~ubuntu-branches/ubuntu/quantal/gnushogi/quantal : revision 8

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@setfilename gnushogi.info

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@settitle GNU Shogi manual

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@c ==================================

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@c Summary description and copyright.

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@c ==================================

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@ifinfo

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This file describes how to use GNU shogi,

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a program which plays Shogi (Japanese chess).

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Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of

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this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice

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are preserved on all copies.

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@ignore

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Permission is granted to process this file through TeX and print the

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results, provided the printed document carries copying permission

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notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph

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(this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).

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@end ignore

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Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this

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manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the entire

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resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a permission

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notice identical to this one.

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Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual

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into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions,

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except that this permission notice may be stated in a translation approved

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by the Free Software Foundation.

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@end ifinfo

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@c =========================================

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@c End of summary description and copyright.

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@c =========================================

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@c ====================

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@c Title and copyright.

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@c ====================

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@titlepage

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@sp 10

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@comment The title is printed in a large font.

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@center @titlefont{GNU Shogi (Japanese chess)}

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@author Mike Vanier

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@c The following two commands start the copyright page.

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@page

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@vskip 0pt plus 1filll

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Copyright @copyright{} 1999 Michael C. Vanier and the Free Software Foundation

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@end titlepage

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@c ===========================

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@c End of title and copyright.

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@c ===========================

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@c =========================

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@c Top node and master menu.

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@c =========================

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@node Top, (dir), (dir), (dir)

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@top GNU Shogi (Japanese chess)

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@ifinfo

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@menu

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* Introduction:: What is GNU shogi?

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* License:: The GNU General Public License.

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* About shogi:: General information, rules, etc.

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* gnushogi:: How to play GNU shogi (gnushogi).

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* xshogi:: The X interface to GNU shogi.

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* References and links:: Where to go for more information.

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* Acknowledgements::

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* Bugs:: Where and how to report bugs.

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* Index::

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@end menu

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@end ifinfo

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@iftex

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This document describes GNU shogi, a program which plays Japanese chess

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(shogi) against a human opponent.

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@end iftex

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@c ================================

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@c End of top node and master menu.

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@c ================================

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@c =====

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@c Body.

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@c =====

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@node Introduction, License, Top, Top

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@chapter Introduction

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@cindex Introduction

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GNU shogi is a program that plays shogi, the Japanese version of chess,

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against a human (or computer) opponent. This file describes how to use

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GNU shogi and also gives background information about the game of shogi.

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This file describes GNU shogi version 1.3.2. It was written by me, Mike

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Vanier, the current maintainer of GNU shogi. My email address is

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@email{mvanier@@cs.caltech.edu}.

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GNU shogi is actually two programs:

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@sp 1

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@table @samp

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@item gnushogi

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is the text-based program which also contains the game-playing engine.

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@item xshogi

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is the X-windows graphical interface to gnushogi.

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@end table

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@sp 1

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Since xshogi invokes gnushogi, most players will just type ``xshogi''

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and start playing.

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Disclaimer: I use the personal pronouns ``him'', ``his'' etc. to refer

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to a shogi player regardless of gender. That's easier than writing

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``his or her'' all over the place. I don't mean to infer that women

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don't play shogi; in fact shogi is very popular in Japan among women as

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well as men.

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@node License, About shogi, Introduction, Top

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@unnumbered GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE

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@cindex License

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@cindex GPL

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@center Version 2, June 1991

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@display

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Copyright @copyright{} 1989, 1991 Free Software Foundation, Inc.

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675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA

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Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies

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of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.

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@end display

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@unnumberedsec Preamble

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The licenses for most software are designed to take away your

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freedom to share and change it. By contrast, the GNU General Public

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License is intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change free

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software---to make sure the software is free for all its users. This

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General Public License applies to most of the Free Software

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Foundation's software and to any other program whose authors commit to

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using it. (Some other Free Software Foundation software is covered by

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the GNU Library General Public License instead.) You can apply it to

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your programs, too.

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When we speak of free software, we are referring to freedom, not

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price. Our General Public Licenses are designed to make sure that you

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have the freedom to distribute copies of free software (and charge for

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this service if you wish), that you receive source code or can get it

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if you want it, that you can change the software or use pieces of it

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in new free programs; and that you know you can do these things.

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To protect your rights, we need to make restrictions that forbid

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anyone to deny you these rights or to ask you to surrender the rights.

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These restrictions translate to certain responsibilities for you if you

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distribute copies of the software, or if you modify it.

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For example, if you distribute copies of such a program, whether

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gratis or for a fee, you must give the recipients all the rights that

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you have. You must make sure that they, too, receive or can get the

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source code. And you must show them these terms so they know their

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rights.

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We protect your rights with two steps: (1) copyright the software, and

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(2) offer you this license which gives you legal permission to copy,

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distribute and/or modify the software.

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Also, for each author's protection and ours, we want to make certain

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that everyone understands that there is no warranty for this free

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software. If the software is modified by someone else and passed on, we

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want its recipients to know that what they have is not the original, so

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that any problems introduced by others will not reflect on the original

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authors' reputations.

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Finally, any free program is threatened constantly by software

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patents. We wish to avoid the danger that redistributors of a free

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program will individually obtain patent licenses, in effect making the

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program proprietary. To prevent this, we have made it clear that any

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patent must be licensed for everyone's free use or not licensed at all.

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The precise terms and conditions for copying, distribution and

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modification follow.

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@page

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@iftex

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@unnumberedsec TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR COPYING, DISTRIBUTION AND MODIFICATION

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@end iftex

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@ifinfo

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@center TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR COPYING, DISTRIBUTION AND MODIFICATION

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@end ifinfo

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@enumerate 0

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@item

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This License applies to any program or other work which contains

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a notice placed by the copyright holder saying it may be distributed

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under the terms of this General Public License. The ``Program'', below,

235

refers to any such program or work, and a ``work based on the Program''

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means either the Program or any derivative work under copyright law:

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that is to say, a work containing the Program or a portion of it,

238

either verbatim or with modifications and/or translated into another

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language. (Hereinafter, translation is included without limitation in

240

the term ``modification''.) Each licensee is addressed as ``you''.

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242

Activities other than copying, distribution and modification are not

243

covered by this License; they are outside its scope. The act of

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running the Program is not restricted, and the output from the Program

245

is covered only if its contents constitute a work based on the

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Program (independent of having been made by running the Program).

247

Whether that is true depends on what the Program does.

