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Buypoint Chess. Buy your fighting force - each piece costs a number of points.[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]

Jeremy Lennert wrote on Tue, Jul 19, 2011 10:45 PM UTC:

If we use Betza's theory of ideal piece values, then the gnu, gazelle, and bison are each four 'atoms', and therefore should be worth about 7 pawns each (similar to his estimate for the bishop+knight compound, though Muller has some empirical evidence suggesting that piece may be stronger than its mobility suggests).

The buffalo is 6 atoms, and so should be worth more than a queen (5 atoms).  We can't simply multiply the number of atoms by some magic number, though, because value grows faster than linearly.  Maybe 11-12 pawns?

The wizard is 3 atoms and colorbound, so should be comparable to the FAD (4 pawns).

However, Betza also comments that pieces with long leaping moves are dangerous in a game with an FIDE-ish starting position, because they may be able to make swift, unblockable attacks on the enemy back rank and win heavy material in the early game.  That could possibly elevate the value of any of the above pieces.


Assuming the Panda cannot be blocked on the squares that it doesn't reach, then it has about 75% of the average crowded-board mobility of a Rook (with magic number = .7).  It might get a bonus for faster development.  I would guess between 3 and 4 pawns.