Who'd like to try a chess variant? Now playing Xiang Qi, a.k.a. Chinese chess — Page 6

^That happens to me all the time.

R-a8

You know, though I'd like to trade material to force a good mating position for me, I don't really know how to force mates with the pieces I have.  It will be harder than using the standard set, I think.

0-0

a4

As I mentioned before, my computer reset itself.  I hate to keep asking this of you, but would you be willing to send me a setup?

No problem:

R---K---
---B-P-P
-P-P-NP-
--PpP---
P-p-p---
-p-fwp--
w-----pp
-----b[ede]k-

Waffle-b2

a3

FAD-a2

Do you mean WAFFLE-a2?

Yes.

N-h5

Gosh, it's hard to play any good strategy when unfamiliar with your army's strengths.  I'll try Waffle-e2

Nf4

FAD-b5

Bxb5

Pxb5

f5

Waffle-d2

You know, I don't know if you've figured out how to tell what Zillion's estimation of piece value is, but I'm quite convinced that it is very inaccurate at times, or I would not have traded my FAD for your bishop earlier.  It's really hard to tell, but I'm pretty sure that it's often wrong.

Pxe4

I think you're right about the Zillions' estimate. I don't think I should have made that trade with my bishop. It wasn't worth it. Besides, values are subjective anyway, depending on a person's personal strategy, the relative positioning of all the pieces, the pieces on either side, etc.

^Exactly.  It all just depends.  I could be wrong, and perhaps the trade was in your favor.  But on board as crowded as ours, with hardly any pawn trades but lots of pieces trades, I felt a bishop's range was more valuable than a FAD's orthogonal jump.

Forgot to type my move: Pxe4

Good, I was worried you'd take my knight.

N-h5

Nah, I wasn't sure it would be a good trade, especially at this point in the game.  I might have been wrong, though.

Waffle-c2

That's what I thought, but I think you would have come out just slightly ahead, and I was worried you'd think it was worth it.

c4

Bedexc4