TRIDIMENSIONAL CHESS Excerpts from original article by Andrew Bartmess. in the "Star Trek Giant Poster Book" Issue 14, October 1977 Published by Paradise Press Incorporated A STANDARD tri-dimensional chess set consists of three main boards and four moveable attack boards. The lowermost board holds White's chessmen at the opening of the game and is termed "White's Board (W)". The middle board is the "Neutral Board (N)" and the top board is "Black's Board(B)". The attack boards start the game on the rear pegs of the Black and White boards, and are referred to as "Queen's Level (QL)" and "King's Level (KL)" depending upon which level holds the King and Queen at the start of the game. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I I I I I ----------------- I I I I I ----------------- I P I P I P I P I --------- ----------------- --------- I P I P I IKT I B I B IKT I I P I P I --------- ----------------- --------- I R I Q I I K I R I --------- --------- STARTING POSITION The easiest way to learn Tri-D chess is to begin by looking at the chess board from the top. The three main boards form one board eight squares long and four squares wide, with the attack boards overhanging at the corners. Imagine this overview as one flat board; any move you can make in a standard chess game (flat board) you can make in Tri-D chess, but you have the option of deciding which level you wish to land on. Since every overlapping square is the same colour, you can land on either. Two chessmen of the same (or different) colours can occupy the same square (on different levels). For notation purposes, the main board is listed in four files (Queen's Knight, Queen's Bishop, King's Bishop and King's Knight from left to right) and eight ranks, followed by the board which the piece lands on (ex: Queen to QKt6, N) Queen's King's Level Level --------- --------- I 4 I 2 I I 2 I 4 I --------------------------- I 3 I 1 I I I 1 I 3 I --------------------------- I I I I I ------------------- Black I I I I I Board ------------------- Io I I I oI ------------------- I I I I I ------------------- Neutral Io I I I oI Board ------------------- I I I I I White Board --------------------------- I 4 I 2 I I I 2 I 4 I --------------------------- I 3 I 1 I I 1 I 3 I --------- --------- Queen's King's Level Level ^ ^ ^ ^ I I I I QKt QB KB KKt File File File File The attack boards, when occupied by a pawn or less, may move to any adjacent pin position and such action constitutes one move. The attack boa are fantastic devices; in three quick moves you can move your pawn into your opponent's "Queening Zone" (the last rank of the B or W boards, or the attack boards) and reclaim a captured Queen. The levels have their own notations; Queen's Level One is the square on which the Queen starts the game, QL2 is the Queen's Pawn's starting position, QL3 is the Qr, and QL4 is the QRP. Reversely, KL1 holds the King, KL2 is KP, KL3 is KR, and KL4 is the KRP. This notation is like the ranks; when looking at your opponent's attack boards, you number them exactly like your own. There are three ways of opening a Tri-D chess game: you may open with a Knight (ex: Kt-QB3, N) or with one of the four pawns on the main board There are three ways of opening a Tri-D chess game: you may open with a Knight (ex: Kt-QB3, N) or with one of the four pawns on the main board s of each board are listed in this manner: all pins on the King's side of the board are "King's Pins" and all those on the Queen's side are "Queen's Pins". On each board the closest pin is designated One, the one farthest away is Two. Thus, the attack boards begin the game on QP1 and KP1. After three pieces have left the QL or KL you are left with one pawn which overhangs the main board. To free it, you may move (for example) QL-QP1, N and in your next move cross to the other side of the board; QL-KP1, N thus placing the pawn over the board. Once the attack boards have left the opening position, they become capturable pieces. An attack board (let's say White's) can be captured in this manner: the attack board is occupied by *one* of white's pieces. If one of Black's chessmen can capture White's piece, and becomes the only piece on the attack board, the board is considered to be Black's property. Black would control three attack boards instead of the two he started out with. White can recapture the Level in the same manner, and so it goes. If you can capture the attack board with a pawn, you can begin moving it immediately. Empty Levels are effectively "neutral" and remain the property of the original owner, free to maneuver. To be captured, an attack board must be occupied by a chessman. Any time after the first move a King may "castle" by exchanging places with the King's Rook. To castle on the Queen's side you must move the Queen out of QL1. Once this square is clear, you move K-QL1 and QR-KL1, thus castling. A piece may *not* drop down a level to the same square. Such a move when viewed from above would be the same as standing still. When making a move that remains on one board, all moves are the same as on a regular chess board. When in doubt on a move that crosses a level (ex: moving a Queen from QL1, B to QKt8, W) you must look down from above the board. If a piece is blocking your move (just as if the squares were on a flat board) you can't make the move. You can, however, move your piece onto the square just above or below the block and attempt the move in more than one turn. The strategy of Tri-D chess is simple: by deploying your men all over the levels you increase the the possibility that you opponent will overlook one of your key men. Conversely, you must check out your moves carefully before making them, or you may discover that your Queen has been taken by a Pawn that was hidden three levels down. This is also the main reason for moving and inverting (ex: QL X) the attack boards, which counts as one move. Just one more out-of-the-way square to be overlooked by your opponent. Although looking at the game from the top is a good way to learn how to play, by the time you have played a few games you should be able to play without standing up, just envisioning the moves in your mind. Well, that's it. A few notes are in order: you should have a good knowledge of standard chess before attempting this game. Also, if you are a good chess player you can probably come up with some good modifications to improve playability (as some of my friends did). For example, the "blocking rule" could be modified so you can move "through" a piece in your way if that piece will be above (or was it below?) you during the move. Making the board should be no problem; my friend used 1/4" clear plexiglass for the boards and used a router to put a grid of channels on them to make the squares; the frame can be made out of welded metal. I suggest making the attack boards as light as possible so you can invert them, else you'll have to hold them in place.