Yari shogi

Yari shogi (槍将棋 yari shōgi, spear chess, where 'spear' is another name for the lance piece[1]) is a modern variant of shogi (Japanese chess); however, it is not Japanese.

[1] This game accentuates shogi’s intrinsically forward range of direction by giving most of the pieces the ability to move any number of free squares orthogonally forward like a shogi lance.

Two players, Black and White (or 先手 sente and 後手 gote), play on a board ruled into a grid of 9 ranks (rows) by 7 files (columns).

(The traditional terms 'black' and 'white' are used to differentiate the sides during discussion of the game, but are not literally descriptive.)

)[1] The yari knight can jump, that is, it can pass over any intervening piece, whether friend or foe, with no effect on either.

[1] Many pieces can move any number of empty squares along a straight line, limited only by the edge of the board.

If an opposing piece intervenes, it may be captured by moving to that square and removing it from the board.

[1] If a piece crosses the board within the promotion zone, including moves into, out of, or wholly within the zone, but not including drops (see below), then that player may choose to promote the piece at the end of the turn.

Betza's funny notation has been included in brackets for easier reference.

(fRffN) A yari knight that reaches the farthest rank must promote.

(fFfR) A yari bishop that reaches the farthest rank must promote.

They are retained "in hand", and can be brought back into play under the capturing player's control.

For this reason, it is common to sacrifice a pawn in order to gain flexibility for drops.

Unlike shogi, a pawn can be dropped when the opponent would have no way to prevent his general being captured on the next move.

There are two other possible (but fairly uncommon) ways for a game to end: repetition (千日手 sennichite) and impasse (持将棋 jishōgi).

The game reaches an impasse if both generals have advanced into their respective promotion zones and neither player can hope to mate the other or to gain any further material.

Note that the pieces removed at the beginning play no further part in the game - they are not available for drops.

The method used in English-language texts to express shogi moves was established by George Hodges in 1976.

A quick offense will leave a player's home territory open to drop attacks as soon as pieces are exchanged.

Dropping a pawn behind enemy lines, promoting, and dropping a second pawn behind it so they protect each other is a strong attack; it threatens the opponent's entire defense, but provides little of value if the attack fails and the pieces are captured.

If a player has more than a couple of captured pieces in hand, it is likely that dropping attacks are being overlooked.

For this reason, yari rooks are commonly kept at a safe distance in the early parts of the game, and are used to support attacks by weaker pieces.

However, as the most powerful piece on the board it invites attack, and it is a good idea to keep your general well away from your yari rook.

Advancing a yari rook pawn can open up the side of the board for attack.