Game: Forum Chess
Rules
Make a legal chess move. One move per post. Consecutive posts constitute a chess game. The move notation should strictly adhere to the notation format defined below.
All forum members can participate. The same forum member can make multiple moves, i.e. several posts in a row. The posts that do not start with a move notation will be treated as a comment post.
The main challenge is to keep track of the legality of the moves. Everybody is individually responsible of keeping track of the progress of the game.
One aim of the game is to detect an illegal move during the game and to call it out. The post where an earlier move is called out as illegal should start with "Foul!" Then identify the rule-breaking post and explain the breach.
The caller will be the winner and the breacher will be the loser. A new game will start after a legitimate callout. Calling out one's own earlier post is, well, checkmating oneself.
Without calling out, the game may end according to ordinary chess rules. The player who can checkmate a king will be the winner in a game without losers. A draw will be a game without winners. A new game can be suggested abruptly without any conclusion to an ongoing game. There should be at least one other forum member agreeing to the new game.
Move notation format
The post describing a chess move should keep to the following notation format. The format should be complete, no omissions, shorthand or additions. Having a bad notation format in the chess move post is a reason for callout.
| Move # | Colour | Piece | From field | To field | Commentary |
| Example: | 3 | white | N | b2 | c3 | (optional) |
Move number is a number. One complete move in the game consists of a move by the white side followed by a countermove by the black side. That is, white moves, then black - these are the same number, and next move by white gets the next number.
Colour is the word "white" or "black", all lowercase.
Piece is a single capital letter denoting a piece.
K for king
Q for queen
R for rook
B for bishop
N for knight
Pawns are not denoted, i.e. a missing letter for a piece means that a pawn is being moved, for example
1black f7f6
From field and To field consist of a lowercase letter for file and a number for rank. Both fields are mandatory in the notation.
Separation of the notation elements
The notation elements can be separated by spaces, but not by any other separators, such as colons or commas. However, spaces between the notation elements are purely optional. For example, each of the following is good
1 white e2 e3
1 whitee2 e3
1whitee2e3
Misspelling in the notation is treated the same as misformatting and is a reason for callout. A move post cannot be corrected, i.e. a move post that indicates an edit in the forum software is treated the same as an illegal move.
Castling
Castling has its own notation. First, include move number and colour. After that, "0-0" indicates kingside castling and "0-0-0" indicates queenside castling. For example,
11black 0-0-0
Commentary
Commentary is optional. Commentary is separated from the move notation by space or newline. Checks, captures, en passant, checkmate etc. do not need to be noted, but can be noted in commentary in full sentences along with other commentary.
Posts that do not start with a move notation are treated as commentary.
Nothing in the commentary can constitute a reason for callout. Even if the commentary includes an image of the game status, true or false, it does not matter.
Formatting of callout post
The first word should be "Foul!" Then identify the offending post and explain the wrong move. In explanation, include an image of the status of the game and illustration of the illegal move. There should be at least one other forum member agreeing to the explanation.
Note
I devised the rules out of the blue by myself. The rules can be improved by modifying this first post upon suggestion.
Scorecard
| Date/Post id | Winner | Loser | Comment |
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Topic: Game: Forum Chess (Read 749 times)
