Kibbitz Listing
wrote on Now then, Phoenix...I thought you had grown weary of this site. Kidding. It's good to see you here. I'm sorry about my abrupt disappearance from Richard's. I had me some of them troubles. Care to play 2 games- one of my choosing, and one of yours? (No Ultima, though...I'm not terribly smart ...and no 4 dimensional games...again, I'm not smart enough).
wrote on ****As sad as I know this sounds, I do not yet have a coherent rules page for my preset of Eric Greenwood's new Rennchess II. I want to include the diagrams I created to better represent the movement schemes of the pieces in Rennchess, but I do not know how to embed them into the file.
****Anyway, the following will have to suffice for now: Here is a link to the rules page for Rennaisaisnce Chess I. The basic rules for Rennchess II are identical to those for Rennchess I, plus the addition of a new piece, the omission of two, and different starting set-up.
****Here is a letter I wrote to Carlos Cetina which explains 'who's who' with regard to the icon changes I've made in Rennchess II:
****'Carlos, these are the icons I chose for Eric's new game. I think they look a bit better, and might be easier for a newcomer to use.
****The rules for RC2 are exactly the same as those of RC1. I describe the pieces below both because there is a new one- the Courier- and several of the icons are different from RC1. They move exactly as their counterparts do in RC1, though.
****The promotion rules of RC2 are the same, as well.
****Forgive me if any, or all of the following is stuff you already know...
>>1. The champion icons at c1, j1, c10 and j10 are dual-path griffins. They are known as 'Cavaliers' in RC.
>>2. At f1 and g10 we find dual-path aancas. They are 'Dukes.'
>>3. The icons at c2, j2, c9 and j9 are called 'Couriers' in RC2, and move as either an alfil or a ferz. They are the sole new piece in RC2. If you know the Phoenix of Chu Shogi, than you know this piece.
>>4. e2 and f9 contain a ferz/wazir/alfil/dababbah hybrid (one step in any direction, or a jump to a second square orthog. or diag.) called a 'Squire.' Note, it may not change direction mid-move.
>>5. h2 and e9 each contain a 'Page,' which moves as either a guard or a knight.
>>6. a1, l1, a10, and l10 contain 'Castles,' which may jump to ANY second square like a knight, a dababbah, or an alfil. They may not make a one-step move. I like this piece.
****The rest of the pieces are certainly obvious to you. I hope this game 'works!' Thank you for trying it!'****Does anyone know how Eric Greenwood is doing? I'd really like to show him this preset. I do think it LOOKS pretty good, rules or no rules...!
wrote on I'll play anyone who does not mind a game with no time limit.
wrote on Armin, Oops! My mistake- this preset IS correct.
wrote on This game ain't bad, but, in my humble opinion, Toulousian Chess is his best!
wrote on wrote on At last! The preset is correct. Thank you Mr. David Paulowich!
wrote on Here is that game I've been working on- of course, a la Betza. It has no real name, save 'Medieval War Chess,' which I dislike. The archers, and the cannons' 'kill' ranges are symbolized, and doubled by their proximity to the 'battlements' directly in front of them. They are considered to be on top of them. The 'shooters,' themselves, cannot capture by displacement. The battlements can only move one square ahead, but may capture on that move. The cannon may only shoot straight ahead, up to three squares, OR up to six, if directly behind, orthogonally, a battlement. The Archers may only shoot up to two squares, only diagonally, OR up to four, if diagonally adjacent to a battlement. Neither 'shooters' may capture a piece by displacement. I feel that this game might provide some interesting dilemmas for either players as to whether they should sacrifice, possibly, more powerful pieces for either shooters, or the battlements which double their firing range, or simply avoid their firing ranges and attack with the strong pieces. This is the preset here. I know you aren't too fond of the 16x16 games, but I think this one would not take 4 years to finish, and you might just enjoy it!
