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Quiz about When Chess Gets Wacky
Quiz about When Chess Gets Wacky

When Chess Gets Wacky Trivia Quiz

This quiz lists a selection of odd and unusual chess variants, some well-known, some more obscure, but all real versions of chess. Match the description with the name of each variant.

A matching quiz by agentofchaos. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
agentofchaos
Time
5 mins
Type
Match Quiz
Quiz #
399,523
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
6 / 10
Plays
241
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
(a) Drag-and-drop from the right to the left, or (b) click on a right side answer box and then on a left side box to move it.
QuestionsChoices
1. Instead of one move per turn, players gain an extra move each turn, always one more than the previous player had.  
  Ghost Chess
2. Two boards, a piece is transferred from its starting board to the other after moving.  
  Cheshire Cat Chess
3. Both players' pieces start at the same end of the board. The first to move their King to the other end of the board wins.  
  Alice Chess
4. There is only one King, which may be moved by either side. The object is to checkmate it first.  
  Racing Kings
5. A captured piece reappears on the capture square when the capturing piece vacates; it cannot then be recaptured.  
  Neutral King Chess
6. At the end of each turn, any attacked pieces are removed, including pieces attacking each other. The aim is to remove all the opponent's pieces.  
  Atomic Chess
7. Whenever a piece moves, the square it vacates permanently vanishes from the board.  
  Progressive Chess
8. Five boards vertically stacked in an array. Pieces may move up and down as well as within each board.  
  Raumschach
9. Captured pieces belong to the capturing player's army and may be returned to the game later.  
  Machine Gun Chess
10. Pieces explode when capturing, destroying themselves and any adjacent pieces (except pawns) of either color.  
  Crazyhouse Chess





Select each answer

1. Instead of one move per turn, players gain an extra move each turn, always one more than the previous player had.
2. Two boards, a piece is transferred from its starting board to the other after moving.
3. Both players' pieces start at the same end of the board. The first to move their King to the other end of the board wins.
4. There is only one King, which may be moved by either side. The object is to checkmate it first.
5. A captured piece reappears on the capture square when the capturing piece vacates; it cannot then be recaptured.
6. At the end of each turn, any attacked pieces are removed, including pieces attacking each other. The aim is to remove all the opponent's pieces.
7. Whenever a piece moves, the square it vacates permanently vanishes from the board.
8. Five boards vertically stacked in an array. Pieces may move up and down as well as within each board.
9. Captured pieces belong to the capturing player's army and may be returned to the game later.
10. Pieces explode when capturing, destroying themselves and any adjacent pieces (except pawns) of either color.

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Instead of one move per turn, players gain an extra move each turn, always one more than the previous player had.

Answer: Progressive Chess

 White starts with one move, then black has two, white three, black four, etc. A player can only give check at the end of the full series of moves (although there is another version in which giving check ends one's turn even if the full series has not been played). A player in check must resolve the check on the first move of their turn or be checkmated. This is usually a quick game!
2. Two boards, a piece is transferred from its starting board to the other after moving.

Answer: Alice Chess

 Named in honor of "Alice in Wonderland" and invented by Vernon Parton, this is truly a wacky game! Defending the King from attack is especially tricky - if a piece on the same board as its King tries to block check, then oops! It disappears onto the other board where it can't help! Hence, you would need to move a piece from the other board to the King's board to block the attack. Similarly, a piece can only defend a piece from the opposite board.

This can be confusing for new players, but once mastered, the game can be great fun.

It's one of my personal favorites!
3. Both players' pieces start at the same end of the board. The first to move their King to the other end of the board wins.

Answer: Racing Kings

 An unusual feature of this variant is that, as well as not being able to move into check, a player must not give check either! Hence, the position of your opponent's King can restrict what moves you are allowed to make on your own turn. Additionally, there are no pawns. Each player's pieces start on the first two ranks of the board, with white on one side (files a-d) and black on the other (files e-h), so the players begin in immediate proximity to each other, just like in a footrace!
4. There is only one King, which may be moved by either side. The object is to checkmate it first.

Answer: Neutral King Chess

 Like Racing Kings, this variant has an unusual starting setup, with both players' pieces on one side of the board and the Neutral King on the other side. Additionally, neither player has a Queen. Also like Racing Kings, it was invented by Vernon Parton.
5. A captured piece reappears on the capture square when the capturing piece vacates; it cannot then be recaptured.

Answer: Ghost Chess

 Invented by TR Dawson, this seems to be a rather rare variant, as few chess websites even mention it, although it is described in the classic book "A guide to fairy chess" by ASM Dickens. Once a ghost piece is allowed to come into play it becomes nearly unstoppable since it cannot be captured. Hence, it can be good strategy to sacrifice pieces near your opponent's King.
6. At the end of each turn, any attacked pieces are removed, including pieces attacking each other. The aim is to remove all the opponent's pieces.

Answer: Machine Gun Chess

 A feature of this game is that a piece can "capture" (i.e. remove) multiple pieces at once and both players may lose pieces on the same turn. Additionally, an attack on one turn can reveal more attacks on the next turn, so that a piece can perform a series of attacks without even moving!
7. Whenever a piece moves, the square it vacates permanently vanishes from the board.

Answer: Cheshire Cat Chess

 This variant was also created by Vernon Parton (he was rather prolific) and also takes inspiration from "Alice in Wonderland". There is an additional rule that the King can move like a Queen on its first turn, as otherwise it would never get to move it all, as whenever a piece adjacent to the King moves, its square disappears, which would otherwise trap the King in a void if it did not have this option! Naturally, as the game progresses, pieces can become trapped with no squares to move to.

As ridiculous as this game might sound, it is actually playable and can be great fun!
8. Five boards vertically stacked in an array. Pieces may move up and down as well as within each board.

Answer: Raumschach

 The name is German for "Space chess" and the game is also known as three-dimensional chess. This variant was invented in 1907 by Ferdinand Maack, and in addition to the regular chess pieces, features the "Unicorn" that can only move in all three dimensions at once, i.e., it changes rank, file, and board level when moved.

The other pieces have the option of either moving within the board they are on or moving up or down instead. Numerous other versions of three-dimensional chess have since been invented, including one based on a fictional game depicted in the original "Star Trek"!
9. Captured pieces belong to the capturing player's army and may be returned to the game later.

Answer: Crazyhouse Chess

 This game takes inspiration from the Japanese version of chess called Shogi that allows a player to reenter captured pieces on their own side. Shogi has a different board and pieces from International Chess, so Crazyhouse adapts this rule to the latter game.
10. Pieces explode when capturing, destroying themselves and any adjacent pieces (except pawns) of either color.

Answer: Atomic Chess

 A distinctive feature of this game is that a King cannot capture, because if it did, it would blow itself up, ending the game! Additionally, if an opponent's piece is adjacent to your King, you cannot capture it, even with another piece, as the King would be destroyed. Conversely, if a player captures a piece adjacent to the enemy King, the latter is destroyed, resulting in victory for the capturing player.
Source: Author agentofchaos

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor WesleyCrusher before going online.
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Referenced Topics
Match Quizzes   Hobbies   Colors   Board Games   Names   Cats   Chess   Ghosts   German Language   The Color Black   Japanese Language   Machines   White   Germans: Famous & Historical  

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