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Loncubs[Subject Thread] [Add Response]
Charles Gilman wrote on Sun, Dec 22, 2013 07:43 AM UTC:
After all the commnewnts latelky about Chu Shogi's Lion and how overwhelming a piece it is it occurred to me to wonder about what kind of a piece a Lion limited to moves comprising steps in particular directions. Are they worth adding to Man and Beast 21? In the following diagrams 0 indicates starting square only, 1 a square reachable in a 1-step move, 2 a square reachable in a 2-step move, and 3 a square reachable in either:

Lion

2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
2-3-3-3-2
 X|X|X|X
2-3-2-3-2
 X|X|X|X
2-3-3-3-2
 /|X|X|\
2 2 2 2 2
This piece's move can comprise either one King step or two, not necessarily in the same direction, with a choice of capturng or not capturing any piece on the intertnediate square.

Lioncub

2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
. 1 1 1 .
   \|/
. . 0 . .

. . . . .

. . . . .
This is a Lion restricted to moves comprising forward steps only. This means that it cannot make any move returning to its starting square, including Igui capture. Nor can it capture on a square one rank ahead of its starting square and then move to anoter square on that rank.

Superlioncub

2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
2-3-3-3-2
 \|X|X|/
2-1-2-1-2

. . . . .

. . . . .
This is a Lion restricted to moves comprising forward and sideways steps only. Unlike the ordinary Lioncub this piece can make moves returning to its starting square, but only via squares on the same rank. This means that it can Igui capture only pieces on its starting rank. Note also that it cannot move to squares on its starting rank after going to a square one rank in front.

Goldlioncub

2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
2-3-3-3-2
 \|X|X|/
2-3-2-3-2
  |\|/|
. 2-1-2 .
    |
. . 2 . .
This is a Lion restricted to moves comprising Goldgeneral steps. It can Igui capture only orthogonally adjacent pieces. It can move to adjacent squares on its starting rank in two steps, but only if the forward step is the diagonal one and the backward step the orthogonal one, regardless of order.

Silverlioncub

2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
. 1-1-1 .
 / X|X \
2 2 2 2 2
 \|/ \|/
. 1 . 1 .
 / \ / \
2 . 2 . 2
This is a Lion restricted to moves comprising Silvergeneral steps. It can Igui capture only diagonally adjacent pieces. It can move to adjacent squares on its starting rank in two steps, but only if the forward step is the orthogonal one and the backward step the diagonal one, regardless of order. It cannot move to squares on an adjoining rank in two steps, or to any part of its starting rank in one.

Supersilverlioncub

2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
2-3-3-3-2
 X|X|X|X
2-3-2-3-2
 X|X X|X
2-1-2-1-2
 / \ / \
2 . 2 . 2
This is a Siverlioncub that can also make sideways steps. It can Igui capture only pieces on a different file. It can move to adjacent squares on its starting rank in two steps, but only if the forward step is the orthogonal one and the backward step the diagonal one, regardless of order.

Lionfiler

2 . 2 . 2
 \ / \ /
2-1-2-1-2
 X X X X
2-1-2-1-2
 X X X X
2-1-2-1-2
 / \ / \
2 . 2 . 2
This is a Lion restricted to moves comprising steps that change file, although two steps can cancel out. Like the Supersilverlioncub it can Igui capture only pieces on a different file. It cannot move to squares on an adjoining file in two steps, or to any part of its starting file in one.

Lionranker

2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
. 1 1 1 .
 /|X|X|\
2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
. 1 1 1 .
 /|X|X|\
2 2 2 2 2
This is a Lion restricted to moves comprising steps that change rank, although two steps can cancel out. It can Igui capture only pieces on a different rank. Like the Silverlioncub it cannot move to squares on an adjoining rank in two steps, or to any part of its starting rank in one.

H. G. Muller wrote on Sun, Dec 22, 2013 12:36 PM UTC:
One could indeed 'lionize' any leaper by allowing it to move twice per
turn, plus immediate leaps to any square (other than the starting square)
that could be reached that way on an empty board.

