x8))

Sujet: pedestrian's Dark Chess tournament

January All Games over 1600

Starts Wednesday
Single game round robin 5 maximum per section, so the most games started will be four for you. 3 day time limit

17. Juillet 2010, 21:22:43

tangram

Sujet: superchess tournament (life!)

29/7/2010 Superchess tournament. Place Voorhout, "De Speleweij" The Netherlands
18.30 Childrens tournament 20.00 General tournament See also www.superschaak.nl

10. Juillet 2010, 12:30:46

test27

Sujet: Re: a rules question

rabbitoid: no, pawns promote to queen, rook or knight only. I have tested: it is correctly implemented here :)

10. Juillet 2010, 08:09:17

Sujet: a rules question

What do you know, after all these years, something unclear
In Los Alamos chess, can a pawn convert to a Bishop?

20. Juin 2010, 06:49:05

Sujet: Re:

coan.net: That's funny, somthing must have changed. I hunted for draw examples, here for example: Behemoth Chess (Gror vs. Mal 4 Inara)
Seems the same type of move

20. Juin 2010, 04:06:55

Sujet: Re:

Thad: Seriously? If I were to capture my opponents king, and then submit and the Behemoth took my king out, it would be a draw????

Actually I never play this game either... it's just part of a random tournament, so don't ever plan to play many more of these games... (not to mention that I'm not that good at chess...)

20. Juin 2010, 04:02:09

Thad

Sujet: Re:

coan.net: You can make the same argument that if you capture your opponent's king and get destroyed by the Behemoth that you should win, since the capture takes place first, but that's not the way the rules are either.

Personally, I don't think Behemoth Chess is a good game. I would never chose to play it. I did play it once as part of a tournament with random game selection. I won't play it again. Maybe some casual players like it, but there are far better games to play.

20. Juin 2010, 01:25:01

Sujet: Re:

Thad: I know (and I'm not really complaining to get it changed or anything) - but the rules do say "If the Behemoth destroys both kings at the same time, the game is a draw." - well it wasn't the same time, it was the square after.... same TURN, but not really the same time.

20. Juin 2010, 01:06:00

Thad

Sujet: Re:

coan.net: The rules clearly state that that's a draw.

19. Juin 2010, 23:31:58

A draw in Behemoth Chess..... Behemoth Chess (coan.net vs. mangue)

Now technically, my opponent lost his king first... so I think I should have won! It took the Behemoth 1 extra move to take my king. Grrr....

7. Mai 2010, 22:15:55

Bernice

Sujet: Only 2 players needed, PLEASE

Ironhorse Challenges

17. Avril 2010, 08:50:56

Thad

Sujet: Re: Behemoth Chess question

Yes, I understand the way it moved and and the movement rules. I was saying that,
1. f3/h8
is ambiguous because the behemoth can reach H8 by two different routes (and take out different combinations of pieces on the way).

17. Avril 2010, 04:07:28

Bwild

Sujet: Re: Behemoth Chess question

Thad: it started at H8 and stopped at D4 according to the previous move.
the rules mention it can hop from 1 side to the other as in sphere froglet.

15. Avril 2010, 23:39:19

Thad

Sujet: Re: Behemoth Chess question

I thought that might have happened in my game,
Behemoth Chess (Thad vs. A663)

At first, the behemoth moved from its initial D4 square to H8 then right back to D4, but it wrapped around the board on its way there and then came across the board on the way back. Perhaps the notation needs to be adjusted for this?!

14. Avril 2010, 03:40:48

Bwild

Sujet: Re: Behemoth Chess question

Thad: random 4 squares...so anything is possible.

14. Avril 2010, 01:47:46

Thad

Sujet: Behemoth Chess question

In Behemoth Chess, can the behemoth move in opposite directions on consecutive turns? Can the behemoth move in the same direction on consecutive turns?

15. Mars 2010, 15:09:13

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

lukulus: chess variants are so refreshing ... I cannot stand playing first 10 or so moves in traditional game ... it's like singing the same song over and over again. This is me. There are different personalities ... and what I discovered recently is playing with dice ... to my big surprise there are many very interesting situations during the game of dice chess ... and yet you do not have to spend hours on analyzing your next move ... it's more like backgammon, where you know immediately (in most cases) what to play ... it's more dynamic and more fun.

Andy.

15. Mars 2010, 14:56:08

lukulus

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

Herlock Sholmes: I like chess variant very much, but only on internet and in pub. Its very funny to play in pub bughouse or dice chess. Classical chess are like serious old professor, but I like him!

2. Mars 2010, 16:53:08

http://mychessvariants.blogspot.com/

Sujet: 8Choice Chess and Prime Chess

and other new ideas to meditate and discuss on my blog ... please visit:

Andy.

