/usr/share/games/shogivar/DaiDai.rul is in shogivar-data 1.55b-1.
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 | " INTRODUCTION
==============
The first recorded mention of Dai-Dai Shogi (Great Great Shogi) dates from
the late sixteenth century, and the oldest surviving record of the moves
of the pieces is in Nishizawa Teijin's SHO SHOGI ZUSHIKI, published in
1694.
Dai-Dai Shogi boasts no less than 64 different types of piece and has an
asymmetrical starting set-up.
The 'promotion by capture' rules and the presence of the very powerful
'Hook Movers' make Dai-Dai Shogi a very different game from the smaller
variants. Nevertheless, careful and deliberate development of the pieces
is still as important in Dai-Dai Shogi as it is in games such as Chu or
Dai.
As in the other larger variants, there is no provision for returning captured
pieces into play in Dai-Dai Shogi.
THE GAME
=========
Dai-Dai Shogi is played on a board of 17 x 17 squares and each player has
96 pieces (including 17 pawns).
As in all Shogi games, the pieces are flat and wedge-shaped and are not
distinguished by colour. Although the pieces are of uniform colour the
first player is still conventionally referred to as 'Black' and the second
player as 'White'. Ownership of the pieces is indicated by the direction
in which they face, with a player's pieces always pointing towards the
opponent.
The players make alternate moves, with the object being to capture the
opposing 'King'.
On each turn a player can move one piece according to its power of
movement to a vacant square on the board, or to a square occupied by an
enemy piece (in which case the enemy piece is captured and removed from
the game).
In the case of the 'Lion' and pieces with 'Lion' power a second move can
sometimes be made in the same turn.
THE PIECES
===========
The Piece Help screen provides the names, notation symbols, promotion
details, and powers of movement for all of the pieces in the game.
[The Piece Help screen can be reached by clicking on the 'Pieces' button]
JUMPING PIECES
===============
The 'Kylin','Phoenix' and 'Poisonous Snake'(and those pieces with 'Lion'
powers) have the power to jump over occupied squares. As indicated by red
circles on the Piece Help screens, the 'Kylin' can jump to the second
square in any orthogonal direction, the 'Phoenix' may jump to the second
square when moving diagonally, and the 'Poisonous Snake' can jump to the
2nd square directly forwards or in the reverse diagonal directions. The
pieces shown on the 'Piece Help Screen' as having moves of 2, 3 or 5
squares can only move more than one square in the directions indicated if
the intervening squares are unoccupied (ie: they can not jump).
THE LION
=========
The 'Lion' has a very unusual and powerful move.
If the 8 squares immediately adjacent to the 'Lion' are called the 'A'
squares (shown as Dark Blue Circles on the Piece Help screen), and the 16
squares two away from the piece are called the 'B' squares (represented as
Light Blue Circles), then the 'Lion' may do anyone of the following things
in a single turn:
- Move directly to any 'A' or 'B' square, jumping an intervening square
if necessary;
- Capture a piece on an 'A' square and continue moving one more square
in any direction from the point of capture, making another capture if
the 2nd square is also occupied by an enemy piece.
- Capture a piece on any 'A' square without moving (this is known as
'igui' and counts as a turn).
- Move to an adjacent square and return to the starting square
(effectively passing the turn). This move can be made by double-
clicking the left mouse button on the Lion.
In Dai-Dai Shogi there are no restrictions on the capture of Lions (as
there are in Chu Shogi).
On promoting to 'Furious Fiend' the 'Lion' gains the power of the 'Lion
Dog' (ie: it can move up to 3 squares in any orthogonal or diagonal
direction). The 'Furious Fiend' can move as either a 'Lion' or 'Lion
Dog' on any one turn (it can not combine the two powers in the same move).
HOOK MOVERS
============
The most powerful pieces in Dai-Dai Shogi are the hook movers.