wrote on Thank you for having a look at my chess thing. The newest link, below, is the most recent version of it, and I think it's the best one thus far. I do think, though, that it just might be too complex, but won't, of course, really know until it's been played (which is where you might be of service! )***
If I may, I'd like to give you a brief description of it's rules. I'll start with piece movement. The bishop-like icons on a1, p1, a16, and p16 are crooked bishop/wazir hybrids a la Ralph Betza. Next, at b1, o1, b16, and o16, are dababbah riders, followed, at c1, n1, c16, and n16, by crooked rooks-- again, a Betza invention, as you probably know. Fourth in, at c1, m1, d16, and m16, are standard nightriders. The odd horses at e1, l1, e16, and l16, with the 'actualized potential' lines surrounding them (from the game of that name) are meant to represent either Knight/Camel/Zebra hybrids, that is, 2+1; 3+1; and 3+2 jumpers, or, a simpler combination of two of the three animals-- NC, NZ, or CZ. I like the NCZ piece, but I fear that TWO of them might make for an overly complicated game. My experience with just one such piece can complicate a game almost like no other, in my opinion (as it can in Cazaux's 14x14 game Gigachess). Next, at f1 and k16 are simplified versions of your Duke from Rennchess (an 'aancha.' ((Sp.?)), I believe). They, unlike the Duke in Rennchess, may not attack via two routes, and the piece (without a name, so far) may also stop, and capture, after making only it's ortho. move. The pieces at g1 through j1, and g16 through j16 move exactly as you would expect, and the two pieces (technically gryphons, really, though nameless, again, at this point, in this game) at k1 and f16 are, again, just simplified versions of your Cavalier, but share the same movement and capture simplifications of my Duke-like piece. The three-headed pawns are corporals, and capture like a FIDE pawn, but may also make a non-capturing move one square diagonally forward (borrowed from Jean-Louis Cazaux's various games, many of which I like quite a bit!). The pawns beside the corporals are just plain, old pawns, and, in front of the K and Q, are your Guards, and move exactly as such. I thought that the 2nd and 15th rank pawns should be allowed to make a 4 to 5 square move if they've not yet moved, though I've not yet decided. Finally, pawn-wise, the shogi pawns on the 5th and 12th ranks move, and capture exactly as they would in shogi; they move one space ahead, and capture one space ahead. Why they are where they are should become more clear in a moment.***
The pieces on the 3rd and 14th ranks, specifically the cannons and the archers, represent my biggest question mark about this game (the ferz-like icons are simply ferz which can execute and capture with a one square ortho. step. or, a two, or three square ortho. leap). Ideally, I'd like the cannons and archers to be able to capture opponents pieces from afar, meaning, I'd like them to be able to 'shoot' enemy pieces without, themselves, moving, though they, them selves may move one square, king-like. Additionally, I've placed 'battlements,'-- your Castle piece icon, though these can only move one square at a time, and only straight ahead, directly in front of these 'shooting pieces,' with the idea that the configuration of these two types of pieces-- the cannons and the archers, and the battlements directly in front of them, might symbolize the 'shooters' positioning ON TOP of the battlements, and would then, thus, double thier effective 'kill' range. I think this aspect of this game sounds really cool, yet, my speculations are in no way carved in stone, either. Honestly, I'm not certain these rules would really work. My fear is that these rules might present too much of a limiting factor with regard to piece development. As a means of compromise, I've placed the shogi pawns in front of the battlements to slow their advance, as I felt that both the battlements, and the shooting pieces might advance TOO quickly, thus threatening a rather silly premature mate.***
Yet another issue: I have not resolved how the double horse icons-'cavalries'-should move. I'd like them to be able to make one or TWO knight moves in ANY direction- like, say, from k4 to l6, then to j7, and be blocked only on their 'landing' squares. As cool as the idea seems to me, again, I fear that allowing them to move as such might add more chaos-inducing, playability-diminishing complexity to this already large game. Play testing is in order.***
My God, I've written you another novella!. I'm pretty sure that you now have the basic gist of this (possibly ridiculous) game. Here is it's link:clicky here!
wrote on Eric, here is the preset for the 16x16 game on which I've been working. It is a loose extrapolation of Ralph Betza's Chess on a Really Big Board, and employs a couple of similar pieces-one of which, the Crooked Rook, he invented, and another, the CBW, which is an enhanced version of Betza's Crooked Bishop! I do feel that, as a whole, the game is distinct enough to justify calling it a new game, rather than simply a variation of Betza's game, especially in light of some of the unique properties of it's pieces and rules. That being said, and having never 'invented' a game before, I expect nothing less than brutal honesty in your take on it's potential (or, lack there of). If it happens to intrigue you, I'll explain my tentative rules for it, as several of the pieces do not move as their icons would normally indicate, and the game has a few unorthodox rules. Should it progress to the point of requiring a set of written rules, maybe you could show me how to post them...? Ultimately, this game is definitely a chess game, albeit a large one with heavy firepower, and is in no way an attempt to fundamentally change chess itself. I think it has an awfully purdy board, as well!:) Matt's Little Big Experiment
wrote on I'm sorry that I've yet to make a set of rules for this preset, but, lately, I've been suffering from a baffling condition characterized by inertia and extreme overwork! I'll 'get with' Eric Greenwood soon and create them!
wrote on wrote on ignore this...
wrote on ...ignore this, as well...
wrote on wrote on wrote on I found out, thanks to help from Joe Joyce, that one can not place an active URL in the comments section of a game, only in this here kibitzin' box. Here are links to four versions: one featuring a Templar knight sheild as the Courier, one with the elephant icon from Courier chess #5, one with two Guards placed where the Foxes would be in the original Rennchess; and (yet!) another placed on a 12x12 board: Rennchess II with Templar shields as Couriers; Rennchess II with elephants as Couriers; Rennchess II with Guards; and Rennchess on a 12x12 board
wrote on Why will no one play this here game with me?
wrote on Why will no one play this here game with me?