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Icon Clearinghouse 3

Since Part One showed the most common variant pieces and Part Two showed those named for animals,

Note that these are subject to all of the same rules and guidelines as Part One, including finding the graphics themselves at /membergraphics/MSiconclearinghouse/ (not the counterpart for this page!).

Pieces

Though not quite as broad and varied as animal-based pieces, the tradition of naming pieces for members of clergy, nobility, royalty, military, and similar figures is just as old.

As with all these pages, note that, even though XBetza notation is given for most, you don't need to feel bound to use those precisely as written.

Clergy & Nobility

Another chess tradition is pieces named for royalty, nobility, clergy, and their staff. Typically, those named for nobility have mainly orthogonal moves, while those named for clergy have diagonal moves, in keeping with the Rook and Bishop respectively.

Many of these pairs of pieces are what I call "rotary counterparts": what one does vertically, the other does orthogonally, and vice versa. Such pairs featured in Part One include:

A few more are presented on the table at right. Not all of them are divided by clergy/nobility, but all are rotary counterparts.

Nobility & Clergy
Bishop Priest Abbot High Priestess Cardinal Caliph Kuhani

bishop

cross

abbot

highpriestess

cardinal

camelbishop

zebrabishop
Rook Marquis Duke Minister/Duke Chancellor Canvasser Mtawala

rook

marquis

duke

minister

duke

chancellor

camelrook

zebrarook

Most of these have other icon options in Part One.

On alternate names for these:

Military & Artillery

Another tradition is pieces named for military ranks, artillery, and similar things.

Military Ranks

Archery

There are almost as many ideas about what an Archer should be able to do as there are games that feature it. However, in looking through them I see most often either two diagonal steps or a (1,2) rifle capture, so the most reasonable standard would seem to be F2cabN, which I use as the default here.

Archery
Archer (F2cabN) Bowman
(nNafsafmpafzcabmpafzK)		 Shield Archer
(F2cabN)
spell=brake

archer

bowc

Enhanced Archers

bowman

shieldarcher

archerzz2

archerzz3

Swords

Swords
Swordsman
(BWcaibB)		 Sword
(see text)

swordsman

swordx

hswordx

halfswordx

hpromotedswordx

While there are many interpretations of the Swordsman, only the Bishop-based icon bearing that name here fits the move shown with it. Others include:

Spears

Spears, in the broad sense, is any piece with sliding or riding forward movement and little to no backward movement. They're usually found in large-board games, set right behind the Pawns when pieces are lined up in three or more rows.

Spears, proper, are usually "Pawnriders" of a sort, sliding where Pawns can only step. As such, they can have many of the same variations.

Spearmen
Arabian Spear
(mfRcfB)		 Berolina Spear
(mfBcfR)

nspearman

berolinaspearman

nwspearman

nespearman

Other interpretations of the Spearman involve rotating facing at the end of a move; the "northeast" and "northwest" versions represent that.

Other Weapons

Other Weapons
Dagger
(mK2mafcabK)		 Dart
(-)
iron		 Gun
(mWcabCcabZ)		 Harpoon
(Q4cabAcabNcabD)		 Lariat
(mNcKaibuabcaibQ4)		 Noose
(mKcabafK)		 Trident
(RafasfWafasfafWafasfafyafzW)

dagger

dart

gun

colt

harpoon

lariat

noose

trident

The Trident can also be seen as fRbB, fRfB (a type of Spear), fWfF (a Pawn option), and other configurations.

Artillery

Cannons
Cannon/Pao
(mRcpR)		 Crossbow/Vao
(mBcpB)

cannon

cannon2

cannonc

cannon2c

vao

ballistac

The most basic type of artillery is the Cannon. At right are the icons for such pieces.

There actually are multiple takes on what a Cannon can do:

In any case, while the Vao (sometimes called Crossbow or Ballista) was designed as a companion for the Pao, it can rotate any of the Cannons.

Siege Engines

The most basic siege engines in Chess -- the Dabbaba and the Rook -- are included here for reference. (More icon options for them are found in Part One.)

Siege Engines
Dabbabah (D) War Machine
(WD)		 Rook (R) Catapult
(NH)		 Helepolis
(RcamfRidaufmRsb(caf)6R)

warmachine

warmachinewazir

rook

catapultc

helepolis

(The number near the end of the Helepolis move should be 2 less than the width or length of the board, whichever is greater.)

Movable Architecture

Some chess variants even allow for the movement of ostensibly fixed structures.

Movable Architecture
Castle
(AND)		 Fortress
(FD)		 Parapet
(mpRcjR)		 Tower
(R3)

castle

castleu

fortressu

parapet

tower

towerx

Unknown Pieces

These are icons for which no consistent XBetza move was readily available.

Unknown Military Pieces
Airplane Axe Missile Rocket Shield Tank

airplane

axec

axex

missile

rocket

shield

tank

tankc

(The Tank is sometimes used for Dabbabah, but at least as often has its own way of moving.)


This 'user submitted' page is a collaboration between the posting user and the Chess Variant Pages. Registered contributors to the Chess Variant Pages have the ability to post their own works, subject to review and editing by the Chess Variant Pages Editorial Staff.

By Bob Greenwade.

Last revised by Bob Greenwade.


Web page created: 2023-10-30. Web page last updated: 2024-01-23

Revisions of MSiconclearinghouse3