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This page is written by the game's inventor, Bob Greenwade. This game is a favorite of its inventor.

Short Sliders

*** STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION ***

That's a lot of pieces for a bunch that don't move very far.

I was so used to the traditional Pawn promotion in chess that I had a hard time figuring out how some pieces (especially in Shogi and other games) could promote more than once. I managed to wrap my brain around it, though, and I immediately thought of this.

Short Sliders features pieces that are just exactly that: they're limited to sliding only a certain number of spaces. They may start with just one or two, but they graduate to six, and eventually the unlimited slides that we're used to seeing.

Setup

Each player gets four rows of twelve pieces each. To start out with the traditional 50% of squares empty, there are sixteen rows, but twelve columns.

The back row (Royal Row) is: Short Rook, Knight, Short Bishop, Magus, Guard, Lady-in-Waiting, King, Guard, Wizard, Short Bishop, Knight, Short Rook (Black is mirrored)

Second row: Dolphin, Walrus, Kirin, Kangaroo, Phoenix, Templar, Templar, Phoenix, Kangaroo, Kirin, Walrus, Dolphin

Third row: Marquis, Tiger, Priest, Elephant, Archer, Satrap, Satrap, Archer, Elephant, Priest, Tiger, Marquis

Fourth row (Pawn Row): Four Pawns, Four Berolina Pawns, Four Pawns

 

Pieces

The pieces are as described below.

Starting Lineup

Archer: Moves three spaces diagonally, or rifle-captures at (1,2).

Berolina Pawn: Moves forward one space diagonally, or captures one space directly forward. As an opening move, may move forward two spaces diagonally. Promotes to a captured starter under the exact same rules as a regular Pawn.

Dolphin: Moves up to three spaces orthogonally; may leap to the second or third space, but only to capture.

Elephant: Moves up to six spaces diagonally, or one space orthogonally. Promotes to Little Buffalo.

Guard: Moves one space in any direction. Promotes to Bodyguard.

Kangaroo: Leaps two spaces diagonally, or (1,2).

King: Royal piece moving one space in any direction.

Kirin: Moves one space diagonally, or leaps two spaces orthogonally.

Knight: As in standard Chess, leaps (1,2). Promotes to Gnu.

Lady in Waiting: Moves up to six spaces either diagonally or orthogonally. Promotes to Queen.

Magus: Moves one square orthogonally, or leaps (2,3). Promotes to Thaumaturge if the Wizard has been captured.

Marquis: Moves one space orthogonally, or leaps (1,2). Promotes to Minister.

Pawn: Moves forward one space directly, or captures one space forward diagonally. As an opening momve, may move directly forward two spaces. Promotes to a captured starter.

Phoenix: Moves one space orthogonally, or leaps two spaces diagonally.

Priest: Moves one space diagonally, or leaps (1,2). Promotes to High Priest.

Satrap: Moves one space diagonally normally, one space orthogonally without capturing, or two spaces orthogonally only to capture.

Short Bishop: Moves up to six spaces diagonally. Promotes to Bishop.

Short Rook: Moves up to six spaces orthogonally. Promotes to Rook.

Templar: Moves two spaces orthogonally, or leaps (1,2).

Tiger: Moves up to six spaces orthogonally, or one space diagonally. Promotes to Unicorn.

Walrus: Moves up to three spaces diagonally; may leap to the second or third space, but only to capture.

Wizard: Moves one square diagonally, or leaps (1,3). Promotes to Thaumaturge if the Magus has been captured.

First Promotions

Bishop: As in standard Chess, moves diagonally until an obstacle is reached. Promotes to Archbishop.

Bodyguard: Moves one or two spaces diagonally or orthogonally. Also, any sliding piece that enters any adjacent space immediately stops, and can only move one space as long as it's next to the Bodyguard. (This is called the Hia power, after the original Mongolian name for the piece, and does not affect leaping moves.)

Gnu: Leaps (1,2) or (1,3). Promotes to Buffalo.

High Priest: Moves one space or leaps two spaces diagonally, or leaps (1,2). Promotes to Abbot.