Note that the large Shogi variants also have pieces with 'linear'
lion-like moves. Once starting in a certain direction they can either
continue in tat direction, or reverse, but nothing else. This 'lionizes'
a single move, rather than an entire piece. In Chu Shogi the Horned Falcon
and Soaring Eagle have such moves. In Dai Dai, Maka Dai Dai and Tai Shogi
there is a piece called Lion Dog, which (depending on the interpretation
one gives to historic sources) can even do a triple linear lion-like steps
in all 8 main directions. (The moves are not allowed to overshoot the
starting square.)

There also exists a piece (Free Eagle = promoted Queen in Tenjiku Shogi?)
that (again depending on interpretation) is a lionized Ferz (in addition to
having Queen moves).

In a sense the Lion is a 'bent' version of the simpler linear
double-movers.

Charles Gilman wrote on Tue, Dec 24, 2013 07:34 AM UTC:
It is true that any one-step piece can have a Lion-like piece extrapolated from it. Here are two more that I overlooked in the original message but strike me as interesting:

Copperlioncub

2 2 2 2 2
 \|X|X|/
. 1 1 1 .
  |\|/|
. 2 2 2 .
   \|/
. . 1 . .
    |
. . 2 . .
This is a Lion restricted to moves comprising Coppergeneral steps. It can Igui capture only pieces otrhogall;y in front of or behind it.

Tilelioncub

2 . 2 . 2
 \ / \ /
. 1 . 1 .
  |\ /|
. 2 0 2 .
   \|/
. . 1 . .
    |
. . 2 . .
This is a Lion restricted to moves comprising Tilegeneral steps. It cannot Igui capture as none of the one-step moves are retractable.

I understood that the Liondog of the larger Shogi variants was simply a Rook limited to moves of up to three steps and could not, for example, capture a piece and continue th moev afterwards. Thgis is certainly the impression that the Tai Shogi page gives. Is this not correct?

By the way, is anyone else having trouble reading the backslashes in the movement diagram? They look fine in the preview, but I cannot see them in the final display of the comment.


H. G. Muller wrote on Tue, Dec 24, 2013 11:59 AM UTC:
> I understood that the Liondog of the larger Shogi variants was simply a
Rook limited to moves of up to three steps and could not, for example,
capture a piece and continue th moev afterwards. Thgis is certainly the
impression that the Tai Shogi page gives. Is this not correct? 

Well, for one it would not just move as a Rook but as a limited range Queen
(Q3) according to the source you gave the link to. But this is
controversial, and just one interpretation of the historic sources
describing the game. The evidence against it is also remarked upon in the
same source, in the section about the Teaching King: historic sources state
that TK moves like Q or LD, which makes as much sense if LD = Q3 as when
they would have said that it move like Q or K, or as Q or R, etc.

See, for instance, the description of the Lion Dog in Maka-Dai-Dai Shogi in
the English Wikipedia.

Charles Gilman wrote on Wed, Dec 25, 2013 07:28 AM UTC:
Sorry, I meant Queen, not Rook. I can't think why I put Rook. I'll look at the versions on the other variants.

(zzo38) A. Black wrote on Wed, Dec 25, 2013 08:35 AM UTC:

I like "Tilelioncub"! Maybe it can even be used in some kind of shogi variant; maybe the Tilegeneral can promote to Tilelioncub. Other similar thing can be done with some of the other kind of pieces too. Even if it doesn't move very far at first, opponent can captured, drop on promotion zone, and then it is promoted during next turn. Now, you can stop in a space other than captured piece's space (or capture two pieces at once), even though you cannot stay still, as you would be with normal lion pieces.

You could use this "lion moves" possibly with riders too, for example a "rook lion" might move like:

*********
..4***X..
*********
.3+2$**X.
*********
******1..
++++5*++6
...++*+..
Where "$" is this piece, "X" is other your pieces, numbers is capturable opponent's pieces, "*" is vacant spaces it can land on if not capturing, "+" is vacant spaces it can land on only if capturing, and "." is otherwise.

Therefore, you can capture 2 and 3 (stopping on 3), or capture 5 and 6 (stopping on 6), or capture only 1, or 2, or 4, or 5.

But, another variant might be, if, capturing a piece you must end on a space with a distance closer to the captured piece's square then it started from (if you capture two, you have to do for both)? Then, it might be:

..++3++..
..4***X..
*********
...2$**X.
*********
******1..
..++5*+..
....+*+..

As it turns out, this diagram does not explain everything, however.


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