Bob Greenwade wrote on Sat, Dec 2, 2023 03:21 PM UTC:
137. Ram/Hammer. and 138. Prophet. A week or so ago I posted the Yajj, a piece based on the Tuareg version of the Tifinagh letter yaj (ⵌ), and the diagram of its move got me to thinking: could this have a rotary counterpart?
Well, first, I needed to give it an alternate form. The Yajj's move involves a sort of backing up and then charging forward, which is rather like a battling ram, so I decided to go in that direction. The thing is, Ram is also an alternate name for an Advancer, so some other name would be needed, and a nickname for the battering ram is a hammer. That, too, is a name sometimes used for a different piece, but with three different names there wasn't likely to be much conflict.
The piece's move remains the same: it moves one step diagonally, then (without stopping) turns 135 degrees and slides like a Rook. ([F-bR] = yabsF)
This also called for two new piece figures. Either, I think, could be used for their namesakes with other moves.
Then, for a rotary counterpart, I wondered: what sort of religious figure (that being the tradition for diagonally-sliding pieces) does the equivalent of a battering ram? In a way, knocking down spiritual walls is the function of a prophet, so I decided to use that. ([W-bB] = yabsW)
A prophet, more literally, is one who acts as a spokesman for God (or a god), but that's as hard to show pictorially as the above description of knocking down spiritual walls. I think I've done the concept justice, though.
As an afterthought, these could also be thought of as an Inverted Griffon and Inverted Rhinoceros (or Manticore), respectively.
137. Ram/Hammer. and 138. Prophet. A week or so ago I posted the Yajj, a piece based on the Tuareg version of the Tifinagh letter yaj (ⵌ), and the diagram of its move got me to thinking: could this have a rotary counterpart?
Well, first, I needed to give it an alternate form. The Yajj's move involves a sort of backing up and then charging forward, which is rather like a battling ram, so I decided to go in that direction. The thing is, Ram is also an alternate name for an Advancer, so some other name would be needed, and a nickname for the battering ram is a hammer. That, too, is a name sometimes used for a different piece, but with three different names there wasn't likely to be much conflict.
The piece's move remains the same: it moves one step diagonally, then (without stopping) turns 135 degrees and slides like a Rook. ([F-bR] = yabsF)
This also called for two new piece figures. Either, I think, could be used for their namesakes with other moves.
Then, for a rotary counterpart, I wondered: what sort of religious figure (that being the tradition for diagonally-sliding pieces) does the equivalent of a battering ram? In a way, knocking down spiritual walls is the function of a prophet, so I decided to use that. ([W-bB] = yabsW)
A prophet, more literally, is one who acts as a spokesman for God (or a god), but that's as hard to show pictorially as the above description of knocking down spiritual walls. I think I've done the concept justice, though.
As an afterthought, these could also be thought of as an Inverted Griffon and Inverted Rhinoceros (or Manticore), respectively.