Printable View
A disembodied voice (does one need a character to kibbitz at this point?) muses aloud on the merits of 7. ... Bd6. And whether Johnson was making a joke when he said "on the fritz". And whether O'Shea would ...(the disembodied voice suddenly realizes the beings here can sense it).
Yes, please keep things in character. I offered at the outset to help people create USS Yorktown characters, if they wished. PM me, if so.
Now that the game is over, Onsott borrows the board and pieces and explains to the onlookers why most players would not play 3. ... Bg4 in this opening. "You see," he said, "Morphy - he was really something for a few years in the 1800s (on Earth, obviously) - once crushed a pair of amateurs in that line. 4. dxe5 and if Black retakes, as Mr Delaney did, then he loses a pawn. I really thought for a while there Mr Delaney had discovered something. But in that Morphy game, the amateurs followed with 4. ... Bxf3; 5. Qxf3, dxe5; and that's saved the pawn. But now 6. Bc4 threatens mate, and on 6. ... Nf6, preventing it, Morphy played 7. Qb3 which wins a pawn anyway. 7. ... Qe7 tries to salvage something in case White plays 8. Qxb7, Qb4+; and that forces the Queens off and gives Black a little breathing space for his pawn. So Morphy carried on with 8. Nc3, c6 (protects the b7 pawn); 9. Bg5, b5; Black's desperate for space and hopes to force White back a little.
"But Morphy's in such good shape he can afford to give a Knight for two pawns; 10. Nxb5,cxb5; 11. Bxb5+, Nbd7. Note that Black has to use the b8 Knight to block with, not the other one! 12. 0-0-0, by castling Queenside Morphy brings the Rook into the attack at once, Rd8; 13. Rxd7, another sacrifice, Morphy's got more pressure to bring and the amateurs can hardly move. 13. ...Rxd7; 14. Rd1 and all Black's remaining pieces are shut in on the Kingside. So he has to get out of this awful position and hope that after a few exchanges he keeps some of his spare material, 14. ... Qe6 to let some pieces out. Now Morphy's got a simple win with 15. Bxf6 followed by 16. Bxd7+ but he finds a much better finish. 15. Bxd7+, Nxd7; 16. Qb8+!!, Nxb8; and now Black's up by more than a Queen but none of it stops 17. Rd8 mate."
Johnson replays through the moves as described by Onsett through the simulator he was using to keep track and shakes his head. "This is why I stick to Monopoly."
"Thank you for the game, Mr. Delaney," T'Var says.
The Vulcan doctor looks about her. "Would anyone else like to play?" She smiles as her stomach growls again. "After a bit of nourishment, of course."
Lt. Vaudreuil claps politely for the Vulcan and says, "Allow me, Doctor. What would you like to eat?" He knows he's by no means in her league as a chess player.
"What would you suggest?" T'Var replies. "I enjoy trying new foods."
Vaudreuil thinks for a moment. "How hungry are you, Doctor? If you're famished, Seltin pâté and crackers is delicious and quite filling. But if you're just a little hungry, perhaps some Riskian cheese pastries...?"
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Seltin_p%C3%A2t%C3%A9
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Riskian_cheese_pastry
"I am unaware of the term 'pastries'," the doctor says. "Perhaps that might be a good choice."
T'Var smiles. "I aways enjoy trying new things."
She says to no one in particular, "I would also enjoy a game of speed chess or possibly a team event?"
Johnson looks up intrigued. "Team chess, how would that work? 4 players taking alternate turns on each side?"
Dr. T'Var frowns slightly. "To be honest, Mr. Johnson, I am unfamiliar with the details or rules regarding 'team chess'."
T'Var thinks a moment, then says, "I believe it was quite popular during the early 21st century. Perhaps the Library Computer would have some useful information on the subject."
T'Var's frown becomes a smile. "Of course, if anyone here has a few ideas or suggestions, they would be most welcome."
Onsott: "Um, Kriegspiel can be fun for the spectators - the players have no sight of the board and aren't told each other's moves, they have to communicate them to an umpire who tells them when it's their turn to move and whether the move just played resulted in a capture or a check. If they attempt an illegal move then he tells them 'You may not' and they have to pick another."
We would need a control thread and the players would be on their honour not to peek. It might be amusing to have a thread for each player where they posted their thoughts, too.
"A most interesting suggestion, Mr. Onsott," T'Var says.
Onsott: "I, um, I don't mind umpiring if anyone wants to play."
"I am willing to give it a try," Dr. T'Var says. "Would anyone else care to take on this unique chess challenge?"
"Sounds like it could be fun," says Vaudreuil. "Count me in."
Onsott seats Mr Vaudreuil a few tables away so he and Dr T'Var have their backs to each other. On another table out of view of them both he sets up another board with the full array of pieces; the two contestants have boards with their own pieces on only.
He holds out his clenched fists with a pawn concealed in each of them and waits for Dr T'Var to choose one. It is black; Onsott politely confirms that there was a white pawn in the other.
"Both players will be informed when the player to move is able to make a capture with at least one of his pawns. In such case, you may attempt up to three such moves - the first valid attempt will stand; if none is valid, you must play another move. You need not attempt any, nor is your opponent informed if you do. Your opponent is not informed of any pawn promotions nor whether you have castled. Mr Vaudreuil, it is your move."
PM me your first move, Elendil's Heir, and I suggest both players start their own threads to communicate their thoughts to the peanut gallery. Stay out of the Kriegspiel control thread until the game is over - you may then find it amusing and illuminating!
Lt. Vaudreuil is bemused by this unusual method of playing chess, but looks forward to the game. He thinks for a moment, and makes his first move.
PM sent. Thanks, Malacandra, for coordinating this.
Onsott transfers the move silently to the master board. "Your move, Doctor," he says calmly - almost more Vulcan than a Vulcan.
