Chapter 6: Thoughts on Chess.
“All opening moves were the same, like in chess. You don’t have to come up with anything new, there’s no point, because you’re both after the same thing anyway. The game soon finds its own way and it’s only at that pont that you need a strategy” Paolo Giordano “The Solitude of Prime Numbers: A Novel”
This chapter is about my enthusiasm for chess, but I think a lot of the ideas could apply to modifying any game you enjoy. It might provoke you to think about how you would improve your favorite sport or game.
I enjoy chess. I have enjoyed it since I was very young. I continue to be delighted by the amazing creations at the board. There’s a very artistic component of the game that’s not clear at lower levels of play. Anyone who has studied the games of Kasparov or the incomparable Mikhail Tal knows what I am talking about.
I am surprised the game is not more popular. I think a lot of that has to do with the complexity of the game. I think there’s a real easy way to address this issue and draw more people into it at an introductory level.
The standard chess board has an 8 by 8 matrix as the board. On the first rank (the rows of the board), you see a rook, a knight, a bishop, a queen, a king, a bishop, a knight and another rook.
Diagram 3 Opening Position of the Pieces at the start of a game of chess
There are centuries of opening and development theory in connection with chess. It’s absolutely fascinating reading, but I suspect it’s more than can be digested by most people, especially since most would think a game is not worth such an effort.
It’s hard to explain the appeal of chess to anyone who is not immersed in it. Like any other serious hobby, you have to more or less be a participant to understand it. And people involved in the hobby like encouraging others to participate. So I think the way to make more people appreciate the beauty and complexity of chess is to simplify it. As paradoxical as that sounds, I think it draws more people into the basics, gets them to appreciate how all the pieces move, and also makes it a fun past time that does not knock you out intellectually A tough chess game at a tournament or against a worthy opponent leaves you drained in a way that’s hard to describe. The concentration level required is very high, and you have a physical reaction to it. It’s a very familiar phenomenon in World Championship chess games, for example. The participants look like they have run marathons after the matches, which can last months.
So here’s my idea. You eliminate 2 columns on the right side of the board. You are left with 8 ranks (rows) and 6 files (columns). To the left of the queen in the diagram above you retain only the knight. To the right of the queen in the diagram above you retain only the bishop. A legal starting variant would also consist of flipping these rules. To the left of the queen you retain only the bishop and to the right you retain only the knight. This proposed configuration is shown in Diagram 4
Diagram 4 proposed Simplified versions of Chess
I’m calling this version of chess TrimChess. The rules are very similar to ordinary chess. Castling is a little different due to the shortened board. Formal rules for TrimChess are included in Appendix 1. The Appendix also includes a description of the algebraic notation I use for a sample game.
I played a few games of TrimChess. Admittedly, the games were very simple, but totally enjoyable. I expect that a lot of beginners would love to play games with this setup, where you would become familiar with the way all the pieces move. You can also develop quite a few strategies (control of center, for example), and illustrate them in a clear fashion. It would be a great training and teaching tool.
Here is part of a sample game using the standard chess algebraic notation
Here is a diagram of the position after move 9.
Diagram 5 Position after move 9 for sample TrimChess game
The game went on for some more moves in this vein. If you are an active chess player, you see that there’s plenty of scope for a fairly lengthy game with new patterns and challenges. Black won, and since I invented this game and I’m now undefeated, I declare myself world champion .
At the other end of the spectrum, there are some geniuses at the game who really think the game is not complex enough. The great chess genius Jose Raul Capablanca had an uncanny intuition for positional chess. His innate talent made him one of the greatest players in history. He suggested a far more complex version of chess with pieces that had extra maneuverability. With chess computers being so prevalent, and modern day geniuses doing superb research and preparation, I think there is an elite that can appreciate a more complex version of chess.
