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Fairy Chess
Fairy chess is the area of chess composition in which there are some changes to the rules of chess. It may involve changes to the board, pieces, or rules to express an idea or theme impossible in orthodox chess. An altered piece used in fairy chess is known as a fairy chess piece. The term ''fairy chess'' was introduced by Henry Tate in 1914. Thomas R. Dawson (1889–1951), the "father of fairy chess", invented many fairy pieces and new conditions. He was also problem editor of '' Fairy Chess Review'' (1930–1951). Although the term ''fairy chess'' is sometimes used for games, it is more usually applied in the context of problems. Variations on chess intended to create complete, playable games are more typically referred to as ''chess variants''. Types of fairy chess problems Types of changed rules in fairy chess problems include: * ''New stipulations:'' The alterations most used by fairy chess players, like Thomas Dawson, are new stipulations about mate instead of a direc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valerian Onițiu
Valerian Oniţiu (also Valeriu Oniţiu) (April 8, 1872, Sibiu, Romania – 31 December 1948, Timișoara) was a Romanian chess problemist. Oniţiu composed all types of problems particularly fairy chess problems. Oniţiu has ten chess problems in FIDE Albums. Onitiu also did significant work on knight's tours. First in Problemist Fairy Chess Supplement (vol.1 no.12 Jun 1932 p.74) problems 452-455 he gives tours with ten three-unit lines. The editor T. R. Dawson states: "V. Onitiu writes to me that he has examined all possible cases, some 1330 in all, and is convinced that only six of them admit tours, namely Dr Hogrefe's , mine, and the following four new ones. Second in Fairy Chess Review (vol.4 no.3 Dec 1939 p.43 problem 4135, with solution in no.6 Jun 1940 p.93.) he gives a symmetric tour with squares in a knight chain. The editor states: "VO notes that he examined 144 dispositions of the squares, all that are possible for diametral symmetry, and this is the only case leading ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Madrasi Chess
Madrasi chess is a chess variant invented in 1979 by Indian Abdul Jabbar Karwatkar, who named the game after his home town. The game uses the conventional rules of chess with the addition that when a piece is attacked by a piece of the same type (for example, a black queen attacking a white queen) both are paralysed and become unable to move, capture or give check. Paralysis Most of the time, two like pieces attack each other mutually, meaning they are both paralysed. ''En passant'' pawn captures are an exception to this, since the attack is not mutual. The status of an ''en passant'' capture is open to debate.Pritchard (2007), p. 44 This paralysis rule is not usually extended to the kings, meaning that as in orthodox chess, the two kings cannot move to adjacent squares; when it extended to kings, the variant is called ''Madrasi rex inclusive'' (sometimes shortened to ''Madrasi RI''). Although it is possible to play complete games of both Madrasi chess and Madrasi RI, they h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Selfmate
A selfmate is a chess problem in which White, moving first, must force Black to deliver checkmate within a specified number of moves. Selfmates were once known as sui-mates. Example The problem shown is a relatively simple example. It is a selfmate in two by Wolfgang Pauly from ''The Theory of Pawn Promotion'', 1912: White moves first and compels Black to deliver checkmate on or before Black's second move. If White can leave Black with no option but to play Bxg2#, the problem is solved. * White might try moving the bishop, but this is no good, as it will allow Black to play a non-capturing bishop move himself, delaying the mate beyond move two; * moving the knight allows the king to move; * 1.e6 allows 1...exf6 and 2...f5; * 1.f7 or 1.fxe7 allows 1...Kxg7; * 1.g8=Q or 1.g8=R are no good after 1...Bxg2+ 2.Q/Rxg2; * 1.g8=N# checkmates Black, which is entirely wrong; * 1.g8=B is also no good, since after 1...exf6 2.exf6 Bxg2+ the bishop can interpose with 3.Bd5. The only move ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endgame Study
In the game of chess, an endgame study, or just study, is a type of chess problem that starts with a composed position—i.e. one that has been made up rather than played in an actual game—where the goal is to find the essentially unique way for one side (usually White) to win or draw, as stipulated, against any moves the other side plays. If the study does not end in the end of the game, then the game's eventual outcome should be obvious, and White can have a selection of various moves. There is no limit to the number of moves which are allowed to achieve the win; this distinguishes studies from the genre of direct mate problems (e.g. "mate in 2"). Such problems also differ qualitatively from the very common genre of tactical puzzles based around the middlegame, often based on an actual game, where a decisive tactic must be found. Composed studies Composed studies predate the modern form of chess. Shatranj studies exist in manuscripts from the 9th century, and the earliest trea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torus
In geometry, a torus (: tori or toruses) is a surface of revolution generated by revolving a circle in three-dimensional space one full revolution about an axis that is coplanarity, coplanar with the circle. The main types of toruses include ring toruses, horn toruses, and spindle toruses. A ring torus is sometimes colloquially referred to as a donut or doughnut. If the axis of revolution does not touch the circle, the surface has a ring shape and is called a torus of revolution, also known as a ring torus. If the axis of revolution is tangent to the circle, the surface is a horn torus. If the axis of revolution passes twice through the circle, the surface is a Lemon (geometry), spindle torus (or ''self-crossing torus'' or ''self-intersecting torus''). If the axis of revolution passes through the center of the circle, the surface is a degenerate torus, a double-covered sphere. If the revolved curve is not a circle, the surface is called a ''toroid'', as in a square toroid. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cylinder Chess
