Diamond Chess
Invented in the 19th century, A. K. Porterfield Rynd invented this variant of orthodox chess played with the board rotated by 45 degrees. Although the board is rotated and the opening array is obviously changed, the pieces all maintain their usual moves except for the Pawn. A consequence of the rotated board is that the Pawn becomes similar to a Berolina Pawn. (This is an interesting coincidence, as actual Berolina Chess was invented exactly 40 years later.) But the Diamond Chess pawn, although similar, is not quite the same as a Berolina Pawn, in that pairs of pawns in Diamond Chess can continue to protect each other with each step. In this way, it is similar to Glinski's Hexagonal Chess.Setup
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The board notation is also rotated so that the white king is in position a1 and the black king is in position h8. White: King a1 Black: King h8 |
Pieces
Pieces move as in orthodox chess, except for the pawns which act like berolina pawns. This results in pairs of pawns being able to protect each other as they advance (which is the most important difference between this and orthodox chess.)Rules
As in orthodox chess, except there is no casling, no double-space pawn move, and no En Passant.
Pawns promote on the farthest squares for each side, meaning each side has 15 promotion squares. White promotes on a8-h1 and h1-h8. Black promotes on a8-a1 and a1-h1. Pawns promote to Queen, Rook, Bishop, or Knight, as in orthodox chess.
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Author: Greg Strong. Inventor: A.K. Porterfield Rynd.
Web page created: 2017-04-02. Web page last updated: 2017-04-02