Battle Chess is a pretty basic chess simulator. The pieces are animated and
fight each other when one is captured. You can set it to 2-Player, 1-Player, or
just watch the computer play against itself. There are multiple AI levels to
test your abilities. You can get hints from the computer or undo moves. You can
also set up the board any way you want for practice or to continue another game
you have written down. This guide contains instructions for playing the game,
but no strategies. I'm not very good at chess, so I don't think you'd want my
advice.
===================
(4) How to Play
===================
The goal of Chess is to capture the other player's pieces and eventually their
king. Capturing the king is called a "checkmate," and doing so wins you the
game. It is played on an 8x8 square board with black and white squares. The
pieces are placed on opposite sides. This is what it will look like before play
has started:
_________________________________________________
| | | | | | | | |
| R | Kn | B | Q | K | B | Kn | R |
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____| Blue Player
| | | | | | | | |
| P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P |
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|
| | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | Legend
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____| ----------
| | | | | | | | | R = Rook
| | | | | | | | | Kn = Knight
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____| B = Bishop
| | | | | | | | | Q = Queen
| | | | | | | | | K = King
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____| P = Pawn
| | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | |
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|
| | | | | | | | |
| P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P |
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|
| | | | | | | | | Red Player
| R | Kn | B | Q | K | B | Kn | R |
|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|_____|
As you can see, the red pieces are on the bottom and the blue are on top. The
red player always goes first. Both players have a row of 8 pawns before them.
They are not very powerful, but are good for defense. To move a piece, select
it with the cursor and move it to a valid space. Each kind of piece has certain
movements patterns, so you have to move it to a legal space. When you do so,
the piece will walk to the square and the opponent will move. To capture a
piece, the opponent must have one of his pieces on a square that one of yours
can move to (pawns must be diagonal, however). Simply move your piece on top of
theirs, and yours will fight and kill it in a small cut-scene.
There are 2 types of threats to a king. The first is a check. If any of your
pieces are in a position such that they can capture the opponent's king, you
place them in check. On their turn, they MUST move their king out of danger,
move another piece in front of it for defense, or capture the piece
threatening the king. If they are unable to do so, it is a checkmate and you
win the game.
The pieces all move differently. I will explain them each to you below.
Pawns
--------
The most common piece in the game. Each player has 8 of them, so they are not
too valuable. They can move 1 space forward per turn and attack diagonally.
They can NOT attack straight in front of them, only diagonally. They can't move
backwards either, so be careful. On their very first move, they have an option
of moving 2 spaces. The first move is the only time they can move more than one
space. If they make it to the farthest square on the other side of the board,
they will be automatically upgraded to a queen.
Rooks
--------
These are the castle towers on the far left and right of your bottom ranks.
They can move as many spaces as they need in one turn. They can move up, down,
left, or right but not diagonally. They can perform the special castling move
with the king (see below).
Knights
----------
Knights are the only pieces that can jump over other pieces without capturing.
They move in an L shape, 2 spaces in one direction then 1 space another way (or
1 then 2). For example:
_____________
| O | | O | If the knight starts at the X, he can move 2 spaces up then
|___|___|___| 1 space either right or left to an O, even if other pieces
| | | | are in its way. As long as the path is an L with 2 spaces
|___|___|___| one way and 1 another, it is a legal move.
| | X | |
|___|___|___|
Bishops
----------
The bishops are very similar to rooks, only they move diagonally. They can go
as many spaces diagonally as they want. One of their disadvantages is that they
can not move onto a square of a different color. They are stuck on the color
they started on. The bishops can become very useful later in the game.
Queen
--------
The queen is by far the most powerful piece in chess. She can move any
direction as many spaces as she wants. She combines everything the rooks have
with what the bishops have. You can get more queens by moving your pawns to the
furthest square on the opposite side of the board. The queen can become very
useful for long distance attacks.
King
-------
The king is the most important piece. His capture signifies the end of the
game. You must do everything you can to protect him. He can move 1 space in any
direction. He is not allowed to move into a position of vulnerability. That is
to say, he can't move to a place where he might get captured by the opponent
next turn. The only time he can move 2 spaces is during the special castling
move, detailed below.
-----------
Castling
-----------
Castling can be a very important move in the beginning of the game. It is the
only time the king can move more than 1 space. The technique allows the king to
be defended by the castle early into the game. It can only be performed if
neither the king nor the right rook has moved. The path between them must also
be clear. To use it, select the king and move him 2 spaces to the right. He
will move over, and the rook will walk to the other side of him. This technique
allows extra defense for the king and is particularly helpful if there are
still several pawns above it.
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(5) The Options Menu
========================
Pushing Select during the game will open up the options menu. There are 3 tabs,
"Move," "Settings," and "Level." Choose one and press Down to see the options
under them. For more details on each section, see below.
The Move Tab
---------------
New Game - This clears the board and starts a new game.
Setup Board - This mode lets you move pieces around the board with the cursor
to any setup you want. When you are done arranging them, press Select to go
back to the menu. It will ask you if you want to clear the board, restore it
to its previous state, or save the changes you made with Done.
Take Back - Use this option to undo your last move.
Replay - This replays the last move.
Suggest Move - Use this to get a hint from the computer for a good move.
The Settings Tab
-------------------
3D/2D Pieces - Switch between these to choose the style of pieces. 3D is the
default set, and the 2D set is more like real chess pieces.
Human/Nintendo - Red - Choose who controls the red pieces, a human or the AI.
Human/Nintendo - Blue - Choose who controls the red pieces, a human or the AI.
The Level Tab
----------------
Choose how smart you want the computer players to be. Novice is easiest, Level
5 is the hardest.
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=====================================
(6) Copyright/Contact Information
=====================================
This document is Copyright (C)2005 Revned.
Battle Chess and everything else related to the game are Copyright (C)1988
Interplay Productions and (C)1990 Data East.
This FAQ may not be posted anywhere without my permission. Currently,
www.gamefaqs.com and www.neoseeker.com are the ONLY sites with my permission.
If you find it posted anywhere else, please inform me.
If you have any questions, comments or concerns, email me at:
revned (-at-) gmail (-dot-) com
