From 79b59f9b30fb6a1fdf8c3efb446271f7cb00d434 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Markus Uhlin Date: Thu, 7 Dec 2023 21:31:49 +0100 Subject: FICS 1.6.2 --- data/help/bughouse | 126 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 126 insertions(+) create mode 100644 data/help/bughouse (limited to 'data/help/bughouse') diff --git a/data/help/bughouse b/data/help/bughouse new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7ce44e1 --- /dev/null +++ b/data/help/bughouse @@ -0,0 +1,126 @@ +bughouse + + Bughouse (or siamese chess) is a "wild" variant of chess played between two +player teams on two separate boards. The special feature of the game is that +pieces you capture are transferred to your partner, who is playing with the +opposite color pieces from yourself. He may "drop" such a piece on an empty +square as a subsequent move in his game. + + +STARTING A BUGHOUSE MATCH + + First, use the "partner" command to select a partner. Next, find an +opponent team. You may use the Team channel for this purpose (channel 25), +and the command "who B" lists players who are members of a current bughouse +team. + + Then, one of your team challenges his desired opponent on the other team to +a "wild bughouse" match. (A useful alias for this is "alias bug match @ 2 12 +bughouse" where "bug user_name" is all you would need to type in order to +match user_name to a bughouse game.) + + When the match is accepted and all four players are present, then two games +are initiated simultaneously: one between the challenger and the challengee +with the desired colors, and one between the other partners, with colors +opposite from their partners. The same time control applies to both boards, +though "moretime" can be used independently on each board. Each player is +notified of the game number of their partner's game, so he may observe it as +well as playing in his own game. + + To help you form bughouse partnerships and bughouse matches, two channels +have been established: channels 24 and 25. Channel 24 is for matches and +channel 25 is for partnerships. + + +PLAYING BUGHOUSE + + As you play, you will be periodically notified when your partner passes you +captured pieces. You will be told the piece that was passed, and the set of +pieces that you are currently holding. You are also notified when your +opponent's holdings change. Both player's holdings are displayed whenever +your board position is refreshed. + + A new move notation is needed to drop one of your held pieces onto the +board. The notation for making a drop is "P@fr", where P is a piece you are +holding [PNBRQ] and "fr" is the empty destination square. + + You may talk to your partner. It is recommended to set up convenient +aliases for common messages, such as "I need a knight!!", "Don't give him a +bishop!", and "Are you out of your mind?!". The "ptell" command is used for +this purpose; only your partner will hear it. + + The match is finished when one player is checkmated, resigns, or is flagged. +At that point the wild ratings of *all* match players are adjusted, whether or +not the team result was because of their game. A draw request should be made +and accepted at *both* boards before the match is ended as a draw [a near +impossibility]. + + Note that checkmate is defined differently: there must be no *possibility* +of avoiding checkmate by a drop interposition. Even if your opponent is +holding no pieces that he can drop, he may later get a piece to interpose from +his partner. Thus, only contact and knight checks can give a "decisive" +checkmate. + + +RESTRICTIONS + + Pawns cannot be dropped onto your first or eighth rank, although they may be +dropped onto the seventh rank and promoted on the next move. + + Pieces that had been promoted revert to pawns when captured and passed to +your partner. + + Your partner variable is not saved between logins. You should set it prior +to starting your first bughouse match in a server session and when you want to +change partners. + + Observers should observe both games to see the full match. Kibitzes and +whispers, however, go to observers (and players) of *both* games. Observers +will also be notified of pieces transferred to each player's reserves. (Note +that kibitz can be used as a shortcut to tell your partner something if you +don't mind your opponents hearing it. It also makes the game more exciting +for the observers.) + + Strength assessment takes held pieces into account. + + This mode of play may break client interfaces. Contact the author of your +client to determine if you can play bughouse with it. If a client relies on +the board position rather than moves, things should work OK. No new styles +have been added to support bughouse. + + Because this is such a nonstandard type of play, there are a number of +commands that are not applicable to a bughouse game: + + 1. The move record is not saved. Adjournments and disconnections end both +games and the match cannot be resumed. (This leaves a lot of room for abuse, +but hey, bughouse is just for fun, guys!) Disabled commands are: adjourn, +sposition, mailstored, examine, mexamine, unexamine, backward, forward, +revert. + + 2. Simul commands cannot be used for bughouse games. [FDA regulation to +avoid frying the brains of the participants. :) ] + + 3. Takeback is disabled (for now). At best, takeback would work only on non- + +capture moves (including drops) to avoid having to take held pieces away from +the other game. + + 4. Switch is disabled (for now). + + 5. Moves, oldmoves, mailmoves and mailoldmoves do work during a game, but +they now break the PGN format, which doesn't allow drops. Moves are shown as +"P/@@-fr" and "P@fr" in the old and PGN formats. Only moves and drops are +recorded, not changes to a player's holdings. Theoretically, knowing the +duration of each move in both games allows you to reconstruct the holdings as +well. (But who'd want to analyze or store a bughouse game??) + + 6. Except for commands which terminate a game, commands affect only one of +the two games in a bughouse match. + + For notes on strategy in bughouse chess, see the "bughouse_strat" help file. + + +See Also: bughouse_strat match partner ptell set variables wild + +[Last Modified: December 17, 1995 -- Friar] + -- cgit v1.2.3