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Manticore. Moves one space orthogonally, then slides outward as a Bishop.[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]

H. G. Muller wrote on Wed, Feb 7 09:09 PM UTC in reply to Fergus Duniho from 05:51 PM:

This Manticore is really something. It doesn't have the 'potent' property that would allow it to force mate in combination with any piece that can roam the entire board. But it has all the other properties that are useful if the right kind of partner is present. I yet have to find a piece that it cannot force checkmate with:

It cannot have a W move, because that would make it 'semi-potent', and the Manticore is 'forking'.
It should also not be able to make a W move in a 3-move tour, for the same reason.
It cannot have a D move, because that would make it potent by itself.
It should also not be able to make a D move in a 3-move tour, for the same reason.
It must not simultaneously attack two squares separated by a D move, because that would make it forking, and the Manticore is semi-potent.
It should not simultaneously attack two squares separated by an F move, as the Manticore can trap a King on a2-b1.

I thought I had a piece that satisfied all these criteria, in the form of a Crab that was missing one of its moves (fsrbN). But it found a trick to circumvent the normal requirements, by the fact that the N move the Manticore makes is lame, and can be blocked at the W squares. It blocks this move with the Crippled Crab from attacking the corner in a position that otherwise would have been a stalemate, and then deliver a discovered check there.

It seems a lame piece can sometimes do better than a normal leaper!