WES, if you also create your own "thoughts" thread, I can post a diagram featuring your pieces only -- plus the White King as a legal position must include both Kings, but as the game goes on the position of the enemy King will not generally be as shown. I have done this in Elendil's Heir's thread.
Dr. T'Var muses over potential first moves as Black. Should she make the logical choice or something only a human would consider? After another moment or two, T'Var makes her move.
Onsott transfers it to the main board. "White to move."
Done and done.
"Black to move; no additional information."
Dr. T'Var sighs as she stares at her one-sided board. A most illogical variation of a great game, she thinks to herself. T'Var is a bit bemused by the whole thing. Perhaps it would have been wiser on her part to watch others play this type of game first before jumping in with both feet.
T'Var makes her move, then sits back and ponders how to proceed next.
Onsott watches both players, curious to know how they will plan their strategy to discover where the enemy's army is lurking. Checks, captures and the availability of pawn captures all reveal information, though much relies on guesswork and conventional chess strategy plays only a limited part. Yet with a large enough material advantage, even an "invisible" king can be hunted down.
"White to move, no additional information." Photobucket a bit slow, will catch up later
The French lieutenant moves another piece at once.
Two questions:
* If a piece which can move many squares at once runs into an enemy piece while on its way somewhere else, is the move treated as an attack upon that enemy piece, and the moving piece stops there?
* Are the identity and location of both the attacking and the taken piece revealed to both players?
* No, you receive the response "You may not", from which you infer that either the line is blocked or the move is illegal for some other reason (e.g. it would expose your King to check) and you choose another move.
* In case of a capture, you know what you have lost because it has been removed from the board, but the capturing player knows only that a capture occurred.
Footnote: The announcement "You may not" is public, so your opponent may derive whatever information he can from the knowledge that an illegal move was attempted. Not much, but it may help. We assume that players are too ethical to attempt known illegal moves simply in order to flood the ether with spurious "You may not"s.
"Black to move, no additional information".
Visibly more relaxed, Onsott looks around to see if the gorgeous red-haired yeoman is still in the rec room, but it doesn't distract him from his duties, monitoring Dr T'Var's board unobtrusively until she has moved and then transferring the move to the master board. "White to move, no additional information".
Dr. T'Var waits to make another move. Will her plan work, she wonders. Only time will tell....
As if reading Onsott's mind, Yeoman Bridget O'Shea wanders over, coffee in hand. "What are you all doing?" she asks him in a musical Irish brogue.
Vaudreuil moves again.
"Black to move. Capture on f7. Black is in check on the short diagonal."
Onsott explains: "They are playing a chess-based game called Kriegspiel. Neither of them knows the true position, only the disposition of their own pieces and a small amount of additional information in some circumstances. They must checkmate according to the usual rules but must also attempt to deduce the position of the other side."
"Capture on f7, White to move," says Onsott. Then to the Ensign: "How good is your chess?"
As Vaudreuil, frowning, moves again, Yeoman O'Shea says to Onsott, "You mean me? So-so. I'm better at Blokus and Go."
"Black to move, no additional information."
Onsott transfers to move to the master board, without interrupting his conversation with Yeoman O'Shea. "Blokus I do not know about, but Go... that's too hard for me. But I'm in good company - there was a famous chess player from Earth history, not only a world champion but considered one of the best world champions ever, who gave Go a serious try and even after hard study was roundly beaten by a Japanese expert. It's like... poetry in a foreign language, I suppose. You might say, I don't understand all the imagery and symbolism in chess, but at least the rhyme and metre convey meaning to me, even if not always the right ones."
O'Shea says with a smile, "I had a Japanese friend who taught me Go a few years back. 'Easy to learn, almost impossible to master,' as they say. Blokus is a much more recent game, much simpler, but in my opinion more fun."
Here's more on Blokus; spelling corrected in the earlier posts: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blokus
T'Var makes yet another move. She is still a bit disconcerted by the empty spaces where white's pieces should be, though she is finding this form of chess intriguing.
"White to move, no additional information," Onsott announces. Then "Perhaps it's a character flaw with me - I can't make out enough of Go to understand how to play well, and that takes the enjoyment out of it for me. But chess I'm okay at - a little too okay for social play, maybe... and that may be why I can't relax and enjoy myself playing bad Go.
"And the trouble with me is I end up talking too much about me and what I'm interested in. :rolleyes: What's the attraction of Blokus for you?"
The Frenchman moves again.
O'Shea says, "It moves fast, just about any small number of people can play, it's never the same game twice, and when you're done you have an interesting colored pattern to admire."
"I, um, I should try this some time," says Onsott, appearing a little flustered again. He transfers White's move to the master board and adds "Black to move, no additional information".
"White to move, no additional information."
"Black to move, no additional information."
"And again, White to move, as before," says Onsott, mentally debating whether another measure would be wise and deciding against it for now.
Vaudreuil notices that Onsott seems a bit pensive, but says nothing before making his move. He then rises, happily stretches, and goes to get a glass of ice water.
Dr. T'Var patiently awaits her next set of directions from Onsott before making another move.
Onsott feels the Vulcan's eyes upon him and blinks, startled out of his brown study and rather afraid that his emotions are writ large for all to see, Vulcan or no. "Black to move, no additional information," he manages after a pause.
T'Var makes yet another move. Where could white's pieces possibly be?
She then gets herself a large glass of unsweetened iced tea -- no lemon. It is her favorite human beverage.
"White to move, no additional information," says Onsott. He seems to have lost Yeoman O'Shea's attention, and while this is by no means unfamiliar territory for him it never gets easier to negotiate.
O'Shea says to Onsott, "This is an interesting way to play chess. I've heard of it before, but never actually seen anyone doing it."