The 'Hook Mover' itself has a Double Rook move, being able to move any
number of squares in any orthogonal direction, immediately followed by a
further move at right angles to the first. The two legs of the 'Hook Mover'
move do not have to be of the same length, and it is not compulsory that
it make the 2nd Rook move. To give some idea of the power of this move it
is worth noting that the 'Hook Mover' on an empty board would be able to
reach any square in one turn! The 'Hook Mover' is not a jumping piece,
and must end its move on making a capture.
The 'Long-Nosed Goblin' has hook moving powers in the diagonal directions
(ie: it is effectively a Double Bishop), and in addition has the power to
move one square orthogonally.
PROMOTION
==========
The promotion rules in Dai-Dai Shogi (and its larger cousins) are very
different from those in the smaller variants. In Dai-Dai there are no
Promotion Zones. A piece is promoted when it captures of an enemy piece.
If a piece has a promoted rank and makes a capture, promotion is
compulsory.
A piece that reaches the last rank of the board and does not have the power
to retreat is left in play on the last rank until captured.
As in all the games in the Shogi family, in Dai-Dai Shogi sets the promoted
rank is shown on the reverse side of the piece, and the piece is turned
over on promotion to reveal the new rank.
CAPTURES
=========
Unlike in Shogi, captured pieces in Dai-Dai can not be 'dropped' back into
play. A captured piece is removed from play and takes no further part in
the game.
HANDICAP PLAY
===============
Handicaps are often given when players of unequal strength play Shogi in
Japan. The reason that handicap play is common is that the handicap system
in Shogi works far better than that used in Western Chess.
In a handicap game a player offers a handicap of one or more pieces to an
opponent of less strength. While Dai-Dai does not lend itself to handicaps
as well as Shogi (as there are no 'drops' in Dai-Dai), provision for
handicap play has nevertheless been included in this program.
The same rules for handicaps as in Shogi have been adopted. Under these
rules, the player offering the handicap plays 'White'and his opponent (as
'Black') removes the handicap pieces as the first move of the game. In
handicap play 'White' therefore makes the first move on the board.
NOTATION
==========
The following notation system is used for recording Dai-Dai Shogi games in
this program.
The files are designated by numbers (1 to 17), and the ranks by letters
(a to q). The files are numbered from right to left (in the Japanese
fashion), and the ranks from top to bottom (from Black's point of view).
The top right square is therefore 1a.
A move is described by giving:
a) the designation of the piece (eg: Ln for Lion); this designation is
preceded by a '+' if it is at its promoted rank,
b) followed by the method of moving;
'-' for a simple move on the board,
'x' for a capture,
c) then the destination square is recorded,
d) finally if the piece promoted on that turn, this is recorded by
adding '+' after the move, or if promotion was possible but was
refused, the symbol '=' is added.
If more than one piece of the same type can reach the destination square
then the starting square is also given after the piece designation to
avoid confusion.
When a 'Lion', or 'Furious Fiend' captures by 'igui' (ie: without moving)
the square of the piece being captured is used instead of the destination
square, and this is preceded by the symbol '!'.
(eg: a Lion on 8c capturing a piece on 9d would be shown as Lnx!9d).
When a piece makes a double capture with 'Lion' powers both captures are
shown in the order that they were made. (eg: a Lion on 3g capturing a
piece on 3h and then capturing another on 2i, would be represented by
Lnx3hx2i).
NOTE: This system is the official notation system of 'The Shogi
Association'.
DISPLAYING LEGAL MOVES
=========================
If the 'Show Move' option is selected from the Moves Menu, clicking the left
mouse button on a piece during play will show all the legal moves of that
piece:
- Legal moves to vacant squares are represented as White Circles,
- Legal captures are shown as Red Circles.
- Legal moves by a piece with 'Lion' powers to an 'A' square (including
captures) are shown as a Dark Blue Circle.
- Legal moves by a piece with 'Lion' powers to a 'B' square (including
captures) are indicated by a Light Blue Circle."
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