Generic Chess Piece Creation System
This is a system for construction of pieces, with some roots in Buypoint Chess and A Chess-like Variant Construction Set. This one, however, is intended to be much more freeform, bringing ideas from RPG games.
Base Piece
The base piece costs 10 points for each square it occupies. A piece like this can't move, capture or do anything deserving of respect: It just stays there and can be captured. You'll probably want to buy some Moves for the piece.Moves
Second, you can buy Moves, which define the mobility of the piece. Each Move has its base cost that is added to the value of the piece. A Move can be boosted beyond its basic status via Advantages and Limitations, which will alter its cost. First, to the Move cost:Move type Cost Description Orthogonal 3 Moves one square in a single orthogonal direction Diagonal 2 Moves one square in a single diagonal direction Leap 2 Combination of orthogonal and diagonal moves (1/8 of a Knight move) Composite X Sequence of moves in a row, bought as a single move Extra X Extra moves (see in special box)Leap Moves: A combination of orthogonal and diagonal moves. 2 points each. A combination of 8 leap moves (reflections and rotations), like a Knight move, costs 16 points. Composite Moves: A sequence of moves the piece does (Like the Crooked Bishop, that does two Diagonal moves in a row). Add the move points of all the moves in the sequence. The piece can stop anywhere in the composite move. Each part of the composite move can have its own advantages and limitations! Extra Moves: Things that didn't fit here. See below.
Advantages and Limitations
Each move or group of moves can be stretched with the use of these, altering its base cost: For example, a group of the 4 Orthogonal moves can be bought with Repeat Infinite, turning it into the basic Rook move.Repeat N *N Can repeat the move N times Repeat Infinite *5 Can repeat the move indefinitely Leap *2 A leap move can leap over other pieces Leapwalk *4 The piece can repeat its move over other pieces Dual Move *4 Can move twice Dual Strike Move *8 Can move twice, capturing on both moves Tri Move *16 Can move three times Tri Strike Move *32 Can move three times, capturing on all moves Pusher *X Pushes (x-1) enemies on the line Momentum *2 Keeps repeating move while possible Leap Capture *2 Leap move captures piece it leaps over, stops (unless Unstoppable) Approach Capture *2 Attacks enemy piece by approaching Sandwich Capture *2 Attacks enemy piece with another friendly piece after it Retreat Capture *3/2 Attacks enemy piece by retreating Rifle Capture *3 Can capture an enemy piece without moving Doesn't Capture /2 Can't capture in that direction Doesn't Move /2 Can't move without capturing in that direction Unstoppable *3 Can capture a piece without ending its turn Single Chance Move /4 A move that can only be taken once in the game Must Leap & Stop /2 Must leap over a piece, lands on the square after it Only Threatened /2 Only Not Threatened /2 Kamikaze /4 Kamikaze Move: Piece is sacrificed after its endSome pieces not only move, but have special abilities: They attract other pieces, repel them, destroy them... Those pieces have Powers.
Powers
Powers are special abilities of pieces. The powers can be Passive or Active. Active powers only work when the piece moves or captures. Passive powers act at the end of every turn. The power base cost is just as a move base cost, representing the squares the power can affect. Apply the modifiers below for the specific type of power:Attraction *1 Attracts friendly OR enemy pieces Repulsion *2 Repels friendly OR enemy pieces Magnetism /2 Repels friendly pieces, attracts enemy pieces AntiMagnetism *1 Repels enemy pieces, attracts friendly pieces Conversion *2 Changes friendly OR enemy piece's allegiance Poison *2 Poisons friendly OR enemy pieces Movement Gift *(1/10) Grants extra movement to friendly OR enemy pieces - cost is 1/10 of the move Power Gift *(power)Grants extra powers to friendly OR enemy pieces - cost equals power cost Immobilization *2 Immobilizes friendly OR enemy pieces Burn *3 Destroys friendly OR enemy pieces
Modifiers
These affect the nature of the power.Passive Power *2 Power is always activated Chaos Power /2 Skills are granted to all pieces, not just friendly OR enemy onesExample: The Fiery Dragon has the Passive King Burn. King move is 20 points. Burn is *3, and Passive is *2. The total score is 20*3*2=120. Plus the Bishop movement of the Dragon gives a grand total of 170.
