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Kevin Pacey wrote on Mon, Nov 13, 2017 09:52 AM UTC:

@ H.G.:

At first try a while back, I had trouble imagining an attractive setup position on 10x8 involving the addition of just 2 of the wazir-alfil (phoenix) compound pieces per side, in that I wanted all pawns protected yet at the same time no developmental problems or (ideally) either rook being guarded by another piece. However, I could reconsider some or all of that at some stage, after this website is fully working again, and I can post diagram(s). [edit: below is my only imagined 10x8 Phoenix Chess [edit2: this name taken by an unreviewed submission in early 2018, so Waffle Chess can be used instead] variant idea setup so far with these compound pieces. I don't like this setup much at all (e.g. after an adjacent phoenix moves, the pawn at either i2 or i7 may soon need to be safeguarded, somehow, at a fairly early stage in the opening, and a given phoenix' best square for development, on the 3rd rank, is the same as for the knight adjacent to it). [edit2: using Wide Chess-style castling rules may make this variant idea somewhat more palatable.] P.S. The Spartan Chess Lieutenant piece sounds of interest. The last 2 diagrams show possible setups for variant ideas using the lieutenant compound pieces, each with the powers that you described (they're represented by the plain elephant figurines; I tried using 2 types of upside elephants, but the Black ones showed right side up for some reason when using the Alfarie: Many Piece Set). I reckon that on a 10x8 board a lieutenant is worth slightly more than a N, and very slightly more than a lone B. Fwiw, on an 8x8 board I get a lieutenant as worth about 3/4 of a pawn more than either chess minor piece, based on my imperfect formulae. P.P.S.: using a 'better' formula, 25 Feb 2018, I now find the lieutenant as being worth about the value of either chess minor piece on 8x8.]

First Lieutenant Chess variant idea setup:

Second Lieutenant Chess setup:


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