23. Février 2010, 14:46:21

WhisperzQ

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

Herlock Sholmes:
I wonder, do you play backgammon (I don't very often) ... but here is a game which may rival chess in its popularity and its list of variants even though I think it has far less opportunities to be morphed. But still the traditional game prevails. Go is the same.

These days I play very little traditional chess as I do not have time to read as widely as some and to play at the higher level you need to or be quite gifted (which I am also am not). I, probably like you, enjoy playing variants where there is no great history or written material on the benefits of e2-e4. I enjoy playing in an even challenge and find this is the province of variants for me.

I believe the reason why traditional chess, backgammon, go and the like survive with very few rule changes is that they have already been proofed by the test of time. I do not know of one variant that takes less away from the traditional game than it adds. Maybe you would like to analyse a few examples to try to prove me wrong.

In conclusion, I agree there is an element of truth to what you say about the "boring" nature of traditional chess and I am sure this is more prevalent at the higher levels ... championships played where the majority of games, despite the clever play, end in draws in no great inspiration ... but when you look at the subtleties they are often quite astounding and beautiful ... way beyond my capabilities.. I am not convinced that a plethora of variants would lead to such revelations.

21. Février 2010, 19:08:23

Beren the 32nd

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

Herlock Sholmes: Before deciding whether or not to have a go at a particular chess variant, I think a player might ask the age old question : "What is in it for me?" In this case the answer may need to involve some personal satisfaction, stretching of the mind, the probability of being able to play some more games in order to build on lessons learnt, and eventually some practical reward such as a public rating, a medal, or even some money.
For this to happen, there have to be enough people involved, of a sufficiently high chess standard, who all think the variant is of high enough quality to make it worth playing more and more games. This has already happened to some extent on this site with some chess variants, which must be a good thing.
Would it help if some grandmasters got involved? I am not so sure it would.

19. Février 2010, 19:26:37

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

Pioneer54: and I agree with you for the most part ... I am familiar with chess variants web site, I am registered inventor there ... it's a matter of some psychological portrait we have ... I would rather play everyday something new than dig into the same game day after day ... to the point that I would remove my own piece to make it more exiting and new. On the other hand if traditional chess would be such a perfect game, there would't be so many thousands of variants ... there would be no need for it. And because there are different kind of pieces in chess set it calls for playing variety ... there a only few versions or form of GO ... why ? Is it a perfect game or GO pieces are limited in what can be done with them ?

19. Février 2010, 19:04:56

Pioneer54

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

Herlock Sholmes: Your comments and suggestions are curious. Much of this ground has been covered before (that is, attempting to lure more chess players to get interested in variants), and the results (most sadly) have been mediocre at best, dismal at worst.

Chess variants is a fascinating field. I've been delving into it for some 25 years. Still, I don't think chess is boring, but it is definitely overmechanized. One could easily spend an entire lifetime just studying to keep up with the ever-increasing volume of "opening theory". Well, that is rather mundane, and I don't know who would want to do that, except GMs and IMs. Anyhow, chess remains widely popular, but (as you hint) also has become somewhat rigid, and this very condition is what has inspired chess variants!

There are two main problems with chess variants:
1. Many are half-baked ideas that are introduced with little or no play testing, and really not worthy of much consideration, and this tends to drown out the small percentage of really good concepts;
2.Many of those who play only chess (where the potential field of new variants players would naturally derive) ignorantly dismiss the entire collection of variants as "fairy chess" or some other derogatory term. Call it "human nature" if you will, but I find this lack of open-mindedness pointedly unintelligent, which is ironic considering that most chess players think of themselves as "smart". Some have been actually known to express verbatim that just trying a variant would be "beneath their dignity"!!?

Another factor to consider is that CV is relatively young. Chess has been around for many centuries, whereas CV is but a few decades old. There are a few CV dating back farther, but I mainly refer to the explosion of new CV ideas, which is much more recent. How popular was chess after such a short time?

And, for general information, there are descriptions and details of hundreds of variants at the Chess Variant Pages: http://www.chessvariants.com/

19. Février 2010, 18:51:36

Bwild

lets keep things friendly

19. Février 2010, 16:41:57

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

wetware: because for most of us we are proud HUMANS playing the ONLY GAME THERE IS of chess and we taste WHISKEY (do not drink) ... and poor apes play chess variants and snore cocaine ... you are right, people are funny, not only that way ...

19. Février 2010, 16:30:09

wetware

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

Herlock Sholmes: Some people simply cannot conceive or speak of conventional Western chess as being a variant (admittedly, far and away the most popular chess variant).

