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bluegargantuaTraitor! A chess variant:
Set up pieces as normal. Each player is randomly assigned a number from 1 - 8 which they write down and keep secret.
That number identifies a pawn of the opponent that is secretly a traitor working for the player.
1 = Queen's Rook Pawn
2 = Queen's Knight Pawn
3 = Queen's Bishop Pawn
etc. etc.
The traitor is used in one of three ways:
1.) On your move, you can reveal your number and the appropriate pawn of your opponent is replaced with a pawn of your color. It's now a pawn under you control and moves and acts like any other pawn you have.
2) When your opponent is about to use a pawn to capture one of your pawns/pieces, and it's your traitor pawn, you can reveal your number proving that pawn to be a traitor. Replace the traitor pawn with a pawn of your color. The pawn now moves and acts like a normal pawn of yours. The intended capture never takes place.
3.) Should your opponent advance the traitor pawn to the back rank, you must reveal it to be a traitor. The pawn is replaced with one of your color as above.
I had the idea that you could also reveal the traitor and then immediately capture an opponent's piece, but I think that would cause games to grind down -- you'd be trying to make space for your pieces to avoid getting traitor'd. Plus, you'd mostly want to use it on turn 1 to wipe out a piece.
Obviously, it's going to suck if you get a flank pawn for a traitor while you opponent has one of your central pawns, but I think it would be fun for the uncertainty factor.
Set up pieces as normal. Each player is randomly assigned a number from 1 - 8 which they write down and keep secret.
That number identifies a pawn of the opponent that is secretly a traitor working for the player.
1 = Queen's Rook Pawn
2 = Queen's Knight Pawn
3 = Queen's Bishop Pawn
etc. etc.
The traitor is used in one of three ways:
1.) On your move, you can reveal your number and the appropriate pawn of your opponent is replaced with a pawn of your color. It's now a pawn under you control and moves and acts like any other pawn you have.
2) When your opponent is about to use a pawn to capture one of your pawns/pieces, and it's your traitor pawn, you can reveal your number proving that pawn to be a traitor. Replace the traitor pawn with a pawn of your color. The pawn now moves and acts like a normal pawn of yours. The intended capture never takes place.
3.) Should your opponent advance the traitor pawn to the back rank, you must reveal it to be a traitor. The pawn is replaced with one of your color as above.
I had the idea that you could also reveal the traitor and then immediately capture an opponent's piece, but I think that would cause games to grind down -- you'd be trying to make space for your pieces to avoid getting traitor'd. Plus, you'd mostly want to use it on turn 1 to wipe out a piece.
Obviously, it's going to suck if you get a flank pawn for a traitor while you opponent has one of your central pawns, but I think it would be fun for the uncertainty factor.