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@item

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You may copy and distribute verbatim copies of the Program's

251

source code as you receive it, in any medium, provided that you

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conspicuously and appropriately publish on each copy an appropriate

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copyright notice and disclaimer of warranty; keep intact all the

254

notices that refer to this License and to the absence of any warranty;

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and give any other recipients of the Program a copy of this License

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along with the Program.

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You may charge a fee for the physical act of transferring a copy, and

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you may at your option offer warranty protection in exchange for a fee.

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@item

262

You may modify your copy or copies of the Program or any portion

263

of it, thus forming a work based on the Program, and copy and

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distribute such modifications or work under the terms of Section 1

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above, provided that you also meet all of these conditions:

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@enumerate a

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@item

269

You must cause the modified files to carry prominent notices

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stating that you changed the files and the date of any change.

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@item

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You must cause any work that you distribute or publish, that in

274

whole or in part contains or is derived from the Program or any

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part thereof, to be licensed as a whole at no charge to all third

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parties under the terms of this License.

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278

@item

279

If the modified program normally reads commands interactively

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when run, you must cause it, when started running for such

281

interactive use in the most ordinary way, to print or display an

282

announcement including an appropriate copyright notice and a

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notice that there is no warranty (or else, saying that you provide

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a warranty) and that users may redistribute the program under

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these conditions, and telling the user how to view a copy of this

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License. (Exception: if the Program itself is interactive but

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does not normally print such an announcement, your work based on

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the Program is not required to print an announcement.)

289

@end enumerate

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These requirements apply to the modified work as a whole. If

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identifiable sections of that work are not derived from the Program,

293

and can be reasonably considered independent and separate works in

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themselves, then this License, and its terms, do not apply to those

295

sections when you distribute them as separate works. But when you

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distribute the same sections as part of a whole which is a work based

297

on the Program, the distribution of the whole must be on the terms of

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this License, whose permissions for other licensees extend to the

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entire whole, and thus to each and every part regardless of who wrote it.

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Thus, it is not the intent of this section to claim rights or contest

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your rights to work written entirely by you; rather, the intent is to

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exercise the right to control the distribution of derivative or

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collective works based on the Program.

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In addition, mere aggregation of another work not based on the Program

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with the Program (or with a work based on the Program) on a volume of

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a storage or distribution medium does not bring the other work under

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the scope of this License.

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311

@item

312

You may copy and distribute the Program (or a work based on it,

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under Section 2) in object code or executable form under the terms of

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Sections 1 and 2 above provided that you also do one of the following:

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@enumerate a

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@item

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Accompany it with the complete corresponding machine-readable

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source code, which must be distributed under the terms of Sections

320

1 and 2 above on a medium customarily used for software interchange; or,

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@item

323

Accompany it with a written offer, valid for at least three

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years, to give any third party, for a charge no more than your

325

cost of physically performing source distribution, a complete

326

machine-readable copy of the corresponding source code, to be

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distributed under the terms of Sections 1 and 2 above on a medium

328

customarily used for software interchange; or,

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@item

331

Accompany it with the information you received as to the offer

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to distribute corresponding source code. (This alternative is

333

allowed only for noncommercial distribution and only if you

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received the program in object code or executable form with such

335

an offer, in accord with Subsection b above.)

336

@end enumerate

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The source code for a work means the preferred form of the work for

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making modifications to it. For an executable work, complete source

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code means all the source code for all modules it contains, plus any

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associated interface definition files, plus the scripts used to

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control compilation and installation of the executable. However, as a

343

special exception, the source code distributed need not include

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anything that is normally distributed (in either source or binary

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form) with the major components (compiler, kernel, and so on) of the

346

operating system on which the executable runs, unless that component

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itself accompanies the executable.

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349

If distribution of executable or object code is made by offering

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access to copy from a designated place, then offering equivalent

351

access to copy the source code from the same place counts as

352

distribution of the source code, even though third parties are not

353

compelled to copy the source along with the object code.

354

355

@item

356

You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Program

357

except as expressly provided under this License. Any attempt

358

otherwise to copy, modify, sublicense or distribute the Program is

359

void, and will automatically terminate your rights under this License.

360

However, parties who have received copies, or rights, from you under

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this License will not have their licenses terminated so long as such

362

parties remain in full compliance.

363

364

@item

365

You are not required to accept this License, since you have not

366

signed it. However, nothing else grants you permission to modify or

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distribute the Program or its derivative works. These actions are

368

prohibited by law if you do not accept this License. Therefore, by

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modifying or distributing the Program (or any work based on the

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Program), you indicate your acceptance of this License to do so, and

371

all its terms and conditions for copying, distributing or modifying

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the Program or works based on it.

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@item

375

Each time you redistribute the Program (or any work based on the

376

Program), the recipient automatically receives a license from the

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original licensor to copy, distribute or modify the Program subject to

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these terms and conditions. You may not impose any further

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restrictions on the recipients' exercise of the rights granted herein.

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You are not responsible for enforcing compliance by third parties to

381

this License.

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383

@item

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If, as a consequence of a court judgment or allegation of patent

385

infringement or for any other reason (not limited to patent issues),

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conditions are imposed on you (whether by court order, agreement or

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otherwise) that contradict the conditions of this License, they do not

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excuse you from the conditions of this License. If you cannot

389

distribute so as to satisfy simultaneously your obligations under this

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License and any other pertinent obligations, then as a consequence you

391

may not distribute the Program at all. For example, if a patent

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license would not permit royalty-free redistribution of the Program by

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all those who receive copies directly or indirectly through you, then

394

the only way you could satisfy both it and this License would be to

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refrain entirely from distribution of the Program.

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If any portion of this section is held invalid or unenforceable under

398

any particular circumstance, the balance of the section is intended to

399

apply and the section as a whole is intended to apply in other

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circumstances.

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402

It is not the purpose of this section to induce you to infringe any

403

patents or other property right claims or to contest validity of any

404

such claims; this section has the sole purpose of protecting the

405

integrity of the free software distribution system, which is

406

implemented by public license practices. Many people have made

407

generous contributions to the wide range of software distributed

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through that system in reliance on consistent application of that

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system; it is up to the author/donor to decide if he or she is willing

410

to distribute software through any other system and a licensee cannot

411

impose that choice.

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413

This section is intended to make thoroughly clear what is believed to

414

be a consequence of the rest of this License.

