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Original Problems, Julia’s Fairies – 2015 (I): January – June →Previous ; →Next ; →List 2015(I) Please send your original fairy problems to: julia@juliasfairies.com |
No.721 
No.721 by Kjell Widlert – 100$ theme with Slow excelsiors! (JV)
Definitions:
Imitator (I): Every time a piece moves an Imitator (or a set of Imitators) moves simultaneously in an identical manner. An Imitator cannot move of itself. If an Imitator cannot imitate the move of a piece, the move is illegal. An Imitator may only pass through or enter an unoccupied square and cannot move off the board. Castling is imitated by decomposing into a King move followed by a Rook move.
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No.721 Kjell Widlert |
Solutions: (click to show/hide) |
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white Ka1 Pe4 Pf2
black Kh7 Pb7 Pe6 Ph6 Pa4
neutral Ia3
h#6 (3+5+1i) |
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It is worth to mention that Kjell kindly offered me a co-authorship. I would have been proud to be associated with him on such a pretty task, but I didn’t felt that my initial idea was enough to share the resulting problem…
Dear Kjell,
A nice task which can definitly not represented without fairy elements.
Here a small variation: 8/1p5k/7p/8/p7/8/5P2/K7 + Ia3d4
(miniature, but two imitators). What do you think?
Bye
Oliver
Yes, of course fairy elements are needed for this 6-move theme. In addition to imitator(s), I assume that it is possible to do in a double minimummer (perhaps even with minimummer only for Black). Are there other conditions that will allow the theme?
I had actually seen the position with two imitators, but I preferred the position with just one – in part because of using just the one thematical imitator, and in part because of the try 6.e5? which I quite like. But it’s all a matter of taste.
It can also be done with a slight variation of 709.1:
8/1p5k/7p/8/8/K7/5P2/8/ + Ia2d3
which reduces the unit count back to 7 (including Is).
You might check the Py solution again, Stephen … it does not contain two slow Excelsiors, but instead on White’s side a normal Excelsior + the move Ka3-a4.
The two slow Excelsiors fail because of 7.h5(Ia1,Id2)!
Well, Fairy elements are not really required for the “slow” 100$ theme: See PDB P0006968 for an orthodox Hoeg Retractor by Per Grevlund (as miniature!) — so in retrograde analysis it works!