3 <title>Chess with Different Armies</title>
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8 <h1>Chess with Different Armies</h1>
10 This is actually a group of variants.
11 It defines a number of 'armies', each containing of an orthodox King and Pawns,
12 plus 7 other pieces of 4 different types.
13 The orthodox FIDE army, with pieces Q, R, B and N, is one example of this.
14 But there are many armies considting of four completely different pieces,
15 together of approximately equal strength as the FIDE army.
16 Here we discuss three possible realizations of this.
19 Each of these four armies can be pitted against each of the others,
22 <table cellpadding="20"><tr><td>
23 <img src="Rookies.png">
25 <h3>Initial setup</h3>
26 <h4>Remarkable-Rookies army</h4>
32 a1, a8, h1, h8: Short Rook
34 c1, c8, f1, f8: Half Duck
40 <h4>Fabulous-FIDEs army</h4>
48 c1, c8, f1, f8: Bishop
50 b1, b8, g1, g8: Knight
55 <img src="ClobNut.png">
57 <h4>Nutty-Knights army</h4>
63 a1, a8, h1, h8: Turret
65 c1, c8, f1, f8: Unicorn
71 <h4>Color-bound Cloberers army</h4>
77 a1, a8, h1, h8: Leaping Bishop
79 c1, c8, f1, f8: Clobberer
81 b1, b8, g1, g8: Elephant
88 <h3>Moves at a Glance</h3>
90 <p>Click on a piece below to see its moves</p>
92 <table class="board"><tr><td class="h" id="0x9">
94 </td><td class="n" id="1x9" onmouseDown="down_click(1,9)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
95 <img src="sym/BlackRook.png">
96 </td><td class="n" id="2x9">
98 </td><td class="n" id="3x9">
100 </td><td class="n" id="4x9">
102 </td><td class="n" id="5x9" onmouseDown="down_click(5,9)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
103 <img src="sym/BlackKing.png">
104 </td><td class="n" id="6x9">
106 </td><td class="n" id="7x9">
108 </td><td class="n" id="8x9" onmouseDown="down_click(8,9)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
109 <img src="sym/BlackRook.png">
110 </td><td class="h" id="9x9">
113 <img src="sym/yellow.png">
114 </td><td class="w" rowspan="2" valign="top">
115 <p>Sliding capture or non-capture,<br>can be blocked on any square along the ray</p>
116 </td></tr><tr><td class="n" id="0x8">
118 </td><td class="n" id="1x8">
120 </td><td class="n" id="2x8">
122 </td><td class="n" id="3x8">
124 </td><td class="n" id="4x8">
126 </td><td class="n" id="5x8">
128 </td><td class="n" id="6x8">
130 </td><td class="n" id="7x8">
132 </td><td class="n" id="8x8">
134 </td><td class="n" id="9x8">
136 </td></tr><tr><td class="n" id="0x7">
138 </td><td class="n" id="1x7">
140 </td><td class="n" id="2x7">
142 </td><td class="n" id="3x7">
144 </td><td class="n" id="4x7">
146 </td><td class="n" id="5x7">
148 </td><td class="n" id="6x7">
150 </td><td class="n" id="7x7">
152 </td><td class="n" id="8x7">
154 </td><td class="n" id="9x7">
157 <img src="sym/orange.png">
159 Unblockable leap (capture or non-capture)
160 </td></tr><tr><td class="n" id="0x6">
162 </td><td class="n" id="1x6">
164 </td><td class="n" id="2x6">
166 </td><td class="n" id="3x6" onmouseDown="down_click(3,6)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
167 <img src="sym/BlackRook.png">
168 </td><td class="n" id="4x6" onmouseDown="down_click(4,6)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
169 <img src="sym/BlackKnight.png">
170 </td><td class="n" id="5x6" onmouseDown="down_click(5,6)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
171 <img src="sym/BlackQueen.png">
172 </td><td class="n" id="6x6" onmouseDown="down_click(6,6)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
173 <img src="sym/BlackBishop.png">
174 </td><td class="n" id="7x6" onmouseDown="down_click(7,6)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
175 <img src="sym/WhiteKing.png">
176 </td><td class="n" id="8x6">
178 </td><td class="n" id="9x6">
181 <img src="sym/green.png">
184 </td></tr><tr><td class="n" id="0x5">
186 </td><td class="n" id="1x5">
188 </td><td class="n" id="2x5">
190 </td><td class="n" id="3x5" onmouseDown="down_click(3,5)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
191 <img src="sym/WhiteCobra.png">
