Games/Variants Analysis

Greetings all:
Rather than seeing our forums, notes be filled with "Do YoU lIkE mY vAriAnt?" or "WhO cAn heLP tEst My VaRiant?", We decided to create this instead.

There're 3 format of posting a comment to ask for feedback:

Testers wanted: When your variant needs experienced testers from certain time zones, you may post your variants' information there. 

Feedback needed: You wants to analyze your variant via others' feedback. You are required to provide at least one testing game. 
The analysis often includes the pieces synergy, the game-rules combinations and possible modifications. Providing each full variant analysis earns 1 point of Community Challenges. 

Games analysis needed: You wants to ask others to analyze your game.
Requirements: it's actually ok and instructive.
Requirement for the reviewer (Exclusive for variants games not variants creations 💀): at least 1900 in the SBV variant.
Providing each full variant analysis earns 3 point of Community Challenges. 

Zenhouse (Huge credit to MistMint for testing)

All the way back to a month ago where I started on this variant.

V1:

This was my first version. It was a fail

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94743475

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94743936

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94743967

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94743990

As you can see, it's forced win for white.

Nyutixbrother: Likely FWFW after 1berolinaxg7

Which brings us to version 2.

V2:

As can be seen, I nerfed the promo: QN to BN

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94869180

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94744063

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94868748

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94868856

This was the first testing game against MistMint. Again, huge shoutout to MistMint for the suggestions!

MistMint: still kinda sharp

Bringing us to V3.

Now, there was once again a drastic change.

Removing the bishop was my own idea. It was my idea; it was basically a ferz.

Thus, buffing the promo from bishop to king was evidently a good idea.

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94968074

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94968053

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94968129

Now here we are with V4.

Unlike the other changes, this was an issue I didn't expect.

King safety.

Removing the brick in the corner eventually proved a good idea. Putting a pawn there afterwards would keep the king safe from most attacks.

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94968200

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94968248

As you can see, knight attacks are powerful, later on leading to the next change.

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94968273

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/94968333

Here MistMint really joins the chat.

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/95214727

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/95214806

These two games were what sparked the biggest change. Thanks to yx for letting me into the club!

Now the final version.

V5:

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/95215154

Thanks for reading!

Seems a fwfr in 9 moves,

[StartFen4 "R-0,1,0,1-1,1,1,1-1,1,1,1-0,0,0,0-0-{'royal':('i6','','g9',''),'lives':(3,0,3,0),'setupPoints':(0,0,0,0),'setupComplete':(true,false,true,false),'pawnBaseRank':5,'wb':true,'dim':'8x6'}-x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,gδ,yP,yN,yK,gδ,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,bδ,yF,yα,yα,bδ,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,bδ,gδ,bδ,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,gδ,bδ,gδ,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,gδ,rα,rα,rF,gδ,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,bδ,rK,rN,rP,bδ,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x"]
[Variant "FFA"]
[RuleVariants "Crazyhouse EnPassant KotH=f6,j9 3-check Play4Mate PromoteTo=KN Setup=1,7"]
[CurrentMove "17"]
[TimeControl "2 | 1"]

1. αg6xδg7 .. Fg9xδf10
2. Nh5xδi7 .. @yδ-g9
3. Ni7xδg8+ .. Nh10xNg8
4. αg7xNg8=N+ .. δg9xαg8
5. @rN-i7 .. Ff10-g9
6. Ni7xδg8 .. αh9xδh8
7. @rδ-g7 .. αh8-i7=K+
8. Ng8xαi7 .. Fg9-h10
9. Ni7-g8+#
I think you should expand the board to add variety, seems that minor changes won't work for this one

Game

Community Variant

Version 1

Post your testing games there, and try improve the variant!!

