Beyond Omega
As this variant's name suggests, it is an extension of Gabriel Vicente Maura's abstract game Omega Chess (to which all further mentions of Omega Chess on this page refer). It has two extra piece types, moving like the Delta but with move lengths multiplied by root 5 and rotated. The concept of a more complex and Chess-like version of a simple game has a precedent in Fergus Duniho's Storm the Ivory Tower, and although I was not aware of that being an influence when I first had the idea, it may well have been an unconscious one.Setup
Pieces
The OMEGA and DELTA are the same as in Omega Chess.
The ALPHA and LAMBDA rotate 45° just like Deltas. Between rotations, however, they move as follows:
* When the short side is placed orthogonally they make any number of 2:1 (Knight) leaps in the direction pointed to by the two sides. In other words each leap comprises a step parallel to the short side beyond the intersection with the long one, and one parallel to the long side beyond the intersection with the short one.
* When the long side is placed orthogonally they are makes any number of 3:1 (Camel) leaps in the direction pointed to by the two sides. In other words each leap comprises two steps parallel to the long side beyond the intersection with the short one, and one parallel to the short side beyond the intersection with the long one.
* All moves can be blocked at the intermediate landing squares, but not in between them.
* Note that while this gives the Alpha and Lambda greater range, it also makes them bound to a fifth of cells, comprising 5 Quibbler (5:0 leaper) bindings. This is why I have made the board's dimensions a multiple of 5, and why I have 5 of each piece. Each Alpha has its own binding not overlapping the other 4, likewise each Lambda binding. All Alpha bindings intersect all Lambda bindings, the intersection being a Quibbler binding. The colour of one pair of corners of a cell indicates Alpha bindings, and that of the other corners Lambda ones.
Rules
As Omega Chess.Notes
The reason for picking Alpha and Lambda is that both are basically triangular letters but with no baseline, so that it can easily be seen which two sides point to their direction. Since I created this game a name has occurred to me for the compound of Alpha and Lambda: the MU, a letter resembling M in both sound and form. Thus it is crowned by angles pointing in two directions rather than the one of Alpha, Delta, and Lambda. As this piece potentialy has all the directions of the Gnu over the course of a game, it is unbound and unswitching.
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 Charles Gilman.
Web page created: 2008-09-07. Web page last updated: 2008-09-07