192 </td><td class="n" id="4x5" onmouseDown="down_click(4,5)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
193 <img src="sym/WhiteHawk.png">
194 </td><td class="n" id="5x5" onmouseDown="down_click(5,5)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
195 <img src="sym/WhiteChancellor.png">
196 </td><td class="n" id="6x5" onmouseDown="down_click(6,5)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
197 <img src="sym/WhiteCrownedRook.png">
198 </td><td class="n" id="7x5">
200 </td><td class="n" id="8x5">
202 </td><td class="n" id="9x5">
205 <img src="sym/red.png">
208 </td></tr><tr><td class="n" id="0x4">
210 </td><td class="n" id="1x4">
212 </td><td class="n" id="2x4">
214 </td><td class="n" id="3x4" onmouseDown="down_click(3,4)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
215 <img src="sym/BlackElephant.png">
216 </td><td class="n" id="4x4" onmouseDown="down_click(4,4)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
217 <img src="sym/BlackCrownedBishop.png">
218 </td><td class="n" id="5x4" onmouseDown="down_click(5,4)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
219 <img src="sym/BlackArchbishop.png">
220 </td><td class="n" id="6x4" onmouseDown="down_click(6,4)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
221 <img src="sym/BlackMarshall.png">
222 </td><td class="n" id="7x4">
224 </td><td class="n" id="8x4">
226 </td><td class="n" id="9x4">
228 </td></tr><tr><td class="n" id="0x3">
230 </td><td class="n" id="1x3" onmouseDown="down_click(1,3)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
231 <img src="sym/BlackPawn.png">
232 </td><td class="n" id="2x3" onmouseDown="down_click(2,3)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
233 <img src="sym/WhitePawn.png">
234 </td><td class="n" id="3x3" onmouseDown="down_click(3,3)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
235 <img src="sym/WhiteNightrider.png">
236 </td><td class="n" id="4x3" onmouseDown="down_click(4,3)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
237 <img src="sym/WhiteUnicorn.png">
238 </td><td class="n" id="5x3" onmouseDown="down_click(5,3)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
239 <img src="sym/WhiteChancellor.png">
240 </td><td class="n" id="6x3" onmouseDown="down_click(6,3)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
241 <img src="sym/WhitePromoDragon.png">
242 </td><td class="n" id="7x3">
244 </td><td class="n" id="8x3">
246 </td><td class="n" id="9x3">
248 </td></tr><tr><td class="n" id="0x2">
250 </td><td class="n" id="1x2">
252 </td><td class="n" id="2x2">
254 </td><td class="n" id="3x2">
256 </td><td class="n" id="4x2">
258 </td><td class="n" id="5x2">
260 </td><td class="n" id="6x2">
262 </td><td class="n" id="7x2">
264 </td><td class="n" id="8x2">
266 </td><td class="n" id="9x2">
268 </td></tr><tr><td class="n" id="0x1">
270 </td><td class="n" id="1x1">
272 </td><td class="n" id="2x1" onmouseDown="down_click(-2,1)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
273 <img src="sym/WhitePawn.png">
274 </td><td class="n" id="3x1">
276 </td><td class="n" id="4x1">
278 </td><td class="n" id="5x1">
280 </td><td class="n" id="6x1">
282 </td><td class="n" id="7x1">
284 </td><td class="n" id="8x1">
286 </td><td class="n" id="9x1">
288 </td></tr><tr><td class="h" id="0x0">
290 </td><td class="n" id="1x0" onmouseDown="down_click(1,0)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
291 <img src="sym/WhiteCrownedBishop.png">
292 </td><td class="n" id="2x0">
294 </td><td class="n" id="3x0">
296 </td><td class="n" id="4x0">
298 </td><td class="n" id="5x0" onmouseDown="down_click(5,0)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
299 <img src="sym/WhiteKing.png">
300 </td><td class="n" id="6x0">
302 </td><td class="n" id="7x0">
304 </td><td class="n" id="8x0" onmouseDown="down_click(8,0)" onmouseUp="up_click()">
305 <img src="sym/WhiteCrownedBishop.png">
306 </td><td class="h" id="9x0">
310 <p id="piece" height="20">:<br>:<br>:<br>:</p>
312 <table cellpadding="5" border="1"><tr><td>
319 Moves (<a href="Betza.html">Betza notation</a>)
