FLAG GRID

Copyright (c) 2004 Bill Taylor

This game is played in the following 9x9 square board:

 

BASE - Red has his bases on a1 and i9, while Green has them at a9 and i1. FLAG - The neutral stone starting at the center cell. TURN - On each turn, a player must move one of his stones. A stone moves (orthogonally or diagonally) a number of cells equals to the number of stones in its row or column.. Stones may jump friendly stones but not enemy ones. Stones may land on an empty cell, an enemy stone (which is captured) or on the flag. If a stone moves to the uncaptured flag, or captures an enemy stone with the flag, he captures the flag and keeps it until captured. GOAL - Wins the player that takes the flag into one of his own bases.

 

A starting example Red started. The initial moves were: 1. b8-d6 i7-g5 2. d6-e6 b2-b3 3. i3-i6 h8-g7 Both players are resisting the temptation of capturing the flag. If Red moves e6-e5, it will allow Green's g5:e5. In the last move, Green is threatening to capture the flag with g7:e5, while protecting with g5. At the same time, he is attacking g1 with g5, which may result on a piece advantage.

The move mechanism is based on Lines of Action. However, the game's goal provides a totally new dynamic, with lots of traps and threats starting already at the initial turns.

A possible variant (which could also be applied to LoA) is to change the move mechanism by stating that a friendly piece may be optional to compute the move range of a stone. As an example in the previous diagram, the Green stones at column 'g' could move 1, 2, 3 or 4 cells.

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Another version, also from 2004, was called Flag It:

• Played on a 13x13 board, with a new piece at the center, the Flag (the black piece in the next diagram), with this initial setup:

• Movement and capture as Lines of Action.
• If a piece moves to the uncaptured flag, or captures an opposition piece with the flag, he captures the flag and keeps it until captured.
• The object of the game is to take the flag to one's own home base (the colored dots in the diagram).

Here's a played match (* means the player captured the Flag).

     Bill     João            Bill    João
     ==============           =============
 1   d6-d7    j8-j7      14   g4-i4   k8-j9
 2   c7-g7*   c2-e4      15   f4-h4   h7-h9
 3   d7-h7    e4:h7      16   j11:h9  j9:h9
 4   g7-g4    i9-j9      17   h4-i5   h9-i10
 5  l11-j11   h10-8      18   i4-i7   i10:i7*
 6   e5-b8    g11-g8     19   i5:i7*  j7-k8
 7  k12:g8    b3-d3      20   j8      k9
 8   g8-e6    h8-g7      21   j9      j10
 9   b8-e5    g7:g4*     22   k10     resign
10   e6:g4*   d3-g6
11   g3:g6    j9:g6
12   e5-e6    g6:g4*
13   e4:g4*   k7-k8