(24.12.2013) Today is Christmas Eve! Here you can see three special Christmas problems by Juraj Lorinc, Kenneth Solja and Gabor Tar! I wish to all chess composers, solvers, players and KoBulChess.com visitors Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2014!

Gabor Tar            Kenneth Solja            Juraj Lorinc

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

1.Rxg3(Rh8) Bd4 2.0-0 Sh6#, 1.Rxf7(Ra8) Sf5 2.0-0-0 Se7#

Anti Circe: After a capture the capturing piece (Ks included) must immediately be removed to its game array square (necessarily vacant, else the capture is illegal). R, B & S go to the square of the same colour as the capture; Ps stay on the file of capture; fairy pieces go to the promotion square of the file of capture.

1 Sf4 Gf3 2 Kc6 Gb7 3 Kxb7=rG Sc5#, 1 Kc6 Sf2 2 Kd5 Gc5 3 Kxc5=rG+ Se4#

In Protean chess and Frankfurter chess the pieces transforms into the type of pieces they capture. When a king captures it retains its royal properties. Example Frankfurter game: Erich Bartel v. Otmar Gansler 1964; 1.e4 b6 2.Bc4 Bb7 3.Bxf7=P+ Kxf7=P 4.Nf3 Nf6?? 5.Ng5 mate. In the Protean version a captured pawn continues in the same direction, so a captured black pawn becomes a backward-moving white pawn, but in Frankfurter it moves according to its new colour.

Grasshopper (G): Hops on Queen lines over any one unit (the hurdle) to the next square beyond. 

   1.O7a6! (zz)

1...O7b7 2.Oc7 Obb6 3.Rb7 Oa7 4.Oab6 Oa6 5.Oa7 Ob6 6.Qc6 Oc5

7.Sb6 Oc4 8.Bc5 Ob4 9.c4 Oc3 10.Rab4 Oa4 11.Bc3 Ob2#

1...O6b7 2.Qc6 Oc5 3.Ob7 O5b6 4.Rdc5 Od5 5.Sb6 Oc4 6.Od5 Od4

7.c4 Oc3 8.d4 Od3 9.Rc3 Oc2 10.Rcd3 Oc3 11.Bc2 Ob1#

A kind of specific brain teaser.

Orphan: an immovable unit that has no power unless attacked by a unit of the opposite colour, when it takes the power of that unit and can transmit that power to other orphans.

No-Capture chess: Captures are illegal, but all other rules, including check (or mate), are orthodox.

My Chess Christmas tree...