415

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@item

417

If the distribution and/or use of the Program is restricted in

418

certain countries either by patents or by copyrighted interfaces, the

419

original copyright holder who places the Program under this License

420

may add an explicit geographical distribution limitation excluding

421

those countries, so that distribution is permitted only in or among

422

countries not thus excluded. In such case, this License incorporates

423

the limitation as if written in the body of this License.

424

425

@item

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The Free Software Foundation may publish revised and/or new versions

427

of the General Public License from time to time. Such new versions will

428

be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in detail to

429

address new problems or concerns.

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431

Each version is given a distinguishing version number. If the Program

432

specifies a version number of this License which applies to it and ``any

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later version'', you have the option of following the terms and conditions

434

either of that version or of any later version published by the Free

435

Software Foundation. If the Program does not specify a version number of

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this License, you may choose any version ever published by the Free Software

437

Foundation.

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439

@item

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If you wish to incorporate parts of the Program into other free

441

programs whose distribution conditions are different, write to the author

442

to ask for permission. For software which is copyrighted by the Free

443

Software Foundation, write to the Free Software Foundation; we sometimes

444

make exceptions for this. Our decision will be guided by the two goals

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of preserving the free status of all derivatives of our free software and

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of promoting the sharing and reuse of software generally.

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@page

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@iftex

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@heading NO WARRANTY

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@end iftex

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@ifinfo

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@center NO WARRANTY

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@end ifinfo

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@item

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BECAUSE THE PROGRAM IS LICENSED FREE OF CHARGE, THERE IS NO WARRANTY

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FOR THE PROGRAM, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW. EXCEPT WHEN

459

OTHERWISE STATED IN WRITING THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND/OR OTHER PARTIES

460

PROVIDE THE PROGRAM ``AS IS'' WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED

461

OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF

462

MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS

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TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE PROGRAM IS WITH YOU. SHOULD THE

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PROGRAM PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME THE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING,

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REPAIR OR CORRECTION.

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@item

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IN NO EVENT UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW OR AGREED TO IN WRITING

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WILL ANY COPYRIGHT HOLDER, OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MAY MODIFY AND/OR

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REDISTRIBUTE THE PROGRAM AS PERMITTED ABOVE, BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR DAMAGES,

471

INCLUDING ANY GENERAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING

472

OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE PROGRAM (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED

473

TO LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY

474

YOU OR THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE OF THE PROGRAM TO OPERATE WITH ANY OTHER

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PROGRAMS), EVEN IF SUCH HOLDER OR OTHER PARTY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE

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POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

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@end enumerate

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@iftex

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@heading END OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS

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@end iftex

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@ifinfo

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@center END OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS

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@end ifinfo

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@page

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@unnumberedsec How to Apply These Terms to Your New Programs

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If you develop a new program, and you want it to be of the greatest

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possible use to the public, the best way to achieve this is to make it

491

free software which everyone can redistribute and change under these terms.

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493

To do so, attach the following notices to the program. It is safest

494

to attach them to the start of each source file to most effectively

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convey the exclusion of warranty; and each file should have at least

496

the ``copyright'' line and a pointer to where the full notice is found.

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@smallexample

499

@var{one line to give the program's name and a brief idea of what it does.}

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Copyright (C) 19@var{yy} @var{name of author}

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This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify

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it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by

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the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or

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(at your option) any later version.

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507

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,

508

but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of

509

MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the

510

GNU General Public License for more details.

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512

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License

513

along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software

514

Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.

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@end smallexample

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Also add information on how to contact you by electronic and paper mail.

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519

If the program is interactive, make it output a short notice like this

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when it starts in an interactive mode:

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@smallexample

523

Gnomovision version 69, Copyright (C) 19@var{yy} @var{name of author}

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Gnomovision comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details

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type `show w'.

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This is free software, and you are welcome to redistribute it

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under certain conditions; type `show c' for details.

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@end smallexample

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530

The hypothetical commands @samp{show w} and @samp{show c} should show

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the appropriate parts of the General Public License. Of course, the

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commands you use may be called something other than @samp{show w} and

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@samp{show c}; they could even be mouse-clicks or menu items---whatever

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suits your program.

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You should also get your employer (if you work as a programmer) or your

537

school, if any, to sign a ``copyright disclaimer'' for the program, if

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necessary. Here is a sample; alter the names:

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@smallexample

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Yoyodyne, Inc., hereby disclaims all copyright interest in the program

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`Gnomovision' (which makes passes at compilers) written by James Hacker.

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@var{signature of Ty Coon}, 1 April 1989

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Ty Coon, President of Vice

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@end smallexample

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This General Public License does not permit incorporating your program into

549

proprietary programs. If your program is a subroutine library, you may

550

consider it more useful to permit linking proprietary applications with the

551

library. If this is what you want to do, use the GNU Library General

552

Public License instead of this License.

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@node About shogi, gnushogi, License, Top

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@chapter About the game of shogi

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@quotation

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``Japanese chess cedes nothing in depth or beauty to the European

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game... it is at least as interesting.''

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--- Alexander Alekhine @*

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(quoted in David Pritchard, @cite{The Encyclopedia of Chess Variants})

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@sp 1

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``... shogi [is] by far the most complex form of chess that has ever

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achieved widespread popularity.''

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--- R. Wayne Schmittberger, @cite{New Rules for Classic Games}

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@end quotation

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@sp 1

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Shogi is the version of chess played in Japan. It is strikingly

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different from standard chess (which I shall refer to henceforth as

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``international chess'') and also to all other regional variants,

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because captured pieces can re-enter play on the side of the capturer.

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This has several interesting effects on the play of the game:

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@sp 1

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@enumerate

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@item

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Shogi is much more complex than international chess, at least in

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terms of the average number of possible moves per turn (estimated at

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about 35 for chess and at about 80 for shogi).

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@item

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There are almost no draws (about 1-2% of all games in professional play).

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@item

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Exchanges complicate the play rather than simplifying it.

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@item

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There are no ``endgames'' in the standard chess sense; all pieces remain

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in play throughout the game. Games typically end in a race to

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checkmate the other player before being checkmated oneself.

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@item

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Ownership of a piece is not indicated by the color of the piece;

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instead, pieces are wedge-shaped and point towards the opponent. The

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name of the piece is inscribed in Kanji characters on the front of the

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piece.

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@item

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Most importantly: it's more fun than other forms of chess :-)

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@end enumerate

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@sp 1

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Shogi is extremely popular in Japan; it has been estimated that 20

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million Japanese can play shogi, of which perhaps 1 million are active

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players. It is even more popular there than the game of go, Japan's

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other favorite board game. There are a number of professional players

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who make a considerable amount of money playing in shogi tournaments,

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and the game receives extensive newpaper and television coverage.

