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Comments on Grand Chess. Notes on Grand Chess and a variant. (10x10, Cells: 100) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]

Anonymous wrote on Fri, Oct 1, 2004 03:30 AM UTC:

The refinement to redistribute the new pieces symmetrically is superior to
the original layout because the royalty are restored to their rightful
place in the centre. The only flaw in the NBCQKMBN array is that the
h-pawn is not defended by a piece in the initial layout. With the
Cardinal
on d2, the opening move 1.c4 would immediately create a threat for this
vulnerable h-pawn. This could be the reasoning behind the asymmetric
array
of NBQKMCBN - in that array, every pawn is defended by at least one piece
in the initial setup.

The proposed reintroduction of the castling rule as a three-step move of
the King strikes me as somewhat out of place in this game. Castling is
just one example of the special moves that has always been given to the
King. An alternative special move for the King would be the one used for
the King in Chaturanga. In Chaturanga, the king has the right to move as
a
knight once during the game, provided the king has never been in check.
With the inclusion of two additional pieces which can move as a knight,
also giving the king a special knight move is logical.