To me, it seems similar to the way that many people adamantly refuse to categorize alcohol as drug, or to conceive of humans as primates. The list goes on and on...

People are funny that way!

19. Février 2010, 01:03:00

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

AbigailII: this is only convincing me that we are "indoctrinated" by official chess world ... traditional chess position and role in modern world reminds me of catholic church position within christian world ... the strongest, the wisest, and the more corrupted entity (?)... and most of believers do not even try to touch something different ... most chess players do not even know variants exist ... but luckily there are brilliant minds that want to go beyond traditional path ... we learn chess at very young age and that's good, but on the other hand it makes us prisoners of tradition ... and it's so hard to break the chains of it ... I am amazed by the wealth of ideas that variants bring and it will not take very long that the rules will be modified to make this game more dynamic, less mechanical ... Newton's world and understanding is gone, why chess is still in 17 century ? it puzzles me ... sure, it will be played and enjoyed forever but the crack is being made, bigger and bigger ... I am not the only one who cannot play e2-e4 without asking WHY not e-5 ?

19. Février 2010, 00:31:00

AbigailII

Sujet: Re: traditional chess is boring ...

Herlock Sholmes: Not so long ago? Both the en passant and the castling rules date from the late Middle Ages. And the queen has moved as she does now since the late Middle Ages as well. Perhaps the only fundamental change in the rules of the game of chess in the last 500 years were the 50- and 100-move rules. I would call chess a game that's evolving all the time. In fact, I'd call chess a rock solid game when it comes to stability of the rules.

As for people playing the same kind of music - that seems to be more common than the other way around. There are more people who stick to Rock or Classical music or HipHop or Country than there are people that enjoy all of equally.

And you may find chess boring, it's still far more popular than any variant. There are no tournaments with hundreds of thousands of dollars of price money for chess variants. There are no players of chess variants known by the public at large. There's no regular mentioning of chess variants in newspapers.

And I bet that while the set of people who find chess boring is pretty large, I expect the set of people who find chess boring, but chess variants not to be pretty small. Most people who have no interest in chess have no interesting in variants either.

Personally, I find many chess variants interesting to play a few games in. But then the novelty wears off, and I never play the variant again. I keep playing regular chess though.

18. Février 2010, 23:23:34

Sujet: traditional chess is boring ...

I would like to invite you to discuss the future of traditional chess ... I am studying chess variants for years, inventing variants and came to a conclusion ... traditional chess is simply boring ... there is something repealing in this game ... over and over again the same openings and I wish every game started somewhere in the middle ... this is why I play mostly variants and the more crazy the better for me ... playing just one variant of chess (which is traditional form) is like playing the same music all the time ...who can stand it ? can you ? I cannot ... musical notes and chess pieces have many similarities and they can and should be used in a number of ways ... Fisher Random Chess is a step into right direction, but even this novelty is somewhat boring ... chess evolve all the time and not very long time ago there were no castling, en passant and even a queen didn't move the way we know it moves today ... so, let's look at chess as something ever changing and accept, that we play only a variant of cosmic chess idea ... I would appreciate your thoughts ...

Andy.

18. Février 2010, 22:56:24

http://www.chessvariants.org/multimove.dir/doublemove.html

Sujet: Double Move Chess

there are several variants on this theme ... one of them is below ... what is interesting, it uses the same principle as Connect6 ... white moves once and the next moves are just double moves by both sides ... it would be nice to have this version here, at brainking ...

18. Février 2010, 20:15:08

http://hem.passagen.se/melki9/index.htm

Sujet: creativity

here is the link to chess variants inventor, among other games ... please check it, scroll down until you see chess variants:

6. Juillet 2009, 17:17:21

Chimera

Sujet: Re:

Fencer:

thank you I knew I was missing something.

6. Juillet 2009, 17:14:05

Fencer

Sujet: Re:

volant: "When a king moves for the first time, it can move as a queen (it also means that there is no castling in this game)." - from the rules.
Black king never moved, so it attacks both mentioned squares.

6. Juillet 2009, 17:11:37

Chimera

Why won't the game allow me to move my white king to A4 or B5 what am I missing?

http://brainking.com/en/ShowGame?g=4033056

26. Juin 2009, 22:25:34

RGroszkiewicz

Sujet: Re: Cheshire Cat Chess - checkmate??

pedestrian: AHA! I knew I was overlooking something obvious.

26. Juin 2009, 21:59:20

pedestrian

Sujet: Re: Cheshire Cat Chess - checkmate??

RGroszkiewicz: It's because the white king hasn't moved yet. First time the king moves, it can move like a queen, so it's actually covering those two squares. It should be in the rules somewhere.

