Showdown Chess

By Devin

Board

Standard board.

Setup

Standard setup.

Pieces

Standard pieces.

Rules

In this variant, all normal rules apply, expect for the following:

1. It is illegal for a player to make a move that repeats a position three times in a row.
2. It is illegal for a player to make a move which results in stalemate.
3. It is illegal for a player to make a move which results in a position where there is insufficient mating material, such as King and Knight vs. King.
4. Draw offers are not allowed

Playing Tips

With these rules, all king and pawn vs. king endgames would win, since the losing side cannot capture the pawn, and the queen would then be able to deliver mate by herself. This variant mostly changes endgame strategy.

Notes

I feel that this variant modifies the rules less than Michael Ward's Drawless Chess. Alternative names, since Mr. Ward is already using Drawless Chess, might be Showdown Chess or Bloodthirsty Chess or Zero Sum Chess. Hopefully one day something like this could be used to end quick grandmaster draws.

Credits