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Game Reviews by sibahi

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Modern Shatranj. A bridge between modern chess and the historic game of Shatranj. (8x8, Cells: 64) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Sun, Aug 13, 2006 12:22 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★

Time Travel Chess. Pieces can travel into the Future. Kings can also return to the Past! (8x8, Cells: 64) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Fri, Sep 8, 2006 01:57 AM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
I have a question regarding the rules. If there are two kings on the board, and one of them travelled back to the time when there was only one king .. and you still have two kings on the board. The question is : is this legal, or does the king which didn't travel get lost in time ?

Alice Chess. Classic Variant where pieces switch between two boards whenever they move. (2x(8x8), Cells: 128) (Recognized!)[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Wed, Sep 13, 2006 02:07 AM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
In the 'Play It!' section, the author mentions variants to Alice Chess : Alice Chess, Alice Mirror, Alice Zero (aka Ms. Alice Chess), Alice Grand, and Alice Extinction. I believe these variants need to be explained to users who don't have Zillions (like me). -- Also, the article doesn't mention the variant suggested be Patron that: 'Alician Chess can also be played on three boards of identical size. ' Patron doesn't clarify that if a square was occupied and the corresponding squares weren't that a piece may move to this square or not; he merely says that there is 'no choice' implying that two corresponding squares out of three can be occupied in the same time. This would be a nice addition.

Caïssa Britannia. British themed variant with Lions, Unicorns, Dragons, Anglican Bishops, and a royal Queen. (10x10, Cells: 100) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Sun, Oct 8, 2006 06:06 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
I have a question regarding the rules. A Queen may not cross a square
threatened by the enemy, and the Two Queens can't face each other,
because they will both be in check.

What if the Enemy Queen was stuck in the last rank by a Rook or two
Dragons, is it possible to deliver check from a far by the Queen ? She is
not in check because the Enemy Queen can't get there, so I don't see why
not.

Cylindrical Chess. Sides of the board are supposed to be connected. (8x8, Cells: 64) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Tue, Oct 17, 2006 03:51 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
A possible rule to add that when castling normally the king moves two
squares, when castling over the edge the king move three squares.

The notation to this can simply be O-G , O-H , O-C and O-B . It depends on
where the king lands. For discriptive notation : O-KN , O-R , O-B and O-QN
.

Gess. A Chess variant played on a Go board where pieces are collections of go stones. (18x18, Cells: 324) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Mon, Oct 23, 2006 11:05 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
Personally, I think the rules are confusing, and difficult to explain. It looks like a good game, though.

Philosophers Chess. Chess variant on two small boards with usual and `philosophical' pieces. (6x6, Cells: 40) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Wed, Nov 22, 2006 08:36 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
This is one of the most original, inventive games.

Walkers and Jumpers. Walkers and Jumpers is a combination 2D - 4D chancellor chess variant that uses 9 pieces and 9 pawns per side. (7x(3x(3x3)), Cells: 189) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Mon, Dec 4, 2006 07:14 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
The Courier preset :

http://www.chessvariants.org/index/msdisplay.php?itemid=MPwalkersandjump

Fool's Hexagonal Chess. designed to be a close (the closest?) hexagonal equivalent to orthodox chess. (Cells: 96) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Sun, Dec 17, 2006 05:58 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
I love the game. hence the rating.

I might as well make it Excellent once I finish my game.

The thing is, if you divide the playing field to triangles, and play on
intersections, then yes, it IS a hexagonal board.

besides, Xiangqi is playable on a square board. there is a page about ot
somewhere in the site.

Pocket Mutation Chess. Take one of your pieces off the board, maybe change it, keep it in reserve, and drop it on the board later. (8x8, Cells: 64) (Recognized!)[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Mon, Jan 1, 2007 06:47 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
SuperKnight and SuperNightRider should be added to the main list in classes 4 and 5 respectively. It is a sensible expansion omitted for who-knows-why reasons!! Addition of Cylindrical and Toroidal pieces can be nasty !! (The rook will only upgrade by a class or half a class.. but bishops and knight and nightriders and super pieces can jump two or three classes, that's for cylinderical.)

