Expert: Len Molden - 9/30/2011

Question
QUESTION: Dear Len

Re engineered Chess Board Layout.

where the Total Number of squares will be 144 i.e. 12 square instead of 64
i.e 8 square.

Instead of 32 pieces altogether i.e 16 total pieces for white and 16 total pieces for black, there will be total 48 pieces i.e 24 total pieces for white and 24 total pieces for black.

Rooks - 2 nos (same nos because of the short/long castle)
Pawns - 12 nos (instead of 8 nos)
Knights - 4 nos (instead of 2 nos)
Bishops - 4 nos (instead of 2 nos)
Queen - 1 no (same no)
King - 1 no (same no)

12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

P P P P P P P P P P P P

R K B K B Q KI B K B K R

R -> Rook
K -> Knight
B -> Bishop
KI -> King
Q -> Queen
P -> Pawn

Awaiting your inputs, views

Thanks & Regards,
Prashant S Akerkar

ANSWER: Hi Prashant,

Your new chess variant sounds quite interesting and I wish you all the best in promoting it.  It certainly would put players on their own resources, as prior opening theoretical knowledge would be of little use, so you couldn't win games this way, and computers would not have the game mastered at all.

Further to your efforts, you should check out this new game of chess invented by GM Yasser Seirawan:

http://www.seirawanchess.com

As it states on his website:

"Seirawan chess does not require a new set or board - only four additional pieces. The game starts as a normal chess game. The players will not be disoriented. But the placement of the pieces on squares vacated by the existing pieces changes the game and creates innumerable possibilities which render all existing opening theory open to reexamination and opens up many new possibilities as well.

Players who understand the principles of opening play will do well, while players who rely primarily on memorizing variations will find themselves in trouble. For the foreseeable future, computers won't be part of the game and human thought will once again be essential to understanding the game. We won't know all the answers, whether in the opening, middle game or endgame."

GM Seirawan has a great YouTube video here explaining it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nht2TqabPr0

Regards,

Len


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Len

Thank you.

I have forwarded my inputs regarding new Chess board layout to World Chess Federation - FIDE.

I worked in the following way.

64 is a perfect square.

Square of a Even Number is a Even Number.

2 square = 4, 4 square = 16, 6 square = 36, 8 square = 64 .............

Square of a Odd Number is a Odd Number.

1 square = 1, 3 square = 9, 5 square = 25, 7 square = 49 ...............

Area of a square = side * side

8 square = 64

its white and black pieces , if I take 9 square to increase the area,
it will be 81 then where extra one square I will create on the board
which will be white or black?

So I have to have a even perfect square to increase the area of the chess
board. It will be 10, 12, 14, 16 ........

I took 12 square = 144 total squares evenly divided with 72 white and 72 black squares.

Finally with more area I have to add major and minor pieces to the chess board.

Rooks - 2 nos (same nos because of the short/long castle)
Pawns - 12 nos (instead of 8 nos)
Knights - 4 nos (instead of 2 nos)
Bishops - 4 nos (instead of 2 nos)
Queen - 1 no (same no)
King - 1 no (same no).

We can have 100, 144, 196, 256, 324, 400 square pieces chess board manufactured with additional number of bishops, knights and pawns added to the chess board.

Also now with more Area available, we can design new piece/s other than
Rook, Knight, Bishop which will be positioned behind pawns/soldiers?

Isn't it?


Can we add a New Piece named Jack on the Chess Board similar to Jack Card in Card Games?

This is possible for Area of a chess board being increased i.e instead of 64, it will be a 256 square board manufactured.

i.e.


Rooks - 2 nos (same nos because of the short/long castle)
Pawns - 16 nos (instead of 8 nos)
Knights - 4 nos (instead of 2 nos)
Bishops - 4 nos (instead of 2 nos)
Jacks - 4 nos (instead of 2 nos)
Queen - 1 no (same no)
King - 1 no (same no)


Jack's Piece Movement on the chess board will be a combination of Rook + Bishop but can move only two steps in either Horizontal, Vertical Direction
similar to Rook and move Diagonally as a Bishop but only two steps.

Jack Piece
------------

It is not as powerful as Queen Piece.
It is less powerful than Rook Piece.
It is powerful similar to a Bishop and Knight Piece.

Number 1 stands for Piece Position from left to right i.e 1 -> 16

1 -> Rook
2 -> Knight
3 -> Bishop
4 -> Jack
5 -> Knight
6 -> Bishop
7 -> Jack
8 -> Queen
9 -> King
10 -> Jack
11 -> Bishop
12 -> Knight
13 -> Jack
14 -> Bishop
15 -> Knight
16 -> Rook

I have introduced a new chess piece "Jack". He can be also called as lieutenant. The Lieutenant reports to the Queen as lieutenant was the deputy to
a captain.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lieutenant

Chess History
-------------

Now coming back to the game of chess. This is an ancient game of the Indians where in older historic times
during say 15th century, there were wars or battles carried between two emperors.

So in the war/battle you have Human Beings using Animals to carryout the war.
Hence the Pieces names are Soldier (Pawn) - Human Being, King - Human Being, Queen - Human Being,
Rook - (Elephant) - Animal, Bishop - (Camel) - Animal, Knight - (Horse) - Animal.

Now introduction of Jack - Lieutenant Chess Piece. We can design a 100 square board game - 10 square where
we have two jacks, two knights, two bishops, two rooks, ten pawns, one king and one queen.

The Position of the Lieutenant will be between Queen and Bishop, King and Bishop.

In actual sense, when a checkmate takes place, it means in battle field the other emperor is defeated and conquered.

Thanks & Regards,
Prashant S Akerkar

Answer
Hi Prashant,

Your ideas are very good and I like the concept of the Jack (or Lieutenant as it is also called).

I'm not sure where you live, but if you can recruit a few top-level players to try your game out and maybe endorse it, then this would help in promoting it.

You should also think of a name for it (if you haven't already) and register a .com domain.

As I know GM Yasser Seirawan personally, I know that he went through many steps to bring his game to fruition.  Have you tried playing Seirawan chess yet, as you might get some other ideas for your game?

Regards,

Len