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This page is written by the game's inventor, Daniil Frolov.

Chess vs checkers

Chess and checkers, two most popular European board games plays against each over. It was playtested, and checkers player can win.

Rules

Draughtsmen moves 1 diagonally forward, captures by leaping over hostile piece to next square, may make multiple captures, may capture backwards, it's possible to change directions during capturing. If during multiple capturing it was on last rank, it may continue capturing as promoted draughtsmen. When promoted, may move any number of squares in any diagonal direction, when captures, may land anywhere behind captured piece, may turn 180 degrees when makes multiple captures ("Turkish strike"). Chess player must capture if possible (even if capturing move will put king in check!), but checkers player never have to capture. Checkers player wins by capturing king. Chess player wins by capturing all draughtsmen. Checkers player moves first.
I have several possible setups.
Here is my original setup, white have checkers pieces on normal positions from most of it's variants, black have normal FIDE army minus white square bishop.

rn-qkbnr
pppppppp
--------
--------
--------
D-D-D-D-
-D-D-D-D
D-D-D-D-

D - draughtsmen.

Here checkers player, of course, looks weaker, but here is alternative setup: checkers player have double army, chess player have white square bishop again.

rnbqkbnr
pppppppp
--------
--------
--------
DDDDDDDD
DDDDDDDD
DDDDDDDD

Another alternative setup (if you think that now checkers player is stronger): same, but no first rank draughtsmen:

rnbqkbnr
pppppppp
--------
--------
--------
DDDDDDDD
DDDDDDDD
--------

This opening position is similar to orthogonal Turkish checkers... By the way, why not play with orthogonal-moving draughtsmen (note that this variant was not playtestet!)?
Opening position is same, but draughtsmen moves horizonatally and verticaly (when unpromoted, moves 1 forward and sideways). It's similar to Turkish checkers, expect that backward captures and "Turkish strike" (wich is paradoxicaly not used in Turkish checkers) are still allowed.
Another one variant is diagonal checkers playing against orthogonal... But it's not chess variant.


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By Daniil Frolov.
Web page created: 2010-07-11. Web page last updated: 2010-07-11