Rohirrim chess

Author:Gwaywffon
Date:Thu Nov 12 23:23:41 1998
Id:591


----------------------
 ROHIRRIM CHESS RULES
----------------------


  In Rohan, we play a variant of the normal chess 
rules played elsewhere. Most of the rules are the 
same, but there are some significant changes. For
those interested in playing Rohirrim chess, I've
outlined them below:


SETTING UP:

  You first clear the board, then setup the pieces
as for normal chess. Then you replace all the pawns
with knights and the knights with pawns. Thus each
player will start with frontline of eight Rohirrim
calvalrymen, and only two pawns (in the back row
adjacent to the rooks). In detail...

clear
setup
place N a2
place N b2
place N c2
place N d2
place N e2
place N f2
place N g2
place N h2
place n a7
place n b7
place n c7
place n d7
place n e7
place n f7
place n g7
place n h7
place P b1
place P g1
place p b8
place p g8


PLAYING:

  Again, pieces move as they normally do. There are,
however, the following exceptions:

- Pawns do not move 2 squares on their first move. 
  For example, the only non-capture move permitted 
  by a white pawn on b1, is to move to b2.

- Thus, there is no en-passant capture.


TACTICS:

  With a frontline of knights, the opening strategies
are quite different to those of normal chess. For
instance, the white knight on a2 can move to b4 on the
first turn, thus opening the way for early deployment
of the rook (usually a mid-game piece).
  Castling is still possible, but is rarely used. Your
opponent starts with 8 pieces that can jump over the 
standard castle defence.
  Pins are slightly rarer, but forks are commonplace.
The master player of Rohirrim chess will use these as
the foundation of their attack.
  Pawns are a little more valuable, and are almost
only used in the end game. Because the capturing
capacity of a knight is a maximum of 8 other squares,
compared to the pawn's 2, the board can potentially
clear much faster. Hence, Rohirrim chess is often a
faster game.


CONCLUSION:

  I hope some of you will try our style of chess. If
you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at
any time. And of course, if you are looking for an
opponent, I'm usually happy to oblige. Enjoy...


Regards,

Gwaywffon, of Rohan.