25 Pieces You Should Know About #1 - Variations of Pawns

If you have played chess, you know that there are 6 different types of pieces, right? WRONG. There are over 35 different types of chess pieces, but not all of them are used in Standard Chess. Here are 25 of them. In this post I will be covering the first 4 - variants of pawns.

1. The Soldier

The soldier is a piece that moves the same way as a pawn except that it moves and captures forwards. Due to the fact that it can not be blocked, it is worth slightly more than a pawn. The soldier is valued at 1.25 pawns. The soldier is represented by the Greek letter β (beta).

2. The Stone General

The stone general is a piece that moves like a pawn, except that it moves and captures diagonally. Stone generals are represented in FEN and PGN positions by the Greek letter γ (gamma). Stone generals are worth 1.5 pawns as a result of the fact that they can never be blocked and can move in 2 directions instead of 1 when not capturing.

3. The Berolina or Reverse Pawn (α)

The Berolina is also called a Reverse Pawn because it moves diagonally and captures forwards. In all other respects it is identical to the pawn. It is represented by the Greek letter α (alpha). The berolina is worth 1.125 pawns as it is harder to block.

4. The Sergeant

The sergeant moves 1 square forwards or diagonally forwards. The sergeant is the most powerful pawn variant, valued at 1.625 pawns because it can move in 3 directions and can not be blocked. Sergeants are represented by the Greek letter δ (delta).