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Janus Chess. Variant on 10 by 8 board. (10x8, Cells: 80) (Recognized!)[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Bob Greenwade wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 11:11 PM UTC in reply to Fergus Duniho from 07:51 PM:

The problem is that the Utrecht KnightBishop sucks big time, and looks more like a Knight with a pimple on its nose.

Yes, it is a bad design.

To me, it looks like a horn, which would make the figure a good candidate for an Indrik (Jean-Louis' proposal to replace the Ancress, with which I agree).


Jean-Louis Cazaux wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 09:20 PM UTC in reply to Fergus Duniho from 08:36 PM:

Yes, there are few pieces like this which had a name used by problemists since the early years of the 20th c., and which are now given to something else by CV fans. I'm thinking also to the Lion, the Rhinoceros, the Dragon, the Gryphon, the Ship, among others.


🕸Fergus Duniho wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 08:36 PM UTC in reply to H. G. Muller from 08:17 PM:

See https://www.chessvariants.com/piececlopedia.dir/archbishop.html


H. G. Muller wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 08:17 PM UTC in reply to Fergus Duniho from 07:51 PM:

But why would they call it Archbishop, then? This name is hardly ever used for another piece than the BN compound.


🕸Fergus Duniho wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 07:51 PM UTC in reply to H. G. Muller from 07:11 PM:

The problem is that the Utrecht KnightBishop sucks big time, and looks more like a Knight with a pimple on its nose.

Yes, it is a bad design.

I think this is why people later created the Archbishop image.

I used grep to find each page using archbishop00.gif, archbishop01.gif, archbishop10.gif, or archbishop11.gif, and none used this image for the Knight/Bishop compound. So, it doesn't seem to have been created as a replacement for the KnightBishop image.


Bob Greenwade wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 07:42 PM UTC in reply to H. G. Muller from 07:33 PM:

That's fair.


H. G. Muller wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 07:33 PM UTC in reply to Bob Greenwade from 07:16 PM:

That is certainly possible. My own policy when I replace the main diagram in an article that is not mine by an Interactive Diagram is to reproduce the original as closely as possible. In this case that would be small-format Utrecht, using the KnightBishop piece.

I try to keep the task of upgrading to Interactive Diagrams free from any aesthetic judgements. For one, this is often a matter of taste, and in case of a disagreement between the author and a single other person I think we should respect the judgement of the author. If we want to improve the appearence of the website by phasing out certain piece images or entire piece sets, this is better not left to a single person.


Bob Greenwade wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 07:16 PM UTC in reply to H. G. Muller from 07:11 PM:

Maybe use a set other than Utrecht for this? It looks simple enough for Alfaerie.


H. G. Muller wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 07:11 PM UTC in reply to Fergus Duniho from 03:22 PM:

The problem is that the Utrecht KnightBishop sucks big time, and looks more like a Knight with a pimple on its nose. I think this is why people later created the Archbishop image.


🕸Fergus Duniho wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 03:22 PM UTC in reply to HaruN Y from 12:56 PM:

Why is there no black Janus?

I have replaced it with KnightBishop, which is the appropriate image to use for this piece. The Archbishop image could be for another piece with that name. The Paladin image is the same as the Archbishop image, and someone may have done this because I used the name Paladin for this piece in some games, but I have in fact always used a Knight/Bishop hybrid image for this piece.


H. G. Muller wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 02:33 PM UTC in reply to HaruN Y from 12:56 PM:

Why is there no black Janus?

That piece glyph is supposed to be called Archbishop, and then it exists in both colors. I don't know how a copy of the white one began a life of its own as WPaladin.


HaruN Y wrote on Tue, Dec 5, 2023 12:56 PM UTC:
files=10 ranks=8 promoZone=1 promoChoice=NBRAQ graphicsDir=/graphics.dir/utrechtPNG/ squareSize=50 graphicsType=png symmetry=none royal=7 royal=8 whitePrefix=W blackPrefix=B darkShade=#FFCC00 useMarkers=1 borders=0 pawn:P:ifmnDfmWfceF:Pawn:a2,b2,c2,d2,e2,f2,g2,h2,i2,j2,,a7,b7,c7,d7,e7,f7,g7,h7,i7,j7 knight:N:N:Knight:c1,h1,,c8,h8 bishop:B:B:Bishop:d1,g1,,d8,g8 rook:R:R:Rook:a1,j1,,a8,j8 queen:Q:Q:Queen:f1,,f8 archbishop:A:BN:KnightBishop:b1,i1,,b8,i8 king:K:KirO3ilO4:King:,,e8 king:K:KirO4ilO3:King:e1

Why is there no black Janus?


Kevin Pacey wrote on Thu, Mar 1, 2018 08:26 AM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★

I like that the pieces, including the Januses, can hope to usually develop smoothly in this variant, nice for a 10x8 board.


Kevin Pacey wrote on Tue, Dec 19, 2017 06:26 AM UTC:

In case the promotion rules for Janus Chess aren't clear, note that at least Fergus' preset for Janus Chess allows for promotion to a Janus piece.


H. G. Muller wrote on Wed, Oct 15, 2008 06:30 PM UTC:
Standard Staunton-style piece set for this game:


Gary Gifford wrote on Wed, Feb 6, 2008 10:07 PM UTC:
Since the pre-set for Janus Chess has Kings and Queens reversed from that in the rules, I wanted to point out that castling long and short are now reversed. But, to castle Kingside with the current pre-set, the Kings would go to 'i' and the rooks to 'h'... to castle Queenside the Kings would go to 'b' and the Rooks to 'c'... At least that is what I think.

Gary Gifford wrote on Mon, Jan 14, 2008 05:28 PM UTC:
I believe that the Janus pre-set has the Kings and Queens reversed.  Although the reversal looks natural, the rules state: '... the king is at the left of the queen, so the queen still starts at a square of her own color.'  I do not think it matters much for the tournament... However, for a serious Janus player who would be familiar with openings it could be an issue.  I know that I would not like to play Fide Chess with Kings and Queens reversed.

Christine Bagley-Jones wrote on Tue, Sep 19, 2006 02:41 AM UTC:
you just have to become a member, then you put up an invitation, see here
/play/pbmlogs/index.php
anything with 'open' in 'next move for' column is a game that someone
is wanting an opponent.

Dan Kelly wrote on Sun, Sep 17, 2006 03:29 PM UTC:Excellent ★★★★★
Would anyone like to play a game of Jannus Chess with me on here? Please let me know! Thanks!

Derek Nalls wrote on Thu, Jun 1, 2006 02:59 AM UTC:
[Comment deleted.]

George Duke wrote on Fri, Mar 11, 2005 07:00 PM UTC:
'JKL,LargeCV': First comment for Janus Chess, which maybe first proposes Janus(B+N) paired on 8x10, a reasonable idea quarter century ago. CVPage 2004 Archbishop Chess copies the piece-mix and shifts Janus(Cardinal) to d & g. Cardinal is marginally more logical than Marshall(R+N); both compounds go back to 17th-century Carrera's.

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