Dunsany's chess

abcdefgh
8
a8 black rook
b8 black knight
c8 black bishop
d8 black queen
e8 black king
f8 black bishop
g8 black knight
h8 black rook
a7 black pawn
b7 black pawn
c7 black pawn
d7 black pawn
e7 black pawn
f7 black pawn
g7 black pawn
h7 black pawn
a4 white pawn
b4 white pawn
c4 white pawn
d4 white pawn
e4 white pawn
f4 white pawn
g4 white pawn
h4 white pawn
a3 white pawn
b3 white pawn
c3 white pawn
d3 white pawn
e3 white pawn
f3 white pawn
g3 white pawn
h3 white pawn
a2 white pawn
b2 white pawn
c2 white pawn
d2 white pawn
e2 white pawn
f2 white pawn
g2 white pawn
h2 white pawn
a1 white pawn
b1 white pawn
c1 white pawn
d1 white pawn
e1 white pawn
f1 white pawn
g1 white pawn
h1 white pawn
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Dunsany's chess starting setup

Dunsany's chess, also known as Dunsany's game,[1] is an asymmetric chess variant in which Black has the standard chess army and White has 32 pawns. This game was invented by Lord Dunsany in 1942. It was published the same year in Fairy Chess Review (August issue)[1] and in Joseph Boyer's Nouveaux Jeux d'Echecs Non-orthodoxes.[2] A similar game is Horde chess.

Game rules

Black's setup is the same in regular chess; White's army consists of 32 pawns, filling ranks one through four, as shown in the diagram. Rules are the same as in regular chess, with the following exceptions:

  • Black moves first.
  • Only Black's pawns have the two-step option on their first move.
  • Black wins by capturing all 32 white pawns; White wins by checkmating Black.

As in regular chess, pawns promote on the final rank, and stalemate occurs if White's pawns run out of moves.

Horde chess

abcdefgh
8a8 black pawnb8 black pawnc8 black pawnd8e8f8 black pawng8 black pawnh8 black pawn8
7a7 black pawnb7 black pawnc7 black pawnd7 black pawne7 black pawnf7 black pawng7 black pawnh7 black pawn7
6a6 black pawnb6 black pawnc6 black pawnd6 black pawne6 black pawnf6 black pawng6 black pawnh6 black pawn6
5a5 black pawnb5 black pawnc5 black pawnd5 black pawne5 black pawnf5 black pawng5 black pawnh5 black pawn5
4a4b4c4d4 black pawne4 black pawnf4g4h44
3a3b3c3d3e3f3g3h33
2a2 white pawnb2 white pawnc2 white pawnd2 white pawne2 white pawnf2 white pawng2 white pawnh2 white pawn2
1a1 white rookb1 white knightc1 white bishopd1 white queene1 white kingf1 white bishopg1 white knighth1 white rook1
abcdefgh
Horde chess starting setup

Horde chess, introduced by Filip Rachunek in 2002, is similar to Dunsany's chess but with the following differences:[3][4]

  • White's pieces are the normal chess pieces, and Black's pieces are 32 pawns, occupying ranks five through eight, but with pawns on d4 and e4 instead of d8 and e8.
  • White moves first.
  • Black's pawns on rank seven have the two-step option of regular chess.

Horde chess is one of the few chess variants to have a full theory book written about it.[5]

Horde variant

abcdefgh
8a8 black rookb8 black knightc8 black bishopd8 black queene8 black kingf8 black bishopg8 black knighth8 black rook8
7a7 black pawnb7 black pawnc7 black pawnd7 black pawne7 black pawnf7 black pawng7 black pawnh7 black pawn7
6a6b6c6d6e6f6g6h66
5a5b5 white pawnc5 white pawnd5e5f5 white pawng5 white pawnh55
4a4 white pawnb4 white pawnc4 white pawnd4 white pawne4 white pawnf4 white pawng4 white pawnh4 white pawn4
3a3 white pawnb3 white pawnc3 white pawnd3 white pawne3 white pawnf3 white pawng3 white pawnh3 white pawn3
2a2 white pawnb2 white pawnc2 white pawnd2 white pawne2 white pawnf2 white pawng2 white pawnh2 white pawn2
1a1 white pawnb1 white pawnc1 white pawnd1 white pawne1 white pawnf1 white pawng1 white pawnh1 white pawn1
abcdefgh
Horde variant starting setup

A Horde variant uses the opening setup shown in the diagram.[6] In this variant, White's pawns on the first and second ranks may advance one or two steps, provided that the path on the file is free. Unlike in regular chess, this does not have to be the pawn's first move.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b Pritchard, D. B. (1994). "Dunsany's Game". The Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. Games & Puzzles Publications. p. 97. ISBN 0-9524142-0-1.
  2. ^ Keller, Michael, ed. (June 1991). "A Panorama of Chess Variants". World Game Review. No. 10. Michael Keller. ISSN 1041-0546.
  3. ^ Pritchard, D. B. (2007). "Horde Chess". In Beasley, John (ed.). The Classified Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. John Beasley. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-9555168-0-1.
  4. ^ "BrainKing – Game rules (Horde Chess)". brainking.com. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
  5. ^ The Definitive Guide to Horde Chess: Openings, strategies and tactics for White and Black. Enigma Chess. 2021. ISBN 979-8737259457.
  6. ^ "Horde on Lichess". 2 July 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  7. ^ "Lichess Blog - New features: kid mode, simuls, and more". 13 April 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.