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Mike's Camel Chess

. Lùotuoqí (Camel Chess) variant with more balanced pieces.[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]

Roberto Lavieri wrote on Sun, Aug 10, 2003 02:26 AM UTC:Good ★★★★

Well, not so bad, but it still needs improvements. The game is heavy, dense. Tower is a very powerful 'set', it dominates the game strategy, if you play well, the tower is the center of the game. Diagonal bypassers are now more active pieces, but the playability of the entire game should be better on a bigger board. Promotions happens more frequently in the own side of the board. Strategy with splitted tower is not trivial, because the cube. Observation: I´m not an expert, obviously, but Zillions plays this game poorly. Here a problem: It seems to be imposible to win a well played game with King, Diagonal Bypasser and Eagle against the lonely enemy King, isn´t it?. Can you always win with King, D.Bypasser and two Eagles against the solitaire Enemy King?. Try.

💡📝Michael Nelson wrote on Sun, Aug 10, 2003 02:44 PM UTC:

Roberto's points are well taken. I'm not even sure King, Diagonal
Bypasser, and three Eaglets can do the job. I't fairly easy for the lone
King to escape by stalemate.

The Eaglet is nearly usless in the endgame, By comparison, King, Diagonal
Bypasser, and FIDE Pawn is an easy win by promotion.

The strategic lesson is to get rid of your Eaglets early--promote as many
as possible, force exchanges with enemy pices (it is especilly useful to
use Eaglets to kill Tower fragments).

Philodor was so right -- the Pawn is the soul of Chess. Any game with FIDE
pawns will fell chesslike to a degree, no matter how far out the outher
pieces are. A change to Berolina pawns leaves the Bishops and Rooks
feeling role reversed, but still feels fairly chesslike.  But the Eaglet
is something very diffeernt indeed with its promotion rule (An Eaglet
which promotes on the eighth rank would have a more chesslike feel).

Promote early and often!

💡📝Michael Nelson wrote on Sun, Aug 10, 2003 04:28 PM UTC:

I've submitted a revised ZRF which adds another variant: Mike's Camel
Chess II.  This allows Eaglets to promote on the eighth rank (as well as
by flanking) but prohibits promotion to Tower of Hanoi.

Roberto Lavieri wrote on Sun, Aug 10, 2003 09:38 PM UTC:Good ★★★★

The game is going on. I abuse to say that it is now very playable, although
it is not going to be my favorite. One great point is that it is
different, and other is that it is a lesson: It is not easy to construct
good games by committee, some systemic vision of the entire game is
needed. Luotuoqi variants is the point: How to use local 'fantastic
ideas' to construct a playable game? . It is still the revision of the
Tower of Hanoi and its insertion in a better manner in the game. is it
necessary?. Depends. By the way, thanks, Michael. Good job. And thanks to
the others that made possible the game: Good lesson.
I´m not going to comment new things for about 10-15 days.(little vacation
trip). What are going to be the news?. I expect interesting things from
the TCVP community...

Peter Aronson wrote on Sun, Aug 10, 2003 11:20 PM UTC:

Update posted with new variants.

💡📝Michael Nelson wrote on Tue, Aug 12, 2003 07:44 PM UTC:

For Mike's Camel Chess II, the promotion of the Eaglet on the eighth rank is immediate (does not use a separate move) but is optional -- it may remain an Eaglet if desired. If this option is chosen, the Eaglet must move off off the eighth rank and then back on in order to promote.

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