Mecha Chess!

Check out these artist conceptions of a forthcoming line of Chess-inspired military equipment:

Well…”forthcoming” in my mind, anyway.

While I don’t care for the spider legs on some of them (Lucas may be fond of them but I much prefer an old-fashioned crushing tread), I do care for the nasty weaponry.  I particularly like the appropriately large bore weapon mounted on the Queen. She looks suitable imposing as well, albeit her crown might be better placed on the King (see my following comment). Apparently she can also hover, which I suppose is a tribute to the Queen’s legendary mobility.

I find the Bishop to be a bit understated, however. The giant cross-shaped communications array that is seen on the King might be better placed on the Bishop as there is nothing to suggest it is a Bishop. Its weapon is also tiny (I think I see a small bore under the edge of the top glacis plate). Personally, considering the nature of a Bishop’s attack, I would have mounted some long range missiles on it as Bishops have that tendency of skewering opponents from afar.

The Pawn is sufficiently utilitarian, sporting small caliber chainguns to mow down enemies on either side.

The Rook is wonderfully imposing, as all Rooks are. What is more…are those mechanical arms on each side!?!  I like the topside trooper as well as he is sort of a tribute to the knights of old who manned the walls of castles.

The Knight looks suitably mobile, which is fitting. I like that cockpit looking thing on top, too.

Lastly, the King. Again, a bit too understated for me. First, it should have a prominent crown like the Queen. What is more, I would have packed the piece with all sorts of communication arrays and antennae as the King is less a tank and more of a HQ, which I guess is why it seems to only have a single cannon in this depiction.

Overall, however, I like the vivid imagination of ‘Mr. Jack’ (you can see his Deviant Art page here). I hope someday we get to see these pieces in action on the Black and White battlefield! In the meantime, the battle will continue in my noggin.