Extra Moves
Moves that change with time: 'Special' moves. Can be bought more than once, and can be bought with the move advantages and limitations.Mimic 50 Mimics any pieces (protecting/attacking) it Imitator 50 Imitates a certain piece - Last (any/friendly/enemy) moved piece - Last (any/friendly/enemy) captured piece Assimilate 30 Mimics last piece it captured Metamorph 30 or average of all move types, whichever's larger Move depending on column/row piece is in
Piece Modifiers
After buying all moves and stuff, you can apply these modifiers to the final cost:Colorbound Piece -5 Can only walk on one color of the board (Diag) 1/4 Bound Piece -10 Can only walk on 1/4 of the board (Orth2, Diag2) Can't Capture -10 Can't capture, ever Can't Be Captured *5 Can't be captured, ever Promotes +5 Promotes Reproduces *3 Can reproduce Spins *2 Can spin in place, changing direction marks Spawner +(point cost*2) Spawns other pieces Royal *5 Losing all loses the game Checkmate *2 Can only be captured by checkmate Poisoned *3 Piece that captures this piece is also captured
Example Base Pieces
--------------------------------------------------- Rook: Base Piece 10 4 Orthogonal Directions (12) Repeat Infinite (*5) 60 --- 70 --------------------------------------------------- Bishop: Base Piece 10 4 Diagonal Directions (8) Repeat Infinite (*5) 40 --- 50 --------------------------------------------------- Knight: Base Piece 10 8 (1,2) Leap Moves (16) Leap (*2) 32 --- 42 --------------------------------------------------- Queen: Base Piece 10 4 Orthogonal Directions (12) Repeat Infinite (*5) 60 4 Diagonal Directions (8) Repeat Infinite (*5) 40 --- 110 --------------------------------------------------- Pawn: Base Piece 10 1 Orthogonal Direction - fwd (3) Only Move (/2) 1 2 Diagonal Directions - fwd (4) Only Capture (/2) 2 1 (0,2) Leap Move - fwd (2) Only Move (/2) Single Chance: first move (/4) 1 --- 14 ---------------------------------------------------
Pre-Made Pieces
--- Base Movements --- Diag/Ferz 8 Adjacent diagonal squares Ortho/Wazir 12 Adjacent orthogonal squares Diag2/Alfil 8/16 Set of 4 (2,2) leaps: Double if can leap over pieces Orth2/Daba 8/16 Set of 4 (0,2) leaps: Double if can leap over pieces Bishop 40 Diagonal repeating Rook 60 Orthogonal repeating Knight 16/32 Set of 8 (1,2) leaps: Double if can leap over pieces King (Radius 1) 20 Every adjacent square Radius 2 32/64 Every square 2 squares away (Squirrel): Double if can leap over pieces Radius 3 48/96 Every square 3 squares away: Double if can leap over pieces --- Base Pieces --- Q: Queen 110 Rook X + Bishop X R: Rook 70 Rook X K: Knight 42 (1,2 leap) B: Bishop 45 Bishop X F: Ferz 13 Diag: Colorbound W: Wazir 22 Ortho A: Alfil 16 Diag2 leap: 1/4 Bound D: Daba 16 Orth2 leap: 1/4 Bound C: Camel 32 (1,3 leap): Colorbound P: Pawn 14 fwd Ortho (move) + fwd Diag (capture) K: King 30 Diag + Ortho --- Bishops and Rooks --- B: Bishop 45 Bishop X: Colorbound R: Rook 70 Rook X Q: Queen 110 Rook X + Bishop X B3W: Dragon