6 Ranks, remaining variants. Extrapolations from the Diana/Los Alamos/Haynie's Primary family of variants. (6x6) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Thu, Feb 1, 2007 06:49 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
From all the variants listed, I prefer Alethia (Not a big fan of the name
though. I would've liked Wildbeest Los Alamos, 'cause this what it is.)

Wouldn't the Wildebeest be a little dangerous on the small board ?

Seenschach. Variant on 10 by 10 board with lake in the middle and new pieces. (10x10, Cells: 84) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Tue, Feb 13, 2007 10:52 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
This is a pretty variant. I should try it some time.

Amoeba. Small variant with 38 movable squares. (7x7, Cells: 38) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Fri, Feb 23, 2007 12:20 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
The Game Courier preset isn't linked to game's page.

In a different note, what if the game was played with Marseillais Chess
style? That is: at each turn, except white's first, the player makes a
move, move a square, than makes another move.

Hubbub. A variant of Bruhaha with more short-range pieces. (8x8, Cells: 72) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Tue, Mar 6, 2007 02:22 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
Looks like a good game.

However, I would probably like it better if :

* Bishop are replaced by FADs or Omega Wizards (in the corner squares,)
* Lions are replaced by Elephants (Ferz+Alfil,) and
* Gryphon is replaced by Elephant+Scout.

What do you think ?

Nearlydouble Chess. A 2d variant with the whole of two identical sets minus the second King. (11x11, Cells: 121) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Wed, Mar 14, 2007 09:23 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
I would suggest enlarging the board a little, just a little, to 11 files x 12 ranks, for the following reasons:

1. dividing the board to three equal areas (The warfield, the white camp, and the black camp.)

2. More importantly, the white squared bishops, in both camps, have quite a field in the opening, which might lead to quick exchanges. Adding a rank would let the white squared bishops from one camp oppose the dark squared ones in the other.

3. The white squared bishop is slightly stronger than the dark squared bishop. (In the current form, a dark colored bishop and a knight can't force mate.)

---
I wonder how the game would be like played with Extinction or Suicide rules.

(It would also be interesting to have a Wildebeest variant.)

---
'the restriction that only if they have at least four of every type can they have more than four of any type.'

I assume that this applies to promotion only ? I mean, if a player has five rooks and one of his knights was captured, surely a rook wouldn't demote ?

Mad Scientist Chess. Fetch me the Pawn, Igor! (8x8, Cells: 64) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Fri, Mar 16, 2007 09:10 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
How come no-one made a preset for this game ?

Thunder Chess. A hybrid of Metamorph Chess, Fusion Chess, and Assimilation Chess. (64x(8x8)) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Mon, Mar 19, 2007 09:01 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
Sounds like a good game. I haven't played it yet, but looking forward to.

The promotion rules would be easier to memorize if each piece was promoted to the compound piece the does NOT include itself. That is, N to Q , B to M , R to P .

Er.. Also, can the Dragon King and Pope move through check ?

Lions and Unicorns Chess. With the 16 standard pieces and 4 powerful leapers. (10x8, Cells: 80) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Wed, Mar 21, 2007 03:20 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
I am still playing the opening moves in one of these games. However, I've noticed that the knights are immediately under attack from the bishops from the very first move (provided a central pawn is pushed,) and once they're captured the bishops immediately threaten to capture the smothered rooks. Also, they're only protected by the two new major pieces.

Nearlydouble Wildebeest. A variant with the whole of two identical Wildebeest sets minus the second King. (15x14, Cells: 210) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Sun, Mar 25, 2007 10:21 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
My first impression about this game was the Camel's move. I believe if it was augmented as the Knight was, that is making a (3,1),(2,2),(4,0) leaper called the ENDCAMEL or something, would make things easier to memorize.

The Endcamel is more mobile than the Endknight, yet color-bound. It's also less awkward than the original Camel.

What do you think ?

(I might come back with more thoughts later.)


PS. I can see why you chose the Dicamel; it's the Endknight on the diagonal matrix.

PS2. My apologies, I see you already have invented the Endcamel and called it the Endcaribou.

