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Janus Chess

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8a8 black rookb8 black princessc8 black knightd8 black bishope8 black kingf8 black queeng8 black bishoph8 black knighti8 black princessj8 black rook8
7a7 black pawnb7 black pawnc7 black pawnd7 black pawne7 black pawnf7 black pawng7 black pawnh7 black pawni7 black pawnj7 black pawn7
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4a4b4c4d4e4f4g4h4i4j44
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2a2 white pawnb2 white pawnc2 white pawnd2 white pawne2 white pawnf2 white pawng2 white pawnh2 white pawni2 white pawnj2 white pawn2
1a1 white rookb1 white princessc1 white knightd1 white bishope1 white kingf1 white queeng1 white bishoph1 white knighti1 white princessj1 white rook1
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Janus Chess. The janus (knight + bishop compound) is placed on the b-file and i-file, beside the rooks.

Janus Chess is a chess variant played on a 10×8 board.[1] It features one variant chess piece, the janus, with the combined moves of a bishop and a knight. The piece is named after the Roman god Janus because this god was usually depicted with two faces looking in opposite directions. The game starts with two januses on the board for each color. The janus is also known as an archbishop, cardinal, or princess, which varies based on the game it is used in. Janus Chess was invented in 1978 by Werner Schöndorf from Bildstock, Germany.

Description

The usual set of chess pieces is extended with two pawns and two januses per player. Each janus is placed between a rook and a knight. The relative position of the king and queen is reversed compared to chess. After castling the king is placed on either the b-file or i-file and a rook is placed on either the c-file or h-file, depending upon which side to castle is chosen.

The janus is considered almost as powerful as a queen, and usually valued at about 8 points (based on chess piece values with pawns valued at 1). Janus chess uses all the standard chess pieces, plus the two januses and two extra pawns for each player. With these extra pieces, each player starts with considerably more "material power" compared to standard chess. However, since the board is larger (10×8 = 80 squares), there is more room for both players to maneuver pieces, so the game has only a slightly higher material "power density" compared to chess.[2] Since the game is played on a larger board and extra pieces, players are unable to use normal chess opening theory, and chess endgame tablebases have little value in the endgame.

The janus is the only piece in this game which is able to checkmate the opponent's king without the assistance of any other piece, if the king is in a corner and the janus is two squares away on a diagonal, but this checkmate cannot be forced. This chess variant has been popular in places such as Europe.[3] Several chess grandmasters have played this game including Viktor Korchnoi, Péter Lékó and Artur Yusupov.

See also

Chess engines that play Janus chess:

References

  1. ^ Pritchard, D. B. (2007). "Janus Chess". In Beasley, John (ed.). The Classified Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. John Beasley. p. 124. ISBN 978-0-9555168-0-1.
  2. ^ Comparison of Material Power in Variant Chess Games.
  3. ^ https://brainking.com Janus Chess.
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