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/96101336

Sort of a spin-off of minihouse with some extra gimmicks (maybe called 'madhouse')

maybe alibaba fits more than dabbaba rider, it looks nice though

Community Variant Feedback
Testing game

Thoughts: There're too many squares covered by riders and making breakthroughs difficult; There are lack of suggestion for players to do in the game.
Revision advice: I'm not sure how to reduce riders movement and strengthen breakthroughs, but dead-pieces shall be replaced from soldiers to different pieces in order to suggest movement for players.

I'm not really experienced with fog variants, so i could participate in testing, but won't probably have fresh ideas here.

Community Variant:

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/96206452/0/3

Consider this opening from yellow (me), where the knightrider on c12 is developed so that it is pinning a sergeant that is unprotected from the original position to the king. I fear this may be an easily exploitable strategy that is impossible to check for easily, especially for beginners. From this game I happened to get a bit lucky in taking advantage of this, but my point is somewhat proven, this is a dangerous and completely unpredictable tactic.

We could try to fix this by shifting a few pieces around to make the knightrider really difficult to develop, shift the king's starting square, or we can protect the sergeant in the starting position.

Of course this may just be an overreaction and may be left as opening theory, but it feels a bit too unpredictable for my taste; not exactly a quality you want for a FoW variant.

I agree, similarly, h7 Oh6 Oj7 i6 also work like this. Dead pieces placement, king placement even the use of riders are all required to change.

Here are some things may help:

Remone one O

Make the position classically symmetrical

[StartFen4 "R-0,1,0,1-1,1,1,1-1,1,1,1-0,0,0,0-0-{'royal': ('j3','','e12',''),'lives': (3,3,3,3),'pawnBaseRank':5,'dim':'10x10','noCorners':true}-x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,yC,1,yK,2,yJ,2,yO,yΔ,x,x/x,x,1,yT,1,yE,2,yδ,1,yδ,1,x,x/x,x,1,yδ,1,dJ,yδ,1,dδ,yβ,yβ,yβ,x,x/x,x,1,yK,dδ,yβ,yβ,yβ,yβ,dβ,2,x,x/x,x,yβ,yβ,yβ,1,dβ,5,x,x/x,x,5,dβ,1,rβ,rβ,rβ,x,x/x,x,2,dβ,rβ,rβ,rβ,rβ,dδ,rK,1,x,x/x,x,rβ,rβ,rβ,dδ,1,rδ,dJ,1,rδ,1,x,x/x,x,1,rδ,1,rδ,2,rE,1,rT,1,x,x/x,x,rΔ,rO,2,rJ,2,rK,1,rC,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x/x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x,x"]
[Variant "FFA"]
[RuleVariants "EnPassant FogOfWar 3-check Play4Mate PromoteTo=Q Prom=12 SpectatorChat Torpedo"]
[CurrentMove "0"]
[TimeControl "10 min"]
Perhaps this works?

this is the heading, not the body part(aka pieces part)

https://www.chess.com/variants/custom/game/96224190

The variant seems not very predictable, and (seems that) most usage of pieces require reconsidering.

YX, what if we remove the dragon bishop and replace chancellor with a dragon bishop?

Hm, shouldn't we have a rook-ish pieces that can help launching pawns promotion attack?

1. It makes it similliar to ambush

2. Chancellor get traded off very often
   

1. What do you do in the game then, strategies beside launching pawns attack is hardly predictable (if you don't think so, list a predictable attacking/progress strategy); A single-piece addition doesn't make the variant generic.
2. I don't see it gets traded off very often when it's behind a pawn wall

Custom Variants Chess - TvdAuki vs yu-x897 - Play Chess Variants Online - Chess.com+Rematch, click to read the full chat, it's very long lol
A few questions:

• A certain pieces doesn't seem very predictable (O for an example), do they actually help the game-play?
• Camel doesn't seem a good replacement. Shall we change it?
• A certain pieces' placement seem very cramped and undeveloped. Are there meant to be a stage for coordinating the pieces?
• Are breakthroughs enough great?

If these problems don't exist, then this variant is perfect (imo)!

What if replace an O with a N to make it more predictable?