Chess Game Variants
Chess Game Variants
Chaos Chess cards add a variety of exciting possibilities to standard chess. With these variants you
can stretch your Chaos Chess decks even further. Some make for a quicker game and some slower, but each highlights certain
aspects of the Chaos Chess rules, forcing players to adopt new strategies to avoid becoming chess roadkill!
If you like these and have any suggestions for other Chaos Chess Variants, Contact Us.
| Classic Variants | |
| CLASSIC CHAOS CHESS | |
| Concept | The way things used to be. This simple variant is closest to how Chaos Chess was originally played, way back in 1989! |
| Setup | Each player needs 3 tokens to represent Ultimate Counterspells. These tokens can be anything such as coins, but Imajewels are perfect. |
| Play |
Countering via the pitch method is not possible. Countering can only be accomplished by playing appropriate Chaos
Chess Cards or by "spending" one Ultimate Counterspell token. There is no limit to the amount of Ultimate Counterspell
tokens that can be spent in a single turn. However, nothing counters an Ultimate Counterspell, not even a Red Herring
or another Ultimate Counterspell. They are all-powerful and as such can be used to: (a) counter a card. (b) counter an event immediately after it is drawn. If you counter an event in this manner the player that drew the event does not draw a replacement card. (c) dispel any card in play, even an event. This ability can only be used in the AM (after move) phase. |
| Winning | Checkmate as normal. |
| Tips | Save those counterspells for life-and-death situations only! Best played as a series of 3 games. This game is best played using Advanced Chaos Chess' bluffing rules. |
| BATTLE ROYALE!!! Great 2 and 4-player variant! | |
| Concept | There is no such thing as check or checkmate. You win by destroying all of your opponent's pieces. |
| Setup | Each player starts with no cards and nobody draws cards on their first turn. Randomly determine who will go first. Play continues clockwise from that player. |
| Play | There is no such thing as check or checkmate. The King can move and capture up to 3 spaces in any direction. Kings are not immune to cards but instead are affected by them as if they were queens. If a pawn promotes it can choose to promote to a King in addition to the normal choices. |
| Winning | You must destroy all pieces that belong to all opponents. When a player loses all her pieces she is out of the game. The last player standing is the winner. |
| Tips | Watch yourself out there! |
| PILLARS OF POWER | |
| Concept | Each player has a pillar of power, a personal deck of 40 cards to draw from and manipulate. The pillar can be used to make special plays, but when it runs out of cards, you must finish the game using only what you currently have in hand or in play! |
| Setup | Divide a Basic Chaos Chess or Advanced Chaos Chess deck into two equal piles of 40 cards and give one pile to each player (larger decks are not recommended). These piles are known as the Pillars of Power. Each player draws 3 cards from their pillar of power. |
| Play |
Players can only draw from and manipulate their own pillar of cards, but share a common discard pile. Each player's
maximum hand size is 3 unless a card changes it. Once per turn a player can "tap" her pillar to either pay for a card
or counter a card. To do so the player must pitch a card from hand, then pitch cards from the top of her pillar of
power face up into the discard pile. The number of cards pitched from the pillar is equal to the cost of the card
played, or the cost to counter a card (3).
