Mann (chess)
The mann (plural mannen[1]) or man is a fairy chess piece often used in chess variants. It moves like a king but is not otherwise treated as one (i.e., it has no royal power);[2] additionally, it cannot castle. In diagrams in this article, the mann is represented by an inverted king. Chess moves in this article use M as notation for the mann.
Movement[]
The mann moves as a king in chess (to any adjoining square) and is otherwise treated as a normal chess piece (i.e. can be captured; is not subject to check or checkmate). The mann is unable to castle. It is simply a ferz+wazir compound.
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Value[]
In general, the mann is approximately equal in strength and value to the knight. Often, it takes a few moves to get the mann properly developed in the opening. It is effective at close proximity, where its striking power is considerable. Although it is rather slow, the mann is excellent at both attacking and defending nearby pieces and pawns, similar to the king (Ward 1996:13). The mann reaches its peak strength during the endgame, in which its value is slightly more than a knight, despite being slightly less than a knight in the opening.[3] It is possible to force checkmate with a mann and a king against a lone enemy king; since the enemy king cannot move to attack either, it is quite easy to box the king into a corner.
History[]
The mann is one of the most simply described chess pieces and as such has a long history and has gone by many names.[a] A similar piece known as the dabbaba was described c. 950 in a form of chess on a 10×10 board.[2] The mann is used in Courier chess, invented in the 12th century and commonly played until the 18th century.[4] Many chess variants have used the mann; modern instances include:
- Chess on an infinite plane, as guard
- Quatrochess, as mann
- Roman chess, as archer or chariot
- Knightmate, as commoner
Examples[]
Each mann is represented by an inverted king in the following examples.
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a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | i | j |
Notes[]
- ^ Names including: Man (in Courier chess), der Mann (im Kurierschach), Rath, Counsellor, Sage.
References[]
- ^ [1]
- ^ a b Hooper & Whyld (1996), p. 244. Mann.
- ^ Betza, Ralph. "The WF (or Commoner)". The Chess Variant Pages.
- ^ a b "Courier chess". The Saint Thomas guild. June 21, 2014.
Bibliography
- Dickins, Anthony (1971) [Corrected repub. of 1969 2nd ed., The Q Press, Richmond, Surrey, England]. A Guide to Fairy Chess. New York: Dover Publications Inc. ISBN 0-486-22687-5.
- Hooper, David; Whyld, Kenneth (1996) [First pub. 1992]. The Oxford Companion to Chess (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-280049-3.
- Ward, Chris (1996). Endgame Play. Batsford. ISBN 0-7134-7920-5.
External links[]
- Roman Chess brief overview
- Knightmate brief overview
- Fairy chess pieces