Pony 46 Bishop 3 + Ortho R3F: Dragon Duke 54 Rook 3 + Diag BW: ArchBishop 62 Bishop X + Ortho BD: ArchDeacon 61 Bishop X + Orth2: Colorbound RF: Tower 78 Rook X + Diag R2: Hut 34 Rook 2 B2: Nun 21 Bishop 2: Colorbound Em: Emperor 82 Queen 2 + Knight B3: Bishop's Dog 34 Bishop 3 KB4: Abbot 74 Bishop 4 + Knight KR4: Duke 90 Rook 4 + Knight KB: Cardinal 77 Bishop + Knight KR: Chancellor 102 Rook + Knight xB: Crooked Bishop 170 zigzag Diag moves X xR: Crooked Rook 250 zigzag Ortho moves X Rrd: Rank Rider 40 side Rook Frd: File Rider 40 fwd/back Rook BtR: Top Cathedral 80 Bishop X + fwd/back Rook X BsR: Side Cathedral 80 Bishop X + side Rook X B#: Octopus Bishop 114 Ortho, then Bishop X outwards R#: Octopus Rook 146 Diag, then Rook X outwards VM: Vertical Mover 46 side Ortho + fwd/back Rook SM: Side Mover 46 fwd/back Ortho + side Rook BQ: Backqueen 90 fwd/back Rook + back Bishop FQ: Forequeen 90 fwd/back Rook + fwd Bishop Cap: Capricorn 130 Bishop, then Bishop again at 90 deg GrH: Great Hook 102 Rook, then Rook 3 at 90 deg SB: Super Bishop 130 Bishop + Bishop Leap X (capture) SB: Super Rook 190 Rook + Rook Leap X (capture) SQ: Super Queen 310 Queen + Queen Leap X (capture) --- Knights and Leapers --- K: Knight 42 (1,2 leap) C: Camel 32 (1,3 leap): Colorbound Z: Zebra 42 (2,3 leap) A: Alfil 16 Diag2 leap: 1/4 Bound D: Daba 16 Orth2 leap: 1/4 Bound Gi: Giraffe 42 (1,4 leap) An: Antelope 42 (3,4 leap) KR: Knightrider 170 (1,2 leap) X rK: Rose Knight 170 (1,2 leap) X, in a round path ChK: Chinese Knight 26 (1,2 no leap) ChKR: Chin. Knightrider 90 (1,2 no leap) X CK: Camel Knight 74 Knight + Camel AK: Alfil Knight 58 Knight + Diag2 nK: Narrow Knight 34 fwdmost/backmost Knight + Diag wK: Wide Knight 34 sidemost Knight + Diag El: Elephant 37 Alfil + Daba: Colorbound Frg: Frog 62 King + (3,0 leap) + (3,3 leap) D3: Yabba Daba 16 Orth3 leap UU: Ubi-Ubi 138 Dual Knight Move R50: Root 50 53 (1,7 leap) + (5,5 leap): Colorbound --- Combination Pieces and Shogi --- Combinations of primitive chess leaps: Alfil, Daba, Wazir, Ferz, Knight, Camel and Zebra. One constant of Shogi pieces is that many of them have leap moves (Daba & Alfil) Ma: Marquis 54 Ortho + Knight Pr: Priest 50 Diag + Knight St: Stork 32 Ortho (capture) + Diag2 Go: Goat 24 Diag (move) + Orth2: Colorbound Wi: Wildebeest/CKnight 74 Knight + Camel Sp: Spy/Alfil Knight 58 Knight + Diag2 Sq: Squirrel 74 Diag2 + Orth2 + Knight Ce: Centaur 62 King + Knight Kyl: Kylin 34 Diag + Orth2 LyK/Phx: Lykin/Phoenix 38 Ortho + Diag2 tB: Thin Bottle 28 Diag + side Ortho + fwd/back Orth2 wB: Wide Bottle 28 Diag + fwd/back Ortho + side Orth2 Box: Boxer 126 Ortho + Diag + Radius 3 4Sq: Foursquare 130 Diag + Knight + Radius 3 minus orthogonal moves --- Pawns --- Pawns are the bulk of the army. They usually have small attack capabilities. P: Pawn 15 fwd Ortho (move) + fwd Diag (capture) + fwd Rook N at start ChP: Chinese Pawn 14 fwd Ortho + fwd Rook N at start BP: Berolina Pawn 15 fwd Diag (move) + fwd Ortho (capture) + fwd Rook N at