Man fears time, but time fears the Pyramids.
Arab proverb
PYRAMIDS
2nd edition
revised and improved
Kosintsev I.G.
kosintsev.i.g@gmail.com
(12.04.2011)
When you are travelling near Egypt's, China's or Mexico’s pyramids you may ask yourself: what game are Gods playing?
Albert Einstein once said: God does not play dice with the universe. Yes! Of course! Because Gods play pyramids!
You can also try it by the new similar to chess game entitled “Pyramids”.
But young people can begin the study of “Pyramids” on the small 7x7 board.
The initial position of the game Pyramids for beginners
(the 7x7 board)
and for advanced players (the standard 9x9 board)
Definition of a pino.
Vertically adjacent checkers (particles) of the one color with different sizes (in oure case of small p1 to large p4) and with the correspondent numbers (labels) form a pyramidal labeled polyomino (simply called "pino") that moves as one hole piece, can be subdivided, and in effect becomes several pinoes. Pino may be expanded by moving additional checkers on free vacances but all checkers of one pino must have different sizes. It is clear that pino has at least one checker.
You can see all possible pieces (pinoes, slaves, faraons) of the game Pyramids on the next diagramm.
Some pieces have the archaic ancestors from Modern Grand Chess [5].
It is possible to reprisent any position by the digital consequences instead of pieces and by Algebraic chess notation. Any digit before point means white checker, after - black.
Rules:
Modes.
1. The orthogonal mode of the movement
O or
O(n), where
n is the number of the path cells.
2. The diagonal mode of the movement
D or
D(n), where
n is the number of the path cells.
3. The first, second ant third neighbor mode of the movement
N(n), where
n=1,2,3 over the neighbor occupied or unoccupied squares
N(x), where
x less
n (Jump).
The weak variant of Pyramyds have such rules for movement of pieces.
1. A slave (S) moves, without capturing, by N(1) mode and captures by D(1) mode.
A slave may advance in its first move, without capturing, by N(2) mode. The capture «en passant» is absent.
It also promotes for any another (at the player's choice) checker when it reaches the last rank.
2. Any pino with checker p1 moves by N(1) mode.
3. Any pino with checker p2 moves by N(2) mode.
4. Any pino with checker p3 moves by D mode.
5. Any pino with checker p4 moves by O mode.
6. Any pino with two checkers p1 and p2 moves by N(3) mode (only for the 9x9 board!).
7. The faraon (F) jump without capturing by N(1), or N(2), or N(3)(only for the 9x9 board!) modes during the game, provided that he hasn't been checked before he makes his N(2) or N(3) move. It loses the right to make a N(2) or N(3) move after the check.
The strong variant of Pyramyds (only for the 9x9 board!) have such rules for movement of pieces.
1. A slave (S) moves by N(1) mode. A slave may advance in its first move, without capturing, by N(2) mode. The capture «en passant» is absent.
It also promotes for any another (at the player's choice) checker when it reaches the last rank.
2. Any pino with checker p1 moves by N(2) mode.
3. Any pino with checker p2 moves by N(3) mode.
4. Any pino with checker p3 moves by D mode.
5. Any pino with checker p4 moves by O mode.
6. The faraon (F) jump without capturing by N(1), or N(2), or N(3) modes during the game, provided that he hasn't been checked before he makes his N(2) or N(3) move. It loses the right to make a N(2) or N(3) move after the check.
The cheskers (chess & checkers) variant of Pyramyds has own rules for movement of pieces.
Each piece at cheskers has two types of a move: simple “marsh” without capturing and “jump” with capturing.
If one player's piece, only one other player's piece, and an empty square are lined up, then the first player may "jump" the other player's piece. In this case, the first player jumps over the other player's piece onto the empty square and takes the other player's piece off the board.
If the piece can jump with the move, it must jump. Sometimes a player may have the option or a choice of which opponent piece he must jump. In such cases, he must then choose which to jump.
1. A slave (S) moves without capturing by N(1) mode and jump by N(2) mode.
It also promotes for any another (at the player's choice) checker when it reaches the last rank.
2. Any pino with checker p1 or a single p2 checker moves and jump by N(2) mode.
3. Any pino with checker p3 moves and jump by D mode.
4. Any pino with checker p4 moves and jump by O mode.
5. Any pino with checkers p3 or p4 jump over and hence capture an opponent piece some distance away and choose where to stop afterwards.
6. A player can use one pino with checkers p2 to make multiple jumps in any one single move, provided each jump continues to lead immediately into the next jump.
7. The faraon (F) jump without capturing by N(1), or N(2), or N(3)(only for the 9x9 board!) modes during the game, provided that he hasn't been checked before he makes his N(2) or N(3) move. It loses the right to make a N(2) or N(3) move after the check.
Castling doesn't exist (compare with Chaturanga [2]).
The aim of the game is to capture the opponent's faraon.
Other rules of this game are identical with rules of classical chess [1].
Internet resources:
1. Chess.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess
2. Chaturanga.
http://www.chessvariants.org/historic.dir/chaturanga.html
3. В. Ивановский, О. Свирин
Русские шахматы: Таврели.
Москва, "Русский путь", 2002 (104 с.)
http://tavreli.narod.ru/books.html
4. Shogi.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shogi
5. Modern Grand Chess.
http://chess-checkers-go.blogspot.com/2010/12/modern-grand-chess.html