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Despite this, the game has yet to become popular outside of Japan. Part

621

of this is because the Kanji characters on the pieces scare away some

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people, but mostly it's due, I think, to lack of exposure to the game

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and to the difficulty of finding opponents. I hope that GNU shogi will

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help introduce shogi to a wider audience.

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@ifinfo

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@menu

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* The rules of shogi::

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* Sample game::

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* Mating problems::

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* Shogi variants::

632

* Differences between shogi and chess::

633

@end menu

634

@end ifinfo

635

636

637

@c -------------------------------------------------------

638

@c

639

@c The rules of shogi.

640

@c

641

@c -------------------------------------------------------

642

643

@node The rules of shogi, Sample game, About shogi, About shogi

644

@section The rules of shogi

645

@cindex Rules

646

647

Shogi is a two-person abstract strategy board game with full information

648

(i.e. all pieces and moves are visible to both players at all times).

649

It is in the chess family, being descended from the same ancestral game

650

as international chess: the Indian game of Chaturanga. The two players

651

are referred to as ``Black'' and ``White'', with Black moving first

652

(unlike in international chess, where White moves first), and with

653

movement alternating between the two players. Note that ``Black'' and

654

``White'' are just names; the pieces are not colored. Instead, they are

655

flat, wedge-shaped pieces which point towards the opponent. The

656

identity of a given piece is indicated by two Japanese Kanji characters

657

on each piece. In fact, only the top character is needed to identify

658

the piece and thus only the top character is used in shogi diagrams. I

659

will use alphabetical equivalents in the diagrams here; to see what the

660

Kanji characters look like, start up xshogi (@pxref{xshogi}) and compare

661

the starting setup there with the starting setup in this file

662

(@pxref{The opening setup}).

663

664

The object of the game is to capture the opponent's King. The board is

665

a grid of 9x9 uncolored squares, and pieces are placed on the squares.

666

Each player begins with 20 pieces, described in the next section.

667

Capture is by displacement, as in international chess.

668

669

@ifinfo

670

@menu

671

* The moves of the pieces::

672

* The opening setup::

673

* Promotion of pieces::

674

* Drops::

675

* Winning the game::

676

* Draws::

677

* Handicaps::

678

* Notes for chess players::

679

@end menu

680

@end ifinfo

681

682

@c The moves of the pieces.

683

684

@node The moves of the pieces, The opening setup, The rules of shogi, The rules of shogi

685

@subsection The moves of the pieces

686

@cindex Piece moves

687

688

Each player at the beginning of a shogi game has a total of 20 pieces of

689

eight different types. The moves of the shogi pieces can be divided

690

into three classes: ``stepping'' pieces, that only move one square at a

691

time; ``ranging'' pieces that move any number of unobstructed squares in

692

a line, and ``jumping'' pieces that can jump over obstructing pieces to

693

reach their destination squares. Most pieces can also promote to

694

different (usually stronger) pieces under certain circumstances (see the

695

next section). All pieces capture the same way that they move (even

696

pawns). The piece moves and promotions are as follows; each piece name

697

is followed by the standard piece abbreviation:

698

699

@enumerate

700

701

@item

702

The king (K). The king can move one square in any horizontal, vertical,

703

or diagonal direction, just like the king in international chess. The

704

king does not promote.

705

706

@item

707

The rook (R). The rook can move any number of squares in a horizontal

708

or vertical direction. The rook is the same as the rook in

709

international chess (except that it can promote). A rook promotes to a

710

``dragon king'' or ``dragon'' for short (often just referred to as a

711

``promoted rook''), which can move as a rook or can move one square in

712

any diagonal direction.

713

714

@item

715

The bishop (B). The bishop can move any number of squares in a diagonal

716

direction. The bishop is the same as the bishop in international chess

717

(except that it can promote). A bishop promotes to a ``dragon horse''

718

or ``horse'' for short (often just referred to as a ``promoted

719

bishop''), which can move as a bishop or can move one square in any

720

horizontal or vertical direction. Note: the horse should not be

721

confused with a knight (see below), as they are two completely different

722

pieces.

723

724

@item

725

The gold general (G). A gold general can move one square in any

726

horizontal or vertical direction, or one square in a forward diagonal

727

direction. Gold generals do not promote.

728

729

@item

730

The silver general (S). A silver general can move one square in any

731

diagonal direction, or one square straight forward. A silver general

732

promotes to a gold general.

733

734

@item

735

The knight (N). A knight can move one square straight forward followed

736

by one square to either forward diagonal, jumping over intervening

737

pieces if any. In other words, a knight moves like its international

738

chess counterpart, but forward only. A knight promotes to a gold

739

general. The knight is the only jumping piece, as in chess.

740

741

@item

742

The lance (L). A lance can move any number of squares straight forward.

743

A lance promotes to a gold general.

744

745

@item

746

The pawn (P). A pawn can move one square straight forward. The pawn

747

captures the same way that it moves, in contrast to international chess.

748

There is also no initial two-space move for pawns and no

749

@emph{en-passant} capture. A pawn promotes to a gold general; a

750

promoted pawn is usually known as a ``Tokin''.

751

752

@end enumerate

753

754

755

@c The opening setup.

756

757

@node The opening setup, Promotion of pieces, The moves of the pieces, The rules of shogi

758

@subsection The opening setup

759

@cindex Opening setup

760

761

The opening setup for shogi is as follows:

762

763

@ifinfo

764

765

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

766

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

767

| wL | wN | wS | wG | wK | wG | wS | wN | wL | a @*

768

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

769

| | wR | | | | | | wB | | b @*

770

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

771

| wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | c @*

772

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

773

| | | | | | | | | | d @*

774

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

775

| | | | | | | | | | e @*

776

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

777

| | | | | | | | | | f @*

778

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

779

| bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | g @*

780

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

781

| | bB | | | | | | bR | | h @*

782

+---------------------------------------------+ @*

783

| bL | bN | bS | bG | bK | bG | bS | bN | bL | i @*

784

+---------------------------------------------+

785

@end ifinfo

786

787

@c The following TeX macros are taken with permission from

788

@c "TeX for the Beginner" by Wynter Snow.

