8 pawn vs 8 pawn puzzle who wins?

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Franklin31113

ok all 8 white pawns on the 2nd row and the black pawns on the 7th row whoever queens a pawn first wins. Who wins?

aman_makhija

What are the king positions?

Arisktotle

Draw, no one queens as both sides have sufficient space to setup "staircase"  defenses where needed.

But It gets interesting when all white pawns are on the 4th row and all black pawns on the 6th row. White can easily break through but the kings can stop pawns as well. Or are there no kings in the puzzle?

If there are kings, you need to clear up one thing. By "queening" do you mean "unattacked queening"? Example: wPc6 and bKe8. Play: 1.Pc7 Kd7 2.Pc8Q+ but of course the pawn gets captured. Does that count as a solution?

Franklin31113

no kings

Arisktotle

Without kings, this endgame quickly leads to a zugzwang situation which wouldn't happen that way with kings. When the desirable pawn moves are exhausted and you need a waiting move for the draw, there is no king to play it. Instead you will quickly lose by the necessity to play a structure weakening pawn move - unless you can escape by stalemate (which also occurs much quicker without kings). Black can therefore try to win by playing symmetric moves and force white to sacrifice first. However, white can prevent such symmetry, e.g.: 1.e4 e5 2.f3 f6 3.c3 c6 4.d4 d5 5.dxe5 dxe4?? 6.e6 and white wins. So I am not sure about the result of the 2nd rank versus 7th rank fight.

But may be you didn't want "zugzwang" to decide. In that case you need to add to option to "pass" to the chess rules. Now the draw is obvious. Black can simply play the moves b7-b6, d7-d6, f7-f6 and h7-h6 and then "pass" unless he needs to recapture. You can verify this always leads to a draw if you make the correct recapture. White cannot break through that simple "zigzag" defense.

"Zigzag/stairway" formations are often effective against pawn breakthrough combinations.

Arisktotle
Hulkyhulk schreef:

While would win easily because at a point white wins two pawns and then wins the game with just pawns and a king if that is what you mean. And I put the white king on e1 and black king on e8

Franklin31113 said: no kings!

Arisktotle

That would be true if Franklin31113 hadn't changed the rules right from the start (see top post). The one who queens first, wins. It is a puzzle, not regular chess.

aman_makhija

1.a4 a6 2.a5 b5 3.axb6e.p.? cxb6 4.b4?? a5 -+

That would be a blunder

aman_makhija

1.a4 a6 2.a5 b5 3.b4 c6 4.c3 d5 5.d4 e6 6.e3 f5 7.f4 g6 8.g3 h5 9.h4 1-0

aman_makhija

So unless white blunders, he wins!

Arisktotle
aman_makhija schreef:

So unless white blunders, he wins!

Nope. The staircase/zizag formations work if black can "pass" as explained in my post. In a regulr game black can move around his king instead. If black cannot pass and is without king, he could aim for symmetry but I'm not sure he wins or loses then as noted in the same post.

aman_makhija

Obviously, you can't pass

Arisktotle
aman_makhija schreef:

Obviously, you can't pass

Obviously, you can't play without kings either. Nevertheless that is how Franklin31113 has set this puzzle up. The issue is that once you stray from the chess rules, there are consequences you have to deal with. People who invent puzzles like these are often not aware of the Pandora box they are opening. As a problemist I am familiar with many fairy forms in chess and these regularly require corrective rule adaptations. Example: if you start with a random first rank piece position in a chess game, what are you gonna do with the castling rule? Life ain't easy for the rule makers and breakers.

Grandnight2014

GM WonchuTong, and Shriner GM Rahim Allah could play. anybody remember The battle between Bobby And Rahim???

u0110001101101000
Arisktotle wrote:

Without kings something funny happens that wouldn't happen in a normal chessgame, namely "zugzwang". 

lol

You're rated about 1000 points too high to make such an absurd statement.

Arisktotle

Hmmmm, you have a point there or should I say a 1000 points. I intended to refer not to a normal chessgame but to the special game between the 2nd and 7th rank pawns in a total blockade, but it was grossly inaccurate indeed!

Since I prefer to wash away my errors, I'll correct that sentence Wink

Franklin31113

whoa this is alive again!

u0110001101101000
Arisktotle wrote:

Hmmmm, you have a point there or should I say a 1000 points. I intended to refer not to a normal chessgame but to the special game between the 2nd and 7th rank pawns in a total blockade, but it was grossly inaccurate indeed!

Since I prefer to wash away my errors, I'll correct that sentence

:)

ChessOfPlayer

A draw with best play.  However at lower levels the game could be decided by a zugzwang.

aman_makhija
Arisktotle wrote:
aman_makhija schreef:

Obviously, you can't pass

Obviously, you can't play without kings either. Nevertheless that is how Franklin31113 has set this puzzle up. The issue is that once you stray from the chess rules, there are consequences you have to deal with. People who invent puzzles like these are often not aware of the Pandora box they are opening. As a problemist I am familiar with many fairy forms in chess and these regularly require corrective rule adaptations. Example: if you start with a random first rank piece position in a chess game, what are you gonna do with the castling rule? Life ain't easy for the rule makers and breakers.

Let's just ask him--

Franklin, in this game are you allowed to pass your turn?