Capablanca’s idea was so complex, that I don’t think even modern chess players would find it workable. I have an idea for the expansion of the board that will immediately grab the imagination of great players, I think. It will also pose a new challenge to computers and will fire up a new generation of chess enthusiasts. The idea is to expand the board by 2 columns. So the board now consists of 8 ranks (rows) still, but consists of 10 files (columns). The initial setup would be rook, knight, knight, bishop, queen, king bishop, bishop, knight and rook along the first rank. Pawns would occupy the second rank. You mirror the setup for black. The rules stay the same- castling short means king goes to h1 and rook goes to g1. Castling long means king goes to c1 and rook goes to d1. This proposed configuration is shown in Diagram 6.
Diagram 6- Proposed Complex version of chess for elite players
I’m calling this version of chess StrongChess. The formal rules for StrongChess are laid out in Appendix 2. Here is a complete game where black loses. I believe that this is the first game of StrongChess ever played and I can once again declare myself World Champion. The algebraic notation used here is explained in Appendix 2.
1. f2-f4 f7-f5
2. i1-h3 c8-d6
3. g1-d4 c7-c6
4. h2-h3 d8-c7
5. h1-f3 h7-h6
6. 0-0 b8-a6
7. e2-e3 i7-i6
8. c1-b3 b7-b6
9. b1-c3 e8-f7
10. d1-e2 a6-b4
11. e1-d1 0-0-0
12. g1-e1 i8-j6
13. a2-a3 b4-d5
14. c3-d5 c6-d5
15. a1-c1 h8-i7
16. d2-d3 g7-g6
17. c2-c4 d5xc4
18. d3xc4 j6-h5
19. b3-a1 j7-j5
20. c4-c5 b6xc5
21. d4xc5 d6-c8
22. f3-c6 e7-e6
23. e2-b5 h5-d6
24. d1-d4 c8-b6
25. e1-d1 g8-h7
26.a1-b3 d8-c8
27. b5-a6+ c8-b8
28. c6-b7 d7-d5
29. b3-a5 c7-d8
30. c5-d6+ d8-c7
31.a5-c6++
Here is a diagram of the final position where black has been checkmated.
Diagram 7- Sample StrongChess game where black is checkmated
I tried playing a couple of more games with this setup. There is a rich amount of imagination and play involved. With so many bishops and knights on the board, there was much scope for creativity, errors and experimentation. Because of my modest skills as a player, I could not see the entire range of possibilities and permutations, but it was a ton of fun nonetheless. I’m certain Grandmaster caliber players will be able to mine this game for a lot of variety and joy. I can imagine a Kasparov or Tal like player with vivid imaginations would really love this complex version of the game. Computers could easily be programmed to play this type of game, offering up new challenges to players from the inception of the game.
This type of new chess will lead to rise of a generation of fiery players whose imaginations will be unleashed. Chess theory will advance in leaps and bounds. I cannot appreciate all the depth myself, but I’m certain we will get challenging schemes of development that defy current established methods. Opening theory, middle game theory and end game theory will all be impacted to some extent. Paolo Giardano’s quote at the beginning of the chapter will not hold true any more, atleast until the opening theory for StrongChess becomes rote and well known.
One of the most exciting things about these two variations of chess is that it’s totally straightforward to build a board that can accommodate all three versions. The idea is to have a standard type board with 10 columns and 8 rows, but have flip panels on both sides of the board that covers 2 columns. This type of board is depicted in the following diagram.
Diagram 8- One board that can accommodate StrongChess, Regular Chess and TrimChess
The flip panels have regular chess squares on one side, and the board border wood color on the other side. When flip panel 1 and 2 are flipped, the StrongChess board becomes a regular chess board. When 3 and 4 are flipped in addition to 1 and 2 the board looks like it has 2 extended borders and is ready for the 6x8 TrimChess game. To hone your skills you can start with the simple version, flip 2 panels and play regular chess and then for a challenge, go to StrongChess with 10 columns and 8 rows.
The fact that you can enjoy all three variations with one physical board makes the proposition of playing the variations even more appealing. There’s no special investment to have to build separate boards. Depending on your mood, you can transform the board to regular, easier or challenging versions.
Discuss and enjoy! Try a few games.
Notes for the 3rd edition for Chapter 6
There are many variations on chess, but none that are like the ones I suggested. Wikipedia has an excellent summary of existing variations at this site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_variant#Chess_with_different_boards