Broadcast from dshort via PBM Server

[pbmserv <pbmserv@gamerz.net>]

  a   b   c   d   e   f   g   h   i   j   k   l   m   n   o  (BLACK)
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
|*R*|*N*|*B*|*Q*|*K*|*B*|*N*|*R*|*N*|*B*|*K*|*Q*|*B*|*N*|*R*|  8
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|*P*|  7
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |  6
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
|:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|  5
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |  4  
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
|:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|   |:::|  3
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
| P |:P:| P |:P:| P |:P:| P |:P:| P |:P:| P |:P:| P |:P:| P |  2  
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
|:R:| N |:B:| Q |:K:| B |:N:| R |:N:| B |:K:| Q |:B:| N |:R:|  1   
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
  a   b   c   d   e   f   g   h   i   j   k   l   m   n   o  (WHITE)


  "MILLENIUM CHESS" in NOT  Doublechess!


There is a game being advertised for sale in the pages of
CHESS LIFE (the publication of the United States Chess Federation)


For those of you who are interested, the initial position of
the game appears above. The white pieces are on the bottom
of the diagram, and the black pieces are on the top, surrounded
by **asterisks**. The size of the board is very similiar to
a Doublechess board. The board in Millenium Chess is 15 by 8.
Each side 30 pieces: 2 kings, 2 queens, 3 rooks, 4 knights,
4 bishops and 15 pawns.

Since each side has two kings, the object of the game is to
first capture one of your opponent's kings, and then checkmate
the other one. Most players will look to protect both kings
at all costs, but it is legal to leave one of your kings
"en prise" (subject to capture). If BOTH kings are in check on
the same move, the player MUST move one of them.

Each king starts the game two squares away from the rook on the
h-file and 3 squares away from the rooks in the corner.
EITHER king may castle with the rook on the h-file. ONLY the
king on the e-file may castle with the rook on the a-file,
and ONLY the king on the k-file may castle with the rook on
the o-file. Each king may castle once, provided that that king
and the rook it is castling with have not yet moved, and that
the king isn't castling while in check or moving over or on to
a square that is controlled by an enemy piece.


Tactically and strategicly, the game is similar to doublechess.
Bishops start the game on the same diagonal as an enemy bishop.
The interior bishops can be doubled along the same diagonal,
but the exterior bishops not as easily. The queens start on
the same diagonal as the weak king's bishop's pawns which are
initially only defended by the kings. And like doublechess,
it is certainly possible for play to develop on each wing
independently of each other, or in the center. The left side
of the board (files A to H) resemble a normal chess setup,
and the right side of the board (files H to O) also resembles
a normal chess setup, except that the positions of the king and
queen are reversed.

Still, I think I prefer Doublechess to Millenium Chess.
Certainly one may still sacrifice material for attack in
Millenium Chess as one does in Doublechess, but I do not like
chess variants which have two kings. The game takes longer
to complete if one must first capture one of the kings and
then checkmate the other. Also, some players may be willing
to sacrifice one of their kings in order to concentrate on
an attack on one of the opponent's kings. To me, chess should
always be single-minded. Checkmate one king.


It would be interesting to see Millenium Chess on the PBM
server. The engine for it would seem to be easy enough to
adapt from the existing Doublechess engine, and modify the
castling rules, but I don't think it could be done without
permission from the owner, and while I am the inventor of
Doublechess, I do not claim to be the inventor of Millenium
Chess.



I welcome those who have read this broadcast to reply to
this message to the server.



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