26. Juin 2009, 21:49:11

RGroszkiewicz

Sujet: Cheshire Cat Chess - checkmate??

I am trying to play this crazy variant. I was looking at some archived games, and came across this one: Cheshire Cat Chess (bobowski74 vs. kleineme)

Can anyone explain to me why Black is checkmated? There appear to be two legal moves to escape from check: 9... Ka5 or 9... Kb4

Maybe there is something missing from the description of the Cheshire Cat Chess rules?

22. Juin 2009, 18:55:54

Sujet: Re: Massacre Chess Tips & Suggestions

coan.net: I stopped chasing queens ... there is plenty of opportunities to capture them later in the game ... what I am looking for is to save one or two of my own queens from attacks ... and keept them safe for later use ... thanks for your bishop tip ... general tactics should be to move your pieces to the center of the board to maximize their capturing power ... your bishop is an excellent example ...

Andy.

22. Juin 2009, 18:33:24

Sujet: Massacre Chess Tips & Suggestions

So after playing the game for awhile, does anyone have any tips or suggestions they would like to share about Massacre Chess?

Even though I'm no expert, here is what I try to do:

1. I try to do is take out many if not all of my opponents queens.

2. While doing #1, I will try to use knights or bishops to do that - trying to see if they have limited attack power from previous position and move them to a new position.

3. Check bishop on the long diagonal - if they are mine in the corners, if I can attack to get them out in the middle a little more, I try. If they are my opponents, I will then try to move my pieces from their attack line to make them unusable.

4. After that, I try to move on to the rest of the queens and then rooks & sometimes knights that are more in the middle with more attacking range.

19. Juin 2009, 10:03:58

Sujet: shortest game

So far some 800 games ended in a mate, that is a blocked position. The shortest one I found is Massacre Chess (mangue vs. emelin) in 19 moves.

18. Juin 2009, 17:09:14

Sujet: Re: Massacre Chess: longest game.

WhisperzQ: The limit for the longest is obvious.
Not so for the shortest. Who can come up with the shortest game? (truly ended ones, of course. Don't bother with the timeouts-on-move-1, resigned or draw without reason)

Subsidiary theoretical question: who can come up with an initial position that can lead to a blocked game in the shortest possible number of moves? I have a trivial one that blocks after move 8, black.

18. Juin 2009, 14:35:28

WhisperzQ

Sujet: Re: Massacre Chess: longest game.

aaru: Game would ahve been shorter and white would ahve won if 28. Rxa7 was replaced with 28. Bxb7 Bxb7 29. Range of moves for white and nothing more for black :)

10. Juin 2009, 12:44:53

aaru

Sujet: Re: Massacre Chess: longest game.

AbigailII: 30 moves -> Massacre Chess (Jaymom vs. aaru)

10. Juin 2009, 12:36:30

AbigailII

Sujet: Massacre Chess: longest game.

modifié par AbigailII (10. Juin 2009, 12:36:50)

The longest possible game in Massacre Chess is 31.5 moves. This game lasted 29 moves. Is that a record so far?

4. Juin 2009, 10:51:51

Bughunter42

Sujet: Re:

kleineme:
You're right. My second example seems to be wrong. Connecting kings seems to be allowed there. But you can't move to b8 or d8 at FICS, but at brainking it's allowed. I'm sorry for my fault.

27. Mai 2009, 22:57:25

Walter Montego

Sujet: Re: Looking for opponents Dark Chess, Embassy Chess

happy hermit: A little Dark Chess, eh? Sure, a couple of invitations coming your way. :)

22. Mai 2009, 02:57:52

happy hermit

Sujet: Looking for opponents Dark Chess, Embassy Chess

Anyone up for a game?

21. Mai 2009, 02:20:32

Sujet: Re: Massacre Chess Strategy

wetware: it would be interesting to see this branching in some way ... I am pretty sure the beginning of the game is just planting the seeds for a victory ... we are unable to make any optimal move ... the only thing we can do is to think about areas of the board to find some group of opponent's pieces and try to isolate them and make them "dead" ... but, as far as I know computers CANNOT compete with master GO players ...
at least for now ...simply too many branching ... so maybe there is a chance for us in Massacre Chess ...
well, I didn't know I created a monster ...
Andy.

21. Mai 2009, 02:02:39

wetware

Sujet: Re: Massacre Chess Strategy

ChessVariant: I'm not sure how good computers would be in the opening. It seems to me that the branching factor would be a computational hurdle. But I know I wouldn't care to play against them from the middle-game on, when they could "see" everything through to the finish.

20. Mai 2009, 16:52:44