Check out Atomic Chess, our featured variant for November, 2024.

This page is written by the game's inventor, M Winther.

External Link: Bodyguard Chess

In Bodyguard Chess the pieces move as in orthodox chess, with the exception of the additional pieces, the Bodyguard and the Kvagga. The Bodyguard slides one or two steps in any direction. It has about the same value as a queen (my estimate). The Bodyguard can stymie the movement of enemy pieces. This implies that an enemy piece can only move one square at at time so long its movement occurs on the squares immediately surrounding the Bodyguard (an enemy Kwagga will lose its second leap). Unlike the Mongolian Bodyguard, this version is capable of checkmating the enemy king.

The Kwagga moves like an extended knight, three squares orthogonally plus one step to the side. It can multiply this jump in the same direction. This means that the Kwagga moves like a Camelrider. However, unlike the Camelrider, the Kwagga can only capture on the first jump, and the next square must be empty. The Kwagga is as valuable as a bishop (my estimate). Due to the 9x9 board, castling is "long" on both sides.

The Kwagga's properties are very special. Like the bishop it always moves on the same square colour. On this board it can maximally make two jumps in the same direction. Thanks to its long leaps it can make threats behind the enemy lines. It can be a very irritating piece. It is much stronger and maneuverable than a Camel, and, since it cannot capture on the second leg, it is less brutal than a Camelrider. These properties make it an accessible piece, and its movement is not overly hard to calculate. It seems like its value is on a par with the bishop, regardless of board size. This is a great advantage compared with the knight. On a 10x10 board, the knight becomes significantly weaker than a bishop, something which complicates the strategical situation, and perhaps makes the game less accessible.

A Zillions program and more information is here.

External Link: http://www.two-paths.com/bg/bodyguardchess.htm

This 'user submitted' page is a collaboration between the posting user and the Chess Variant Pages. Registered contributors to the Chess Variant Pages have the ability to post their own works, subject to review and editing by the Chess Variant Pages Editorial Staff.

By M Winther.
Web page created: 2006-11-24. Web page last updated: 2006-11-24