Falcon Chess. Game on an 8x10 board with a new piece: The Falcon. (10x8, Cells: 80) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Wed, Apr 11, 2007 04:28 AM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
an interesting thought, I wonder how the game would play out allowing some mutators? like Suicide, Atomic, Extinction, Alice, Magnetic .. etc ..

I issued an invitation for Suicide Falcon Chess .. just to try it out. I really wonder if there are any lost openings to begin with.

Doppleganger Chess. Pieces and their doppelgangers are connected for capture and promotion! (8x8, Cells: 64) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Sat, Apr 28, 2007 10:55 AM UTC:Good ★★★★
If the removal of the doppleganger pawn was automatic, (not random,) like choosing the closest piece to the captured piece or choosing the closest to the left hand corner, the game wouldn't necessarily be better, but it would be easier to implement in a chess program or a chess server (you have only to make the move, and the program will take care of the rest.)

Just a thought...

I should try this game someday.

Cataclysm. Large board game with short-range pieces designed to be dramatic without being overly complicated or dragging on too long. (12x16, Cells: 192) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Fri, May 4, 2007 07:58 AM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
I would personally suggest a neater starting position than the one in use. You have 24 pieces, so it would seem natural to stack them in two 12-square ranks.

I'd suggest tilting the board so it's vertical instead of horizontal. You will have 12 files and 16 ranks. If you want 4 ranks between the two camps then pawns will have to start at the 6th rank. This is my suggestion :


 P P P P P P P P P P P P  6
 T T C C E E E E C C T T  5
 . . . . . . . . . . . .  4
 X X X X X X X X X X X X  3
 G R B S D Q K S D B R G  2
 . . . . . . . . . . . .  1
 
 a b c d e f g h i j k l

Or

 P P P P P P P P P P P P  6
 R C C B S D S D B C C R  5
 . . . . . . . . . . . .  4
 X X X X X X X X X X X X  3
 G T T E E Q K E E T T G  2
 . . . . . . . . . . . .  1
 
 a b c d e f g h i j k l


The X's are Berlin Pawns. They have double-step and may be captured en-passant by other Berlin pawns (and/or normal pawns, if you wish.) Normal pawns promotion rules are as stated in the rules, on the 14th, 15th, or 16th rank. Berlin pawns promote at 11th, 12th, or 13th, with the same promotion rules.


The King may castle with Grand Rooks by moving four squares to the right or the left and the Grand Rook move to the square next to the King. Or with Rooks by moving three squares.

Chess on a Longer Board with a few Pieces Added. On a 10 row by 8 column board, with three new pieces. (8x10, Cells: 80) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Sat, May 5, 2007 01:53 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
You can add the following unique properties for the Rook and the Bishop:
* The Rook is the only piece that has a special move with the King, and 
* The Bishop is the only colorbound piece.

Desert Pub Chess. A game where Desert Wazirs & Desert Ferz capture by jumping. (8x8, Cells: 64) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Sun, May 13, 2007 10:48 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
Sounds interesting. I wonder, what if one, or both, of the two princes is a Desert King, so to speak (A combination of the desert Wazir and the desert Ferz.)

Knights could also move like the Chinese Mao, but capturing an enemy piece if it happens to be orthogonally adjacent, and they can capture multiple piece at the same turn.

I would like to try the game as it is here. I'll wait for the preset.

Rectahex Chesss. A chess variant that looks like hexagonal chess but can be played on a normal chess board. (8x8, Cells: 64) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Abdul-Rahman Sibahi wrote on Mon, May 28, 2007 07:35 PM UTC:Good ★★★★
I like this game !!

I have an observation.

If we merge the board rotated to the right with the board rotated to the left, We get Queens for Rooks, Unicorns (BNN) for Bishops, and NJZ (Knight + Camel + Zebra) for Knights, Queen of the Night (BRNN) for Queen.

Sounds like a nice variant.

If we subtract the original pieces movements from Rooks, Knight, and Bishops, we get Bishops for Rooks, Bisons for Knights, Nightriders for Bishops, and Unicorn for Queen.

This makes a nice CwDA army. Don't you think ?

I will post this into a new page, since it is a very different variant.

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