start JP: Japanese Pawn 15 fwd Diag + fwd Rook N at start IP: Iron Pawn 18 fwd Ortho + fwd Diag + fwd Rook N at start SP: Side Pawn 17 fwd Ortho (move) + side Ortho (capture) + fwd Rook N at start DP: Daba Pawn 17 fwd Diag + fwd Orth2 (move) + fwd Rook N at start mP: M. Pawn 19 fwd Ortho (move) + fwd Diag (capture) + promote mChP: M. Chinese Pawn 18 fwd Ortho + promote mBP: M. Berolina Pawn 19 fwd Diag (move) + fwd Ortho (capture) + promote mJP: M. Japanese Pawn 14 fwd Diag + promote: Colorbound mIP: M. Iron Pawn 22 fwd Ortho + fwd Diag + promote mSP: M. Side Pawn 21 fwd Ortho (move) + side Ortho (capture) + promote mDP: M. Daba Pawn 21 fwd Diag + fwd Orth2 (move) + promote DP: Defending Pawn 21 Pawn + back Rook (move) DChP: Def. Chinese Pawn 20 fwd Ortho + back Rook (move) DBP: Def. Berolina Pawn 21 fwd Diag (move) + fwd Ortho (capture) + back Rook (move) DJP: Def. Japanese Pawn 21 fwd Diag + back Rook (move) DIP: Def. Iron Pawn 24 fwd Ortho + fwd Diag + back Rook (move) DSP: Def. Side Pawn 23 fwd Ortho (move) + side Ortho (capture) + back Rook (move) DDP: Def. Daba Pawn 23 fwd Diag + fwd Orth2 (move) + back Rook (move) fP: Fish Pawn 17 Pawn + back Ortho CfP: Chinese Fish Pawn 16 fwd/back Ortho BfP: Berolina Fish Pawn 17 Berolina Pawn + back Ortho JfP: Japanese Fish Pawn 17 fwd Diag + back Ortho IfP: Iron Fish Pawn 20 fwd Ortho + fwd Diag + back Ortho SfP: Side Fish Pawn 19 fwd Ortho (move) + side Ortho (capture) + back Ortho DfP: Daba Fish Pawn 19 fwd Diag + fwd Orth2 (move) + back Ortho J/: Japanese Spear 25 fwd Rook A/: Arabic Spear 28 fwd Rook (move) + fwd Bishop (capture) B/: Berolina Spear 28 fwd Bishop (move) + fwd Rook (capture) D/: Diagonal Spear 25 fwd Bishop: Colorbound I/: Iron Spear 45 fwd Rook + fwd Bishop S/: Side Spear 32 fwd Rook (move) + side Rook (capture) D/: Daba Spear 32 fwd Bishop + fwd repeating Orth2 (move) --- Kings, Commoners and Slow Movers --- The pieces that can only move one square each turn. Also, the pieces whose movement is based on King movement. Cm: Commoner 30 King CG: Copper General 20 fwd Ortho + fwd Diag + back Ortho SG: Silver General 21 Diag + fwd Ortho GG: Gold General 26 Ortho + fwd Diag SG: Side Guard 24 Diag + side Ortho TG: Top Guard 24 Diag + fwd/back Ortho DE: Drunk Elephant 27 King - back Ortho BT: Blind Tiger 27 King - fwd Ortho RtG: Right General 27 King - left Ortho LfG: Left General 27 King - right Ortho RlW: Relay Wazir 50 Ortho, Ortho Gift of Ortho Move RlF: Relay Ferz 30 Diag, Diag Gift of Diag Move Haw: Hawklet 90 King move x2 Li/Dg: Lioness/Dragon 94 King + Radius 2 Em: Emperor 82 Queen 2 + Knight EE: Emperor of Emperors 490 King + Radius 2 + Radius 3 + Queen Rifle Capture --- Strange Pieces --- *: Tribble 38 Orth2, Reproduces, 1/4 Bound OT: OrthoTank, OxTank 46 Ortho, Pushes 2 pieces DT: DiagTank, Drag.Tank 34 Diag, Pushes 2 pieces Wdr: Withdrawer 85 Queen w/ Retreat Capture, can't capture
Written by . Web page posted by David Howe.
WWW page created: 12 Sep 2000. Last modified on: 12 Sep 2000.