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Thank you, everyone, for the kind comments on the Variants!
 
Mr. Gilman is correct: One of the purposes of the expanded ranks is
indeed
to allow for coverage of more squares. I have played games where the
position more or less was color-stalemated.
 
Part of the charm of the game is the weaker pieces; however, it is very
frustrating to not be able to attack a particular square when you need
to!

 Variant 1 is designed to keep the flavor of the game intact as
completely
as possible while expanding the piece range to both colors. The GUard is
a
very useful addition with the limited abilities of the rest of the
pieces.

 Mr. Ayer is correct; the the Prince [promoted King's pawn] and the
Adventitious King [third-time promoted Pawn of Pawns] are not Royal until
the Original Monarch is Captured. At that point they become Royal.
[mating
the Original King is sufficient whenever the Prince or AK aren't
present].
 
Variant 2 is perhaps my favorite; the picket/bishop is restored to the
familiar chess move, the ferz is able to change color [without changing
its basic function] the Giraffe is SLIGHTLY more mobile, and the war
machines and elephants are MUCH more useful! The piece's powers are only
slightly enhanced; the game flavor is retained while allowing a LOT more
strategic options.

Variants 3, 4, and 5 are for those wanting a little more firepower
available. While the Queen and the increasingly Liberated Giraffes allow
for more speed and tactical tricks, the rest of the pieces are the same,
which makes for a nice alternative when the regular game [or Variants 1
and 2] gets a bit stale. [a temporary circumstance, to be sure! :)  ]

Regarding double-moving pawns: the slow pawns help to keep the game
flavor, and that is why i left them as is. [Another part of the charm is
the unique pawn designation on promotion]. However, feel free to use
double-pawn moves in any of the Variants! It does make for a faster game,
and that's not necessarily a bad thing, depending on one's individual
tasted. Just let your opponent know! :)

In fact, feel free to mix and match ANY of the rules to whatever your
tastes are! For instance, Retain the Guard instead of the Queen in
variant
5. My Variants are just a jumping-off point; Let your own creativity
shine
forth! 

 Btw, there are a couple of alternate setups given. However, it is fairly
universal that this one is the best one.

 Retaining the 'complicated' rules are, once again, part of the game's
charm; And they are rare enough in actual play [except for the King-swap
during a check] that they are hardly ever seen. just keep a set of Rules
handy when playing to settle any questions.

 Thank you for the chance to explain the reasoning behind the Variants
presented!  :)

  Eric V. Greenwood