Chess with different armies

Chess with different armies (or Betza's Chess[1] or Equal Armies[2]) is a chess variant invented by Ralph Betza in 1979. Two sides use different sets of fairy pieces. There are several armies of equal strength to choose from, including the standard FIDE army. In all armies kings and pawns are the same as in FIDE chess, but the four other pieces are different.

Rules

Before the game players choose their armies in a certain way, predefined by tournament rules. This can be done either randomly or secretly by both players. Each player has a choice of 5 armies:[3] the Fabulous FIDEs, which are the standard chess pieces, the Colorbound Clobberers, the Nutty Knights, the Remarkable Rookies and the Forward FIDEs.

All armies are designed to be equal in strength, but have significantly different properties. Kings and pawns move the same as in chess for all armies. Pawns can only promote to pieces of either army on the board at the start. Castling is done as in standard chess with the exception of the case when the rook replacement is colorbound, like in the Colorbound Clobberers army. In the latter case the king when castling long moves to b1 and the rook replacement to c1. This is so colorbound pieces don't change square color.

a5b5c5d5e5
a4b4 black circlec4d4 black circlee4
a3b3c3 white bishopd3e3
a2b2 black circlec2d2 black circlee2
a1b1c1d1e1
Ferz (notation F).
a5 black circleb5c5d5e5 black circle
a4b4c4d4e4
a3b3c3 white bishopd3e3
a2b2c2d2e2
a1 black circleb1c1d1e1 black circle
Alfil (notation A), can jump.
a5b5c5d5e5
a4b4c4 black circled4e4
a3b3 black circlec3 white rookd3 black circlee3
a2b2c2 black circled2e2
a1b1c1d1e1
Wazir (notation W).
a5b5c5 black circled5e5
a4b4c4d4e4
a3 black circleb3c3 white rookd3e3 black circle
a2b2c2d2e2
a1b1c1 black circled1e1
Dabbaba (notation D), can jump.

Many pieces in the following armies are combination of standard chess pieces and 4 fairy pieces: ferz, alfil, wazir and dabbaba (see their movement diagrams above). The game can be played with standard chess pieces and the following move diagrams use standard pieces as well (except queens).

Colorbound Clobberers

In this army, rooks, knights, bishops, and queen are replaced by the following pieces:

abcdefgh
8
a8 up-left arrow
b7 up-left arrow
h7 up-right arrow
c6 up-left arrow
e6 black circle
g6 up-right arrow
d5 up-left arrow
f5 up-right arrow
c4 black circle
e4 white rook
g4 black circle
d3 down-left arrow
f3 down-right arrow
c2 down-left arrow
e2 black circle
g2 down-right arrow
b1 down-left arrow
h1 down-right arrow
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Bede (notation BD). Moves as bishop or dabbaba. Can jump for dabbaba moves.
abcdefgh
8
c6 black circle
g6 black circle
e5 black circle
d4 black circle
e4 white knight
f4 black circle
e3 black circle
c2 black circle
g2 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Waffle (notation WA). Moves as wazir or alfil. Can jump for alfil moves.
abcdefgh
8
c6 black circle
e6 black circle
g6 black circle
d5 black circle
f5 black circle
c4 black circle
e4 white bishop
g4 black circle
d3 black circle
f3 black circle
c2 black circle
e2 black circle
g2 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
FAD (notation FAD). Moves as ferz, alfil or dabbaba (hence the name.) Can jump for all moves.
abcdefgh
8
a8 up-left arrow
b7 up-left arrow
h7 up-right arrow
c6 up-left arrow
d6 black circle
f6 black circle
g6 up-right arrow
c5 black circle
d5 up-left arrow
f5 up-right arrow
g5 black circle
e4 white archbishop
c3 black circle
d3 down-left arrow
f3 down-right arrow
g3 black circle
c2 down-left arrow
d2 black circle
f2 black circle
g2 down-right arrow
b1 down-left arrow
h1 down-right arrow
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Cardinal (notation NB). Moves as bishop or knight. Can jump for knight moves.

As mentioned, when using this army and castling queenside, the king moves three squares (from e1 to b1) and the bede moves from a1 to c1.

Nutty Knights

This army includes a lot of leapers, but most of them have asymmetrical move patterns, with backward moves being restricted.

abcdefgh
8
e8 up arrow
e7 up arrow
e6 up arrow
e5 up arrow
a4 left arrow
b4 left arrow
c4 left arrow
d4 left arrow
e4 white rook
f4 right arrow
g4 right arrow
h4 right arrow
d3 black circle
e3 black circle
f3 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Charging rook, originally furlrurlbakking (notation frlRrlbK) moves forward and sideways as a rook, or backward as a king.
abcdefgh
8
d6 black circle
f6 black circle
d5 black circle
f5 black circle
e4 white knight
d3 black circle
f3 black circle
d2 black circle
f2 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Fibnif (notation fbNF). Moves as ferz, or as a knight for its two longest forward and backward moves.
abcdefgh
8
d6 black circle
f6 black circle
c5 black circle
g5 black circle
d4 black circle
e4 white bishop
f4 black circle
d3 black circle
e3 black circle
f3 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Charging knight, originally forfnibakking (notation fhNrlbK). Moves as king backward and sideways or as a knight forward.
abcdefgh
8
e8 up arrow
e7 up arrow
d6 black circle
e6 up arrow
f6 black circle
c5 black circle
d5 black circle
e5 up arrow
f5 black circle
g5 black circle
a4 left arrow
b4 left arrow
c4 left arrow
d4 left arrow
e4 white queen
f4 right arrow
g4 right arrow
h4 right arrow
d3 black circle
e3 black circle
f3 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Colonel, originally forfnifurlrurking (notation fhNfrlRK). Moves as king, or as rook forward and sideways, or as knight forward.

