No.641 by Peter Harris – Interesting and complicated miniature. And some words to the programmers again … 🙂 (JV)
Definitions:
Royal piece: Piece that executes a function of the King on the board.
Sentinels: When a piece (Ks included but not pawns) moves, a pawn of the same colour appears on the vacated square unless that square is on the first or eighth ranks or there are 8 pawns of that colour on the board already.
Chameleon Chess: All pieces on the board which are displayed as orthodox Q, R, B, S, are Chameleons. A Pawn can promote only in Chameleon-pieces.
Anti-Super-Circe: After a capture, the side making the capture can place the capturing unit on any empty square. [Placement is compulsory]. A Pawn placed on its first rank is immovable.
No.641 Peter Harris South Africa original – 12.11.2014 Dedicated to Vlaicu Crisan.
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Solutions: (click to show/hide)
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black bb1 sc2 pb8d3
neutral royal pc7
neutral pb2
h=2.5 b) Pb8→a3 (0+4+2n) Royal neutral piece Pc7 Sentinels Chameleon Chess Anti-Super-Circe (C+ by Py 4.61, bugs in Py 4.63-4.69)
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a)
1...nrPc7*b8=nrB[nrBb8->f6] {
} 2.nrBf6*b2=nrR[nrRb2->e2][+bPf6] + nrRe2*c2=nrQ[nrQc2->f5][+wPe2] {
} 3.d3*e2[bPe2->f7] + nrQf5*b1=nrS[nrSb1->h8][+wPf5] {=}
b) bPb8-->a3
1...nPb2*a3[nPa3->g8=nB] {
} 2.nBg8-b3=nR nRb3*b1=nQ[nQb1->d2][+wPb3] {
} 3.nrPc7-c5 nQd2*c2=nS[nSc2->c8][+wPd2] {=
(C+ by Popeye 4.61,4.59,...)}
Bugs in Py4.69: Of the 7 solutions shown in b) only the last is correct – the others are bugs:
b) bPb8-->a3
1...nPb2*a3[nPa3->c1=nB] 2.nBc1-d2=nR nRd2*c2=nQ[nQc2->b3][+wPd2] 3.nrPc7-c5 nQb3*b1=nS[nSb1->c8][+wPb3] =
1...nPb2*a3[nPa3->e1=nB] 2.nBe1-d2=nR nRd2*c2=nQ[nQc2->b3][+wPd2] 3.nrPc7-c5 nQb3*b1=nS[nSb1->c8][+wPb3] =
1...nPb2*a3[nPa3->g1=nB] 2.nBg1-b6=nR nRb6*b1=nQ[nQb1->d2][+wPb6] + 3.nrPc7*b6[nrPb6->b3] nQd2*c2=nS[nSc2->b2][+wPd2] =
1...nPb2*a3[nPa3->g1=nB] 2.nBg1-b6=nR nRb6*b1=nQ[nQb1->d2][+wPb6] + 3.nrPc7*b6[nrPb6->d4] + nQd2*c2=nS[nSc2->d1][+wPd2] =
1...nPb2*a3[nPa3->g1=nB] 2.nBg1-b6=nR nRb6*b1=nQ[nQb1->d2][+wPb6] + 3.nrPc7*b6[nrPb6->d4] + nQd2*c2=nS[nSc2->a4][+wPd2] =
1...nPb2*a3[nPa3->g1=nB] 2.nBg1-b6=nR nRb6*b1=nQ[nQb1->d2][+wPb6] + 3.nrPc7*b6[nrPb6->e4] nQd2*c2=nS[nSc2->h4][+wPd2] =
1...nPb2*a3[nPa3->g8=nB] 2.nBg8-b3=nR nRb3*b1=nQ[nQb1->d2][+wPb3] 3.nrPc7-c5 nQd2*c2=nS[nSc2->c8][+wPd2] =
My version of Popeye is 4.47.
With 1. …….. nPb2*a3 the Pb2 is moving as White and if the P is reborn anywhere other than on White’s 8th rank it will be reborn as a P including if it is reborn on the 1st rank. [If it is reborn on the 8th rank it has to promote].
As a matter of interest: the bPb8 in (a) would have been reborn there after it made a capture. That is why in FairyChess Ps on the first rank in a diagram are "allowed" IF a condition can explain it e.g. Supercirce or AntiSupercirce. (Author)
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The Popeye team have already been informed of this bug.
Thank you, Peter, for the dedication!
This composition requires imagination: how can one stalemate black with no white piece on the initial board? Sentinelles will create some white pawns, but controling the royal neutral piece is not easy.
The first solution, with the surprising promotion of the neutral royal pawn and four subsequent chameleonic transformations is really superb. However the second phase looks like a pizza after fireworks, in spite of the good usage of all the fairy conditions and the tricky final position.
But let not fool ourselves: it is not by no means easy to show 3 captures in 5 half-moves using AntiSuperCirce – and in a miniature. Peter, you must be definitely very proud for your achievement.
Congratulations!