789

790

@tex

791

\def\startline{\par\nobreak\noindent}

792

793

{\obeylines\obeyspaces%

794

\gdef\beginVerbatim{\bigbreak%

795

\begingroup%

796

\parskip=0pt%

797

\obeylines\obeyspaces%

798

\let^^M=\startline%

799

\tt}}

800

\gdef\endVerbatim{\endgroup\bigbreak}

801

\beginVerbatim

802

803

804

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

805

+--------------------------------------------+

806

| wL | wN | wS | wG | wK | wG | wS | wN | wL | a

807

+--------------------------------------------+

808

| | wR | | | | | | wB | | b

809

+--------------------------------------------+

810

| wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | wP | c

811

+--------------------------------------------+

812

| | | | | | | | | | d

813

+--------------------------------------------+

814

| | | | | | | | | | e

815

+--------------------------------------------+

816

| | | | | | | | | | f

817

+--------------------------------------------+

818

| bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | bP | g

819

+--------------------------------------------+

820

| | bB | | | | | | bR | | h

821

+--------------------------------------------+

822

| bL | bN | bS | bG | bK | bG | bS | bN | bL | i

823

+--------------------------------------------+

824

825

\endVerbatim

826

@end tex

827

828

@sp 1

829

830

Here, ``b'' stands for ``black'' and ``w'' stands for ``white'', so

831

that, for instance, ``bL'' means ``black lance''. The numbers above the

832

files and the letters to the right of the ranks represent the most

833

common notation system used for shogi by westerners (the Japanese also

834

use Arabic numerals for the files but use Japanese numerals for the

835

ranks).

836

837

838

@c Promotion of pieces.

839

840

@node Promotion of pieces, Drops, The opening setup, The rules of shogi

841

@subsection Promotion of pieces

842

@cindex Piece promotion

843

844

In sharp contrast to international chess, where only pawns can promote

845

to higher-ranked pieces, most of the pieces in shogi can promote. The

846

promoted ranks are discussed in the section on piece moves (@pxref{The

847

moves of the pieces}) but are repeated here for reference:

848

849

@table @asis

850

851

@item Pawn

852

promotes to gold general (called a `tokin' in this case only).

853

854

@item Lance

855

promotes to gold general.

856

857

@item Knight

858

promotes to gold general.

859

860

@item Silver general

861

promotes to gold general.

862

863

@item Gold general

864

does not promote.

865

866

@item Bishop

867

promotes to ``dragon horse'' or just ``horse'' for short. The horse can

868

move as a bishop or can move one square in any orthogonal direction.

869

870

@item Rook

871

promotes to ``dragon king'' or just ``dragon'' for short. The dragon

872

can move as a rook or can move one square in any diagonal direction.

873

874

@item King

875

does not promote.

876

877

@end table

878

879

@sp 1

880

881

The three ranks furthest away from each player constitute his/her

882

``promotion zone''. A player may, but is not required to, promote a

883

piece after making a move in which the piece begins and/or ends in the

884

promotion zone. Thus you can promote a piece when moving the piece into

885

the promotion zone, out of the promotion zone, or entirely within the

886

promotion zone. Promotion is mandatory in these cases:

887

888

@sp 1

889

890

@enumerate

891

892

@item You must promote a pawn or a lance after moving it to the last rank.

893

894

@item You must promote a knight after moving it to either of the last

895

two ranks.

896

897

@end enumerate

898

899

@sp 1

900

901

These forced promotions ensure that a piece cannot be moved to a square

902

from which it would have no further move.

903

904

Pieces ``dropped'' onto the board (@pxref{Drops}) always drop in the

905

unpromoted state, even if they drop into the promotion zone.

906

907

908

909

@c Drops.

910

911

@node Drops, Winning the game, Promotion of pieces, The rules of shogi

912

@subsection Drops

913

@cindex Drops

914

915

When a player captures a piece, that piece is not removed from play.

916

Instead, it becomes the property of the capturer and can re-enter play

917

by being placed on (almost) any vacant square during the player's move.

918

This is known as a ``drop'' and counts as a full move (in other words,

919

you can either move a piece on the board or drop a piece onto the board

920

during your move, but not both). All pieces drop in the unpromoted

921

state. Pieces may be legally dropped in their promotion zone, but they

922

do not promote on that turn.

923

924

There are several restrictions on drops:

925

926

@enumerate

927

928

@item A pawn may not be dropped onto a file if there is already an

929

unpromoted pawn belonging to the same player on that file. It is legal

930

to drop a pawn on a file which contains a @emph{promoted} pawn belonging

931

to the same player, however.

932

933

@item A pawn may not be dropped to give immediate checkmate on the

934

move. A pawn is, however, permitted to be moved on the board to give

935

immediate checkmate. This is a curious rule, and if anyone knows the

936

reason for it I would appreciate it if they would contact me and explain

937

it to me :-)

938

939

@item A pawn or piece may not be dropped onto a square from which they

940

would have no legal move. This means that pawns and lances may not be

941

dropped onto the last rank, and the knight may not be dropped onto the

942

last or second-to-last rank.

943

944

@end enumerate

945

946

It is entirely permissible (and often advisable) to drop a piece or pawn

947

between one's King and an attacking ranging piece. For this reason,

948

the final checkmating move is nearly always an attack on the King from

949

an adjacent square (except for an attack by a Knight).

950

951

Captured pieces are said to be pieces ``in hand''.

952

953

The drop is the primary distinguishing feature of Japanese chess, shared

954

with no other popular chess-type game. It gives shogi a very aggressive

955

quality, and dramatically increases the number of possible moves once a

956

few pieces have been captured. Another interesting feature of shogi is

957

that exchanges complicate play rather than simplifying it (as in

958

international chess), because of the drop rule.

959

960

961

@c Winning.

962

963

@node Winning the game, Draws, Drops, The rules of shogi

964

@subsection Winning the game

965

@cindex Winning the game

966

967

A game of shogi is won by capturing the opponent's king. In general,

968

this is done by checkmating the king: attacking the king in such a way

969

that the king cannot be defended no matter what the defending player

970

moves. Note, though, that there is no rule that requires a player to

971

defend a king which is being attacked. However, if he does not defend

972

his king, the opponent is entirely free to capture it on the next move,

973

thus winning the game. As in international chess, in practice most

974

games end by resignation when one player realizes that he cannot escape

975

checkmate.

976

977

978

@c Draws.

