Check out Balbo's Chess, our featured variant for October, 2024.

This page is written by the game's inventor, Uri Bruck.


Cross-Eyed Chess

An entry for the 84-square contest

The Board

The board is made up of a 6x6 square central board. On each edge of the 6x6 board there's a 4x3 side-board joined to the central board such that the 4-squrae edge is adjacent to the 4-central squares of the edge it's joined to.

One player places his pieces on the north and south side-boards, the other player places his pieces on the east and west side-boards.

The pieces:

King (K) - The king is the standard chess king, with the exception that it may be moved into check, and it may be captured.

Pawn (P) - While in the side-board the pawn moves as a standard chess pawn, except that it does not have an initial double step. If the side-board belongs to its own color (originally held pieces of its own color), the pawn moves orthogonally towards the central 6x6 board. If the side-board to the opponet, the pawn moves away from the 6x6 board. The pawn may promote to any piece except a King when it reaches the outer row (of the north/south side-boards) or outer column (of the east/west side-boards) of its opponent's side-board. While on the central 6x6 square the pawn moves like the Centennial Chess Steward - a non-capturing move 1 step in any orthogonal direction. Captures diagonlly 1 step in any diagonal direction.

Nahbi (M) - This is the same piece used in Nahbi Chess. A shorter version of a piece originally invented for Ackanomic Party Chess and used also in Fourplay Chess. It moves first two squares diagonally in any diagonal direction, and then one square orthogonally, in any orthogonal direction (that's 16 possible destination squares on an empty board), it may not leap over occupied squares. In addition it has a non-capturing move - leaps a distance of two in any orthogonal direction over an adjacent occupied square, the occupied square may be occupied by either a friendly or enemy piece.

Rook (R) - a standard chess rook
Bishop (B) - a standard chess bishop
Knight (N) - a standard chess knight
Camel (C) - a 3,1 leaper

There's no castling.

Winning the game:

A player may win the game by achieving on the following:
  1. Capturing both enemy kings.
  2. Capturing one enemy king and mating the other.
  3. Achieving a position where both enemy kings are mated

Written by Uri Bruck. Html by Hans Bodlaender.