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Dimachaer ChessA game information page . Introducing the Dimachaer, a bifurcation piece that always lands on the diagonal second leg (zrf available).[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
H. G. Muller wrote on Sat, Oct 10, 2009 09:45 AM UTC:
After 404 games the Knights were leading against the Dimachaers by 56.2%. The statistical error should be about 2%, so I guess this should be taken as a significant advantage for the side with the Knights. IIRC Pawn odds results in a 68% score, though, so the difference is only about 1/3 of a Pawn. This is for a pair, so a single Dimachaer seems about 1/6 of a Pawn weakr than a Knight. With the Kaufman Knight value of 325cP, this would make the opening value of the Dimachaer equal to ~ 310cP (+/- 5cP). This value is consistent with the value I programmed for the test, which would encourage trading Dimachaers for Knights (and the Knights to avoid such trades).

For a really reliable value I should also test Dimachaers against a pair of Bishops. But I want to focus attention on the Secutor first, as this would not lose value in the end-game as steeply as the Dimachaer. Fairy-Max uses fixed piece values during the game, which might still not be perfect for the Secutor, but at least should be a better approximation than it is for the Dimachaer. The Secutor is Cannon-like, and I noticed that the Xiangqi Cannon only starts losing value if the board population gets really, really sparse. With just a few (friendy) pieces it is still quite useful. With orthodox Kings it retains its mating potential in combination even when assisted only by the weakest pieces (a single Ferz or Wazir).