979

980

@node Draws, Handicaps, Winning the game, The rules of shogi

981

@subsection Draws

982

@cindex Draws

983

984

There are very few draws in shogi; only about 1-2% of professional games

985

end in a draw. One reason for this is that material can never be

986

depleted as in chess, because captured pieces are constantly re-entering

987

play as a consequence of the drop rule. In fact, most of the ways a

988

game can be drawn in chess are not allowed in shogi:

989

990

@sp 1

991

992

@itemize @bullet

993

994

@item Draws cannot be offered.

995

996

@item There is no fifty-move rule.

997

998

@item A stalemate counts as a win for the stalemater. Stated otherwise:

999

if you can't move, you lose.

1000

1001

@item Perpetual check is illegal (see below).

1002

1003

@end itemize

1004

1005

@sp 1

1006

1007

There are only two legal ways in which a draw can occur:

1008

1009

@sp 1

1010

1011

@enumerate

1012

1013

@item A position (including the pieces in hand) occurs 4 times with the same

1014

player to move (called ``Sennichite''). However, if this is caused by

1015

consecutive checks (direct attacks on the King, threatening to capture

1016

it on the next move) by one side, the player giving these checks loses

1017

the game. In other words, perpetual check results in a loss for the

1018

attacker who recreates the same position the 4th time.

1019

1020

@item Both players have moved their King into the the promotion zone (or they

1021

cannot be prevented from doing so) and the Kings cannot be checkmated.

1022

A King who has entered the promotion zone is known as an ``entering

1023

King''; due to the forward orientation of most shogi pieces, it is very

1024

hard to mate such a King. In that case the players may decide to count

1025

their pieces as follows: the King does not count, the Rook and Bishop

1026

count as 5 points, and all other pieces as one point. Promotion is

1027

disregarded. If both players have at least 24 points the game is a draw

1028

(called ``Jishogi''). If a player has less, he loses the game.

1029

1030

Of course, a player can refuse to count pieces when he still has mating

1031

chances or chances to gain material which would affect the outcome of

1032

the counting. There is no strict rule about what to do if this is not

1033

the case, but nonetheless a player refuses to count up (e.g. because he

1034

does not have enough points for a draw). It has been generally accepted

1035

that in such a case the game ends and the pieces are counted after one

1036

player has managed to get all his pieces protected in the promotion

1037

zone.

1038

1039

@end enumerate

1040

1041

@sp 1

1042

1043

@c Handicaps.

1044

1045

@node Handicaps, Notes for chess players, Draws, The rules of shogi

1046

@subsection Handicaps

1047

@cindex Handicaps

1048

1049

Unlike international chess, shogi has a well-established handicap system

1050

which is used when players of different strengths play against each

1051

other. Handicaps range from small to huge, which makes it possible for

1052

weak players to play against even very strong players and have an even

1053

chance of winning.

1054

1055

Shogi players are ranked as follows: the weakest rank is around 15

1056

``kyu'', which represents a beginner. 14 kyu is higher than 15 kyu, 13

1057

kyu is higher still, and so on until you get to 1 kyu. The next highest

1058

rank is 1 ``dan'', followed by 2 dan, 3 dan and so forth. The highest

1059

amateur rank is 6 dan; professionals go up to 9 dan. However,

1060

professional ranks are not the same as amateur ranks; a professional 1

1061

dan is @emph{much} stronger than an amateur 1 dan. This system is

1062

similar to that used by go players (and also other Japanese sports such

1063

as karate).

1064

1065

A handicap consists of the stronger player playing White and removing

1066

one or more pieces from his side of the board at the start of the game.

1067

These pieces are permanently removed from play; they are not in hand.

1068

1069

The following is a list of the accepted handicaps, from weakest to

1070

strongest. The degree of the handicap, represented by the position in

1071

the list, represents the difference in rank between the two players for

1072

which the handicap is appropriate. These rules are taken from the books

1073

``Shogi for Beginners'' by John Fairbairn and ``The Art of Shogi'' by

1074

Tony Hoskings (@pxref{References and links}) and, I believe, represent

1075

current Japanese practice.

1076

1077

@sp 1

1078

1079

@enumerate

1080

1081

@item

1082

The stronger player removes his left lance (on 1a).

1083

1084

@item

1085

The players play a two-game match; in the first game the stronger player

1086

removes his left lance (on 1a), while in the second game he removes his

1087

bishop.

1088

1089

@item

1090

The stronger player removes his bishop.

1091

1092

@item

1093

The stronger player removes his rook.

1094

1095

@item

1096

The stronger player removes his rook and left lance.

1097

1098

@item

1099

The players play a two-game match; in the first game the stronger player

1100

removes his rook and left lance (on 1a), while in the second game he

1101

removes his rook and bishop.

1102

1103

@item

1104

The stronger player removes his rook and bishop. This is usually called

1105

a ``two-piece'' handicap.

1106

1107

@item

1108

The stronger player removes his rook, bishop, and both lances. This is

1109

called a ``four-piece'' handicap.

1110

1111

@item

1112

The stronger player removes his rook, bishop, both lances, and both

1113

knights. This is called a ``six-piece'' handicap.

1114

1115

@item

1116

The stronger player removes his rook, bishop, both lances, both knights,

1117

and both silvers. This is called an ``eight-piece'' handicap.

1118

1119

@end enumerate

1120

1121

@sp 1

1122

1123

Another advantage of playing handicap games is that the handicaps alter

1124

the optimal strategy for both players. For instance, handicaps all have

1125

their own opening lines which may bear little or no resemblance to those

1126

used in non-handicap shogi. This means that when learning handicap

1127

shogi, you are essentially learning completely new games which use the

1128

same equipment!

1129

1130

The reader may wonder how on earth a player giving an eight-piece

1131

handicap, say, could possibly hope to win. Don't forget, though, that

1132

in shogi the opponent's pieces can be captured and then become part of

1133

one's own army. Thus, if the opponent plays badly enough, the number of

1134

pieces will soon even out.

1135

1136

1137

@c Notes for chess players.

1138

1139

@node Notes for chess players, , Handicaps, The rules of shogi

1140

@subsection Notes for chess players

1141

1142

Here are a few miscellaneous things that may confuse chess players.

1143

Some of these have been mentioned elsewhere, but they bear repeating.

1144

1145

@sp 1

1146

1147

@enumerate

1148

@item There is no queen.

1149

1150

@item Pawns capture the same way they move. There is no initial

1151

two-space pawn move and no @emph{en-passant} move.

1152

1153

@item There is no special castling move. There @emph{are} a large

1154

number of possible defensive formations referred to as ``castles''

1155

(@pxref{Sample game}) but there is no need for special moves to create

1156

them.

