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Almost chess

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(Redirected from Almost Chess) Chess variant
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8a8 black rookb8 black knightc8 black bishopd8 black chancellore8 black kingf8 black bishopg8 black knighth8 black rooka7 black pawnb7 black pawnc7 black pawnd7 black pawne7 black pawnf7 black pawng7 black pawnh7 black pawna2 white pawnb2 white pawnc2 white pawnd2 white pawne2 white pawnf2 white pawng2 white pawnh2 white pawna1 white rookb1 white knightc1 white bishopd1 white chancellore1 white kingf1 white bishopg1 white knighth1 white rook8
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Almost chess starting position. Chancellors replace queens.

Almost chess is a chess variant invented by Ralph Betza in 1977. The game is played using a standard chessboard and pieces, except that each player's queen is replaced by a chancellor, a piece which combines the moves of the rook and the knight.

Almost chess was featured in NOST magazine Nost-algia, beginning with issue 205.

This article uses algebraic notation to describe chess moves.

Game description

Other than the replacement of queens by chancellors (notated "C"), the game follows all the rules and conventions of standard chess.

Replacing queens with chancellors imparts a radical change to the nature of the chess game, despite the queen and chancellor having approximately equal strengths. For example, bishops are stronger and knights are weaker. Betza commented that almost chess is a good introductory chess variant for players, due to its great similarity to standard chess and the naturalness of the change from queen to chancellor.

The fool's mate in almost chess begins 1.Cc3.

Sort of almost chess

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8a8 black rookb8 black knightc8 black bishopd8 black chancellore8 black kingf8 black bishopg8 black knighth8 black rooka7 black pawnb7 black pawnc7 black pawnd7 black pawne7 black pawnf7 black pawng7 black pawnh7 black pawna2 white pawnb2 white pawnc2 white pawnd2 white pawne2 white pawnf2 white pawng2 white pawnh2 white pawna1 white rookb1 white knightc1 white bishopd1 white queene1 white kingf1 white bishopg1 white knighth1 white rook8
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Sort of almost chess starting position. In this diagram, Black owns the chancellor, but either player (but not both) may own it instead of the queen.

Around 1994, Betza invented sort of almost chess, a variation whereby one player owns a chancellor, and the opponent owns a queen. Betza considers the chances for both sides equal, even for advanced players, since the queen and chancellor have equal strengths.

Sort of almost chess emerged from Betza's research on the values of chess pieces, which culminated in the development of Chess with different armies.

Notes

  1. NOST (kNights of the Square Table), a (now defunct) correspondence game club formed in 1960 by Bob Lauzon and Jim France, enjoyed several hundred active members (Pritchard 1994:210).

References

  1. ^ Pritchard, D. B. (1994). The Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. Games & Puzzles Publications. p. 7. ISBN 0-9524142-0-1.
  2. Pritchard, D. B. (2007). The Classified Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. John Beasley. p. 124. ISBN 978-0-9555168-0-1.
  3. ^ "Almost chess" by Hans Bodlaender and Ralph Betza, The Chess Variant Pages

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