Therefore to play Iron Steed (cost 2), a player would pitch a card from hand and 2 from the top of her pillar for a total cost of 3 cards. To counter a card a player would pitch a card from hand and 3 from top of her pillar for a total cost of 4 cards. If an event card is pitched from the Pillar of Power it immediately enters play but you do not draw a replacement card. When a player has no more cards in his or her pillar they do not reshuffle the deck. NOTE: Playing and countering cards from the pillar can only be done once per turn, but can be done in addition to other "standard" plays. Therefore players may be able to afford to pay for a card from hand AND play a card using the pillar in the same turn, or even play a card and counter another in the same turn! |
| Winning | Checkmate as normal. |
| Tips | Tap your Pillar to play cards with a cost of 2 or more. Cards that increase your hand size can be a great advantage. |
| IRON MAN | |
| Concept | Each player can only play up to 5 cards all game! |
| Setup | Each player needs 5 tokens to represent Power Plays. These tokens can be anything such as coins, but Imajewels are perfect. Each player draws 7 cards and discards down to 3. |
| Play | There is no limit to hand size. If you have 3 or more cards in hand skip your draw phase. There is no pitching or countering using the pitch method. During your AM phase you may discard up to 1 card if you so choose. Once during each turn you may pay a Power Play token to play a single card from your hand as if you had pitched up to 4 cards towards it's cost. You must be able to satisfy all other conditions of playing the card. When you spend your last Power Play token discard your entire hand. Skip your draw phase for the rest of the game and immedately discard any cards you happen to draw. |
| Winning | Checkmate as normal. |
| Tips | Expensive cards are often powerful and extremely useful, as are any cards that allow you to draw more cards. Permanents can make the best types of cards to play. This game is all about mixing chess strategy with just a few twists in the game. You might quickly organize a powerful starting position and then use your chess abilities to finish your opponent. You might instead play the patience game, defending with standard chess moves and holding your Power Play tokens in anticipation of drawing the "perfect" card. |
| Multiplayer Variants | |
| BATTLE ROYALE!!! See above. | |
| 4-PLAYER PARTNERS | |
| Concept | Some chess boards have been designed to allow 4 players to play. If you have such a board, use this variant to make things even more exciting! |
| Setup | Choose partners. Partners must sit adjacent to each other. Each player starts with no cards, and players do not draw on their first turn. Randomly determine who will go first. The person across from that player goes second, the player to her left (his partner) goes third, and the player to her right goes fourth. |
| Play | Play is as normal except for the following exceptions. Maximum hand size is 6 cards. When declaring a card, you ask the opponent across from you if she wants to counter it. If she declines, your can offer your partner the chance to modify the card by paying any additional costs that he can legally pay (additional costs appear in a card's game text). Finally, you must offer your other opponent the chance to counter the card. You cannot show or tell your partner what you have in your hand. When the first player is checkmated she must remove her cards and pieces from play and discard her hand. Whenever it would be her turn, her partner plays instead, effectively gaining an extra turn each round of play. If the game does not end when the second player is checkmated, then play resumes as it would in a two player game. |
| Winning | You and your partner must checkmate both of your opponents. |
| Tips | Communicate with your partner and try to economize the cards you both use! Play good cards on your partner's pieces as well as your own! |
| 4-PLAYER PARTNERS ON 2-PLAYER BOARD | |
| Concept | Players share a set of pieces and battle in teams of two - and everybody has a King! |
| Setup | Players sit side-by-side in teams of two. Each player controls 8 pieces on one-half of their side of the board. Kings are also Queens and Queens are also Kings (per the Combined Pieces rule in Advanced Chaos Chess). Therefore each player controls 4 Pawns, 1 Rook, 1 Knight, 1 Bishop, and 1 King/Queen hybrid. Players start with no cards in hand and nobody draws cards on their first turn. Randomly determine who side will go first. The player on the left of that side goes first, and play then continues clockwise. |
| Play | Use the optional rule: Partners Share Pieces. When declaring a card, the opponent across from you is the only one that can attempt to counter it. However, if the card targets a different opponent or a piece another opponent controls, then that opponent is the only one that can counter it. You and your partner can discuss strategy. |
| Winning | Crush all your enemies by creating the final checkmate. Each time a player is checkmated, she must remove all her pieces and cards from play until only 2 players remain. |
| Tips | This can also be fun with the optional rule: Partners Share 1 Hand! |
| 4-PLAYER FREE-FOR-ALL | |
| Concept | Some chess boards have been designed to allow 4 players to play. If you have such a board, use this variant to make things even more exciting! |
| Setup | Each player starts with no cards and nobody draws cards on their first turn. Randomly determine who will go first. Play continues clockwise from that player. |
| Play | Play is as normal except for the following exceptions. Maximum hand size is 6 cards. During the draw phase, draw 2 cards instead of 1. When declaring a card, the opponent across from you is the only one that can attempt to counter it. However, if the card targets a different opponent or a piece another opponent controls, then that opponent is the only one that can counter it. |
| Winning | Crush all your enemies by creating the final checkmate. Each time a player is checkmated, she must remove all her pieces and cards from play until only 2 players remain. |
| Tips | On a 4-player board movement is key. Try to play cards that permanently enhance a piece's ability to move or capture. |