1157

1158

@item A given piece can only promote to @emph{one} other kind of piece.

1159

1160

@end enumerate

1161

1162

@sp 1

1163

1164

@c

1165

@c Sample game.

1166

@c

1167

1168

@node Sample game, Mating problems, The rules of shogi, About shogi

1169

@section Sample game

1170

@cindex Sample game

1171

1172

@c This will have to be spruced up for the TeX version...

1173

1174

This game was annotated by Pieter Stouten (@pxref{References and

1175

links}). I have made some minor corrections. Note that captures are

1176

denoted by the ``x'' symbol e.g. Rx3f and drops are denoted by the ``*''

1177

symbol e.g. R*3f. Check is indicated by a ``+'' after the move,

1178

e.g. R3f+. I recommend you use gnushogi/xshogi to play along with this

1179

game. In xshogi simply hit the ``Force Moves'' button after starting

1180

up, while in gnushogi enter the word ``force'' at the prompt. This will

1181

allow you to enter moves for both sides.

1182

1183

Note also that the move numbering system used here is the chess-type

1184

system where one move means one move by each player. The Japanese count

1185

one move made by each player as two moves.

1186

1187

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

1188

1189

Below you will find (the English translation of) an annotated game which

1190

was published in the Dutch Shogi magazine ``81'' and in the Dutch

1191

beginners booklet. It has proven to be a very useful game to explain

1192

some basic principles of Shogi. Also, it is a rather straightforward

1193

game compared to professional games where in most cases very diffuse

1194

middle game fights take place.

1195

1196

Pieter Stouten, 14th May 1990.

1197

1198

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

1199

1200

Black: Michael Trent (1-dan). White: David Murphy (2-dan).

1201

1202

1. P2f P3d 2. P2e B3c @*

1203

[ This move is necessary, as otherwise white can exchange pawns: 3. P2d

1204

Px2d 4. Rx2d. He would thus get a pawn in hand and open up his rook

1205

file. ]

1206

1207

3. P7f P4d @*

1208

[ White closes the bishop diagonal again. He plans to play ranging rook

1209

(the rook goes to 5b, 4b, 3 or 2b; a defensive strategy) and in that

1210

case he'd better avoid an exchange of bishops. One of the reasons is

1211

that he will have problems developing his pieces without leaving holes

1212

for bishop drops. ]

1213

1214

4. S4h R3b 5. P3f S4b 6. K6h K6b @*

1215

[ In general the rook plays an important role in the attacks. It is

1216

wise to move the king away from the area where the initial fights will

1217

be and both players act according to the Shogi proverb ``keep the rook

1218

and king apart''. ]

1219

1220

7. K7h K7b 8. P5f P5d 9. G4i-5h G4a-5b @*

1221

[ Both players use their second gold general to build their castle. ]

1222

1223

10. S6h @*

1224

[ In itself this move is not bad. However, it will become clear that

1225

black plans a quick attack and in that case it is wiser to omit this

1226

move. ]

1227

1228

10... S5c 11. P1f P1d @*

1229

[ The advance of the edge pawns must be timed very well. The remark at

1230

black's tenth move applies here too: this move is good if black wants to

1231

play a slow game, because it eliminates a future B1e. ]

1232

1233

12. P4f K8b 13. N3g S7b @*

1234

[ Black develops his knight in order to start an attack over the second,

1235

third and fourth files. White strengthens his king's position and

1236

awaits the attack. He aims at a counterattack as soon as black has

1237

broken through into the white camp. Probably white's breakthrough will

1238

take place later, but he has good compensation in the form of a stronger

1239

castle. This theme occurs very often in static rook versus ranging rook

1240

games. ]

1241

1242

14. P4e R4b @*

1243

[ Black starts his attack and white puts up a very passive defence. His

1244

rook has a hard task now to penetrate the black position. Moreover, he

1245

blocks his own bishop. It seems much better to start a counterattack

1246

with 14... P3e, later to be followed by B2b, B5a or Bx4d in order to use

1247

his rook more actively. ]

1248

1249

15. Px4d Sx4d 16. P*4e S5c @*

1250

[ 16... Sx4e is more active. A silver general is normally more valuable

1251

than a knight, but white gets two pawns in hand and black none, while

1252

the knight might come in handy for white too. ]

1253

1254

17. Bx3c+ Nx3c 18. P2d Px2d @*

1255

[ Black threatens to break through and white has to consider taking the

1256

pawn on 2d or starting a counterattack with Nx4e. If he chooses the

1257

latter, black can play Px2c+ followed by +P3c. The disadvantage is the

1258

black ``tokin'' (=promoted pawn) that white will get in his camp; the

1259

advantage is that it will cost black two more moves to promote his rook.

1260

Because white did not trust that the result after engaging in a

1261

``semeai'' (=mutual attack) with 18...Nx4e would give a positive result,

1262

he captured the pawn on 2d. Making the right decision in moments like

1263

this often makes the difference between a win and a loss: miss one

1264

attacking chance and you will be forced to defend the whole game until

1265

the unavoidable defeat; on the other hand, an unsound attack can destroy

1266

all ``aji'' (=potential, meaning possibilities, threats) without getting

1267

anything in return. ]

1268

1269

19. Rx2d Nx4e 20. Nx4e Rx4e 21. R2a+ P*4g @*

1270

[ Now it becomes clear why black's 10. S6h was not good. Had this move

1271

been omitted, then white would not have had the time to play 13... S7b

1272

and after R2a+ the gold on 6a would hang. Thus black would have kept

1273

``sente'' (=initiative). Instead of 21... P*4g, B*6d is a very good

1274

move, because after 22. P*2h black does not have a pawn in hand anymore

1275

and he is being threatened with the annoying 22... N*4f 23. G5g N3h+

1276

24. S4g +N4h also. Black can also counter 21... B*6d with 22. N*3g.

1277

White would then reply with 22... R4b 23. B*3c P*4g 24. Bx4b+ Sx4b. The

1278

white rook has played its role and instead of spending moves on saving

1279

it white starts to scatter black's defences by successive pawn drops on

1280

the fourth file: 25. Gx4g P*4f 26. G5g N*6e 27. G5h P4g+ 28. Gx4g P*4f.