Little Buffalo: Moves up to six spaces diagonally, one orthogonally, or leaps (1,2).

Minister: Moves one space or leaps two spaces diagonally, or leaps (1,2). Promotes to Castellan.

Queen: As in standard Chess, moves any number of spaces diagonally or orthogonally. Promotes to Empress.

Thaumaturge: Moves to any adjacent space, or leaps (1,3) or (2,3).

Rook: As in standard Chess, moves any number of spaces orthgonally. Promotes to Chancellor.

Unicorn: Moves up to six spaces orthogonally, one diagonally, or leaps (1,2).

Second Promotions

Abbot: The Abbot moves up to six spaces diagonally, or leaps (1,2).

Archbishop: Moves any distance diagonally, or leaps (1,2).

(Big) Buffalo: Leaps (1,2), (1,3), or (2,3).

Castellan: The Castellan moves up to six spaces orthogonally, or leaps (1,2).

Chancellor: Moves any distance orthogonally, or leaps (1,2).

Empress: Moves any distance diagonally or orthogonally, or leaps (1,2).

Rules

Most rules are normal, except as otherwise stated. Victory comes through checkmate or bare king; stalemate is a draw.

Castling

Castling is pretty much normal, between the King and one of the Short Rooks and subject to the same restrictions (about the lane being clear, the King and Short Rook having not yet moved, and such). The King moves to the space where a Guard started, and the Short Rook moves to the space just inside the King (where the Wizard or Magus started).

Pawns

Other than how they move, Berolina Pawns are treated exactly the same as standard Pawns in all respects. They are equally subject to, and capable of, en passant capture.

Promotion

Pawns may promote upon reaching the opponent's Pawn Row to the starting version of any piece that the opponent has captured. The promotion is optional at that point. A Pawn that holds out and reaches the opponent's Royal Row may promote to a first-promotion piece, if the piece was captured that way.

Other pieces that promote only promote to specific pieces. First promotion occurs when a piece captures an opponent piece (other than a Pawn), or upon reaching the opponent's Pawn Row. Second promotion, if any, only occurs upon capture of another promoted piece.

The Magus and Wizard are a special case: either can promote to Thaumaturge, but only if the other has been captured.

Table of two-promotion pieces
Start Symbol Move 1st Promo Symbol Move 2nd Promo Symbol Move
Knight N N Gnu Gn NC Buffalo Bf NCZ
Lady in Waiting L Q6 Queen Q Q Empress Em QN
Marquis Mq NW Minister Mn WDN Castellan Cs R6N
Priest Pr FN High Priest Hp FAN Abbot Ab B6N
Short Bishop Bs B6 Bishop B B Archbishop Ar BN
Short Rook Rs R6 Rook R R Chancellor C RN
Table of one-promotion pieces
Start Symbol Move Promo Symbol Move
Elephant E B6W Little Buffalo Bl B6WN
Guard G K Bodyguard Bg K2 (+)
Magus M WZ Thuamaturge T KCZ
Wizard W FC
Other pieces
Name Symbol Move
Archer A B3cabN
Berolina Pawn Pb mfFcfeWinmfA
Dolphin D B3cAcG
Kangaroo Kr AN
King K K (++)
Kirin Kn FD
Pawn P mfWcfeFinmfD
Phoenix Ph WD
Satrap S FmWcnD
Templar Tm DN
Walrus Wl R3cDcH

+ Plus the Hia power. ++ Plus Castling, as described. (I'm not sure how to code these, specifically.)

Notes

The pieces listed here as moving six spaces are extended to fit the larger size of the board; on a standard 8x8 board, their moves are (or would be) four spaces. Similarly, the Archer would only move two spaces diagonally on an 8x8 (or 10x10) board.

 For anyone following along: graphics will be added last.


This 'user submitted' page is a collaboration between the posting user and the Chess Variant Pages. Registered contributors to the Chess Variant Pages have the ability to post their own works, subject to review and editing by the Chess Variant Pages Editorial Staff.

By Bob Greenwade.

Last revised by Bob Greenwade.


Web page created: 2023-08-08. Web page last updated: 2023-10-22

Revisions of MSshortsliders