Remarkable Rookies

The rooks, knights, bishops, and queen are replaced by the following pieces:

abcdefgh
8
d8 left arrow
e8 left arrow
f8 left arrow
g8 left arrow
h8 white rook
h7 down arrow
b6 up arrow
h6 down arrow
b5 up arrow
h5 down arrow
b4 up arrow
h4 down arrow
b3 up arrow
a2 left arrow
b2 white rook
c2 right arrow
d2 right arrow
e2 right arrow
f2 right arrow
b1 down arrow
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Short rook (notation R4). Moves as rook, but not more than 4 spaces.
abcdefgh
8
e6 black circle
e5 black circle
c4 black circle
d4 black circle
e4 white knight
f4 black circle
g4 black circle
e3 black circle
e2 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Woody rook (notation WD). Moves as dabbaba or as wazir. Can jump for all moves.
abcdefgh
8
e7 black circle
e6 black circle
d5 black circle
f5 black circle
b4 black circle
c4 black circle
e4 white bishop
g4 black circle
h4 black circle
d3 black circle
f3 black circle
e2 black circle
e1 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Half duck (notation HFD). Moves as ferz or dabbaba or jumps 3 squares in orthogonal directions (the move of jumping 3 squares in orthogonal directions is called the threeleaper or trébuchet).
abcdefgh
8
e8 up arrow
e7 up arrow
d6 black circle
e6 up arrow
f6 black circle
c5 black circle
e5 up arrow
g5 black circle
a4 left arrow
b4 left arrow
c4 left arrow
d4 left arrow
e4 white chancelor
f4 right arrow
g4 right arrow
h4 right arrow
c3 black circle
e3 down arrow
g3 black circle
d2 black circle
e2 down arrow
f2 black circle
e1 down arrow
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Chancellor (notation RN). Moves as rook or knight.

Forward FIDEs

These pieces' move patters are all based on the standard chess pieces, but differ forward and backward.

abcdefgh
8
e8 up arrow
e7 up arrow
e6 up arrow
e5 up arrow
a4 left arrow
b4 left arrow
c4 left arrow
d4 left arrow
e4 white rook
f4 right arrow
g4 right arrow
h4 right arrow
d3 black circle
e3 black circle
f3 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Charging rook, also used in the Nutty Knights, moves forward and sideways as a rook, or backward as a king.
abcdefgh
8
d6 black circle
f6 black circle
c5 black circle
g5 black circle
e4 white knight
d3 down-left arrow
f3 down-right arrow
c2 down-left arrow
g2 down-right arrow
b1 down-left arrow
h1 down-right arrow
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Knishop (notation fNbB). Moves forward as a knight or backward as a bishop.
abcdefgh
8
a8 up-left arrow
b7 up-left arrow
h7 up-right arrow
c6 up-left arrow
g6 up-right arrow
d5 up-left arrow
f5 up-right arrow
e4 white bishop
c3 black circle
g3 black circle
d2 black circle
f2 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Bishight (notation fBbN). Moves forward as a bishop or backward as a knight.
abcdefgh
8
a8 up-left arrow
e8 up arrow
b7 up-left arrow
e7 up arrow
h7 up-right arrow
c6 up-left arrow
e6 up arrow
g6 up-right arrow
d5 up-left arrow
e5 up arrow
f5 up-right arrow
a4 left arrow
b4 left arrow
c4 left arrow
d4 left arrow
e4 white queen
f4 right arrow
g4 right arrow
h4 right arrow
c3 black circle
d3 black circle
e3 black circle
f3 black circle
g3 black circle
d2 black circle
f2 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Forequeen (notation fsQbhNbK). Moves as queen forward or sideways, or as king or knight backward.

Other armies

The five armies described above were play tested by Ralph Betza and selected as most balanced ones. There are other armies, invented by Betza and other people:

In the initial version of the game there were 8 armies[1] and in these armies the king moved differently from the king in the standard chess. Instead of normal pawns, fairy pawns could be selected, for example berolina pawns. However, later Betza abandoned the idea of using fairy pieces for king and pawn[10] and reduced the number of armies to five.

References

  1. 1 2 Pritchard, D. (1994). The Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. Games & Puzzles Publications. ISBN 0-9524142-0-1.
  2. Pritchard, D. B. (2007). "Equal Armies". In Beasley, John. The Classified Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. John Beasley. pp. 186–87. ISBN 978-0-9555168-0-1.
  3. Chess with different armies by Ralph Betza.
  4. The Amazon Army by Ralph Betza.
  5. The Cylindrical Cinders by Ralph Betza.
  6. The Fighting Fizzies by Peter Aronson
  7. The Pizza Kings by John Lawson.
  8. The Meticulous Mashers by Ralph Betza.
  9. The Seeping Switchers by Jörg Knappen.
  10. Different Kings and Pawns? by Ralph Betza
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