322 </td></tr><tr><td colspan="5">
323 <b>Common to all armies</b>
333 Can castle with corner piece
343 Promotes to any piece specific to the army on reaching last rank
344 </td></tr><tr><td colspan="5">
386 </td></tr><tr><td colspan="5">
387 <b>Clobberers army<b>
428 </td></tr><tr><td colspan="5">
470 </td></tr><tr><td colspan="5">
513 <h3>Pawn peculiarities</h3>
515 <li>Pawns capture differently from how they move (straight move, diagonal capture).</li>
516 <li>Pawns can move two squares straight ahead from their initial position, provided they are not blocked.</li>
517 <li>On the move immediately after such a double push, they can be captured en passant by another Pawn,
518 as if they had only moved 1 square ahead.</li>
519 <li>Pawns promote to another (non-royal) piece of choice <b>from their own army</b> when they reach last rank.</li>
523 A King that has not moved before can (in general) move two squares in the direction of a corner piece that has not moved before,
524 in which case that corner piece is moved to the square next to the King on the other side.
525 This is only allowed if all squares traveled through by King and corner piece are empty (after their removal),
526 when the King is not in check on the square it came from,
527 and would not be in check on any of the squares it skipped over.
528 When the corner piece is color-bound, however, the King moves 2 <b>or 3 squares</b>, subject to all other rules mentioned above,
529 to make sure the piece it castles with stays on the same color.
531 <h3>General rules</h3>
533 <li>Any army can be pitted against any other.</li>
534 <li>It is not allowed to expose your King to check.</li>
535 <li>The game is won by checkmating the opponent's King.</li>
536 <li>Stalemate (no legal moves, but not in check) is a draw.</li>
538 <h3>XBoard interface issues</h3>
540 Man of the pieces in the various army are quite exotic even by the standards of Chess variants,
541 and XBoard does not know them.
542 So Chess with different Armies has to be played with legality testing off,
543 using pieces XBoard does implement for different purposes.
544 CwDA is also not an variant name known to XBoard;
545 it has to be played as the catch-all variant 'fairy'.
546 This variant can mean anything as far as XBoard is concerned;
547 you have to tell the engine what you actually want to play,
548 and then the engine will tell it to XBoard (i.e. which piece symbols to use, in which initial setup).
549 So CwDA cannot be played without an engine that knows how to play it.
552 Fairy-Max implements various versions of CwDA.
553 With a combobox in the Engine Settings dialog you can select which version you want to play
554 (e.g. Clobberers-Nutters) as variant fairy.
555 When you then select 'fairy' from the New Variant dialog
556 (or start a New Game when 'fairy' was already selected)
557 the engine will setup the game for the selected armies.
559 <h3>Differences with FIDE</h3>
561 Except for the FIDE army, all armies consist of pieces (not King and Pawns) that move in completely different ways.
563 <h3>Strategy issues</h3>
565 It is not possible to force checkmate on a bare King with just a single Bishop or Knight (in addition to your own King).
566 Two Knights cannot do that either.
567 It is not possible to force checkmate on a bare King with just a single Elephant or C or L (in addition to your own King).
568 A pair CC, LL or CL on unlike colors can force checkmate without help of their King.
569 A pair of Elephants can checkmate with help of their King.
570 It is not possible to force checkmate on a bare King with just a single Fibnif or a pair of them (in addition to your own King).
571 All pieces of the Rookies army can force checkmate against a bare King.
574 Bishops, C and L are confined to squares of a single color.
575 Having Bishops on both colors compensates this weakness, and is worth an extra 0.5 on top of their added value.
576 Combining other color-bound pieces on unlike colors is expected to involve even larger bonuses.