1281

This analysis was provided by Kato Hifumi, 9-dan professional (the

1282

highest regular grade). Destroying the coherence of the enemy pieces

1283

(their shape) by dropping pawns is one of the most important Shogi

1284

techniques. With the actual move 21... P*4g white missed a good

1285

chance. ]

1286

1287

22. Sx4g P*4f 23. B*3g Px4g+ 24. +Rx6a +Px3g @*

1288

[ 23. B*3g seems pointless, but a closer look reveals that it is

1289

actually quite mean. On move 24 white cannot capture black's ``Ryu''

1290

(=dragon =promoted rook) with his silver: 24... Sx6a 25. N*7d K7b

1291

26. G*8b mate. By attacking the front of the white castle and

1292

threatening to mate him there, black has the chance to break down the

1293

white defences from the side. ]

1294

1295

25. +Rx5b S*6b @*

1296

[ Here 25... B*4d would be much better, because it is defensive and

1297

attacking at the same time. After e.g. 26. G*4c Bx9i+ 27. Gx5c black

1298

threatens 28. +Rx7b Kx7b 29. S*6a K8b 30. S*7a Kx7a 31. G*7b mate.

1299

White is one move quicker, however. He has the following beautiful

1300

``tsume'' (mating sequence where every move is check): 27... N*8f 28. Px8f

1301

S*8g 29. Kx8g B*9h 30. K7h Bx8i+ 31. K8g +B8i-8h 32. K9f L*9e mate.

1302

This illustrates the sharpness of Shogi: one move can make the

1303

difference between winning and losing. ]

1304

1305

26. P*4f Rx4f @*

1306

[ This move eliminates white's last chances. 26... R4b 27. +Rx4b Sx4b

1307

28. R*4a seems annoying, but after 28... B*3c 29. S7g B*3b white wins

1308

the rook and with his ``tokin'' on 3g there still is some hope. ]

1309

1310

27. N*6e +P4g @*

1311

[ White cannot defend anymore, so he starts a desperate attack. Black

1312

does not lose the right track, however. ]

1313

1314

28. Nx5c+ +Px5h 29. +Nx6b +Px6h 30. Gx6h N*8f 31. Px8f B*6i 32. Gx6i

1315

R4h+ 33. N*6h +Rx6h 34. Gx6h S*8g 35. Kx8g N*9e 36. K7h Resigns @*

1316

[ White resigns here, because after 36... B*8g 27. K7g his attack has

1317

petered out. ]

1318

1319

@page

1320

1321

1322

@c

1323

@c Mating problems.

1324

@c

1325

1326

@node Mating problems, Shogi variants, Sample game, About shogi

1327

@section Mating problems

1328

1329

One good way to improve at shogi is to solve mating problems. There are

1330

several types of these problems, but the most common is called a

1331

``tsume-shogi'' problem, or ``tsume'' problem for short. In a tsume

1332

problem, all pieces that are not on the board are assumed to be in the

1333

opponent's hand (except for your King, which is usually not shown).

1334

Every move you make must be check until the final checkmate. Your

1335

opponent may play any piece on the board or drop any of his pieces in

1336

hand in order to prevent the mate. In a properly constructed tsume

1337

problem, all of your pieces on the board and in hand must be essential

1338

to the solution. One consequence of this is that all of your pieces in

1339

hand must be played during the solution. There should only be one

1340

correct solution for the given number of moves. Tsume problems use

1341

Japanese-style move numbering; thus, a problem where you move (and give

1342

check), your opponent moves, and you move to give checkmate is called a

1343

three-mover. Here is a really trivial three-mover:

1344

1345

@sp 1

1346

1347

@ifinfo

1348

1349

3 2 1 @*

1350

----------------+ @*

1351

| | | | a @*

1352

----------------+ @*

1353

| | | wK | b @*

1354

----------------+ @*

1355

| | | | c @*

1356

----------------+ @*

1357

| bN | | | d @*

1358

----------------+ @*

1359

| | | | e @*

1360

----------------+ @*

1361

| | bN | | f @*

1362

----------------+ @*

1363

1364

@sp 1

1365

1366

Black in hand: S, G

1367

1368

@end ifinfo

1369

1370

1371

@tex

1372

\def\startline{\par\nobreak\noindent}

1373

1374

{\obeylines\obeyspaces%

1375

\gdef\beginVerbatim{\bigbreak%

1376

\begingroup%

1377

\parskip=0pt%

1378

\obeylines\obeyspaces%

1379

\let^^M=\startline%

1380

\tt}}

1381

\gdef\endVerbatim{\endgroup\bigbreak}

1382

\beginVerbatim

1383

1384

3 2 1

1385

----------------+

1386

| | | | a

1387

----------------+

1388

| | | wK | b

1389

----------------+

1390

| | | | c

1391

----------------+

1392

| bN | | | d

1393

----------------+

1394

| | | | e

1395

----------------+

1396

| | bN | | f

1397

----------------+

1398

1399

Black in hand: 2G

1400

1401

\endVerbatim

1402

@end tex

1403

1404

@sp 1

1405

1406

Here, Black plays G*2b, White plays K1c, and Black plays G*1d mate.

1407

More typical tsume problems range from 5 moves to arbitrarily high

1408

numbers of moves, and they can be quite brain-busting. Tsume problems

1409

may seem artificial, but in the closing stages of the game where both

1410

players have a lot of pieces in hand, it is often necessary to give

1411

check at every move, or else your opponent will start a counterattack

1412

and will mate you before you mate him. A tsume problem is a worst-case

1413

scenario for the attacker: you have to mate your opponent even though he

1414

has every piece not on the board in hand, which means you have to

1415

develop sharp attacking skills. Many more tsume problems can be found

1416

on the internet; I particularly recommend Patrick Davin's ``Shogi

1417

Nexus'' (@pxref{References and links}).

1418

1419

@page

1420

1421

@c

1422

@c Shogi variants.

1423

@c

1424

1425

@node Shogi variants, Differences between shogi and chess, Mating problems, About shogi

1426

@section Shogi variants

1427

@cindex Shogi variants

1428

@cindex Variants

1429

@cindex Tori Shogi

1430

@cindex Wa Shogi

1431

@cindex Chu Shogi

1432

@cindex Dai Shogi

1433

@cindex Tenjiku Shogi

1434

@cindex Dai-dai Shogi

1435

@cindex Maka-dai-dai Shogi

1436

@cindex Tai Shogi

1437

@cindex Kyoku Tai Shogi

1438

1439

Several historical variants of shogi exist. Most of these were invented

1440

before modern shogi (in some cases hundreds of years before), are much

1441

larger than modern shogi