Cylinder chess (or cylindrical chess) is a chess variant. The game is played as if the board were a cylinder, with the left side of the board joined to the right side. Cylinder chess is one of six chess variants described by the Arabic historian Ali al-Masudi in 947. The cylindrical board is used in some chess problems. Rules and gameplay The game is played as if the left and right sides of the board are connected. When a piece goes off one edge of the board, it reappears from the other edge. For example, it is legal to move a rook from a3 to h3, even if there is a piece on b3, since the rook can move left from a3; a bishop on c1 can move to h4 by going from c1 to a3, and then going up and left from a3 to h4; if White has a pawn on a5, Black has a pawn on h7 and Black plays 1...h7–h5, White can capture the black pawn ''en passant'' with 2.axh6; and so on. Castling can be handled in one of three ways: * Castling is allowed, but not with a rook over the board edge. This ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xiangqi
Xiangqi (; ), commonly known as Chinese chess or elephant chess, is a Strategy game, strategy board game for two players. It is the most popular board game in China. Xiangqi is in the same family of games as shogi, janggi, chess, Western chess, chaturanga, and Indian chess. Besides China and areas with significant ethnic Chinese communities, this game is also a popular pastime in Vietnam, where it is known as , literally 'General's chess', in contrast with Western chess or ', literally 'King's chess'. The game represents a battle between two armies, with the primary object being to checkmate the enemy's general (king). Distinctive features of xiangqi include the cannon (''pao''), which must jump to capture; a rule prohibiting the generals from facing each other directly; areas on the board called the ''river'' and ''palace'', which restrict the movement of some pieces but enhance that of others; and the placement of the pieces on the intersections of the board lines, rather th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nightrider (chess)
The nightrider, alternatively spelled knightrider and also known as the knightmare or unicorn (though the latter term sometimes refers to the bishop+nightrider compound), is a fairy chess piece that can move any number of steps as a knight in the same direction. The nightrider is often represented by an altered version of the knight's icon. In this article, the nightrider is represented by an inverted knight and notated as ''N'', while the knight is abbreviated as ''S'' for the German name ''Springer''. The nightrider was invented by W. S. Andrews in 1907 and named by Thomas Rayner Dawson, who first used it in fairy chess problems in 1925.Hooper & Whyld (1996), p. 271 Movement The nightrider moves and captures any number of steps as a knight (2 vertically and 1 horizontally, or 2 horizontally and 1 vertically) in the same direction. Intervening landing squares must be vacant. For example, a nightrider on b2 can reach the empty square c4 and continue forward to empty squares d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grasshopper (chess Piece)
The grasshopper is a fairy chess piece that moves along , , and (like a queen) but only by hopping over another piece. The piece to be hopped may be of either color and any distance away, but the grasshopper must land on the square immediately beyond it in the same direction. If there is no piece to hop over, it cannot move. If the square beyond a piece is occupied by a piece of the opposite color, the grasshopper can capture that piece. The grasshopper was introduced by T. R. Dawson in 1913 in problems published in the ''Cheltenham Examiner'' newspaper. It is one of the most popular fairy pieces used in chess problems. In this article, the grasshopper is shown as an inverted queen and notated as ''G''. Movement In the diagram to the right, the white grasshopper on d4 can move to the squares marked with crosses (b2, d1, d7, and h8) or capture the black pawn on a7. It cannot move to g4, as there are two pieces to hop over. Example problem Solution: :1. Gh3 Gh4 2. Gh5 Gh6 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chess Piece
A chess piece, or chessman, is a game piece that is placed on a chessboard to play the game of chess. It can be either White and Black in chess, white or black, and it can be one of six types: King (chess), king, Queen (chess), queen, Rook (chess), rook, Bishop (chess), bishop, Knight (chess), knight, or Pawn (chess), pawn. Chess sets generally come with sixteen pieces of each color. Additional pieces, usually an extra queen per color, may be provided for use in Promotion (chess), promotion or handicap games. Number Each player begins with sixteen pieces (but see the #Definitions, subsection below for other usage of the term ''piece''). The pieces that belong to each player are distinguished by color: the lighter colored pieces are referred to as "white" and the player that controls them as "White", whereas the darker colored pieces are referred to as "black" and the player that controls them as "Black". In a standard game, each of the two players begins with the following si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Einstein Chess
Albert Einstein (14 March 187918 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist who is best known for developing the theory of relativity. Einstein also made important contributions to quantum mechanics. His mass–energy equivalence formula , which arises from special relativity, has been called "the world's most famous equation". He received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics for . Born in the German Empire, Einstein moved to Switzerland in 1895, forsaking his German citizenship (as a subject of the Kingdom of Württemberg) the following year. In 1897, at the age of seventeen, he enrolled in the mathematics and physics teaching diploma program at the Swiss federal polytechnic school in Zurich, graduating in 1900. He acquired Swiss citizenship a year later, which he kept for the rest of his life, and afterwards secured a permanent position at the Swiss Patent Office in Bern. In 1905, he submitted a successful PhD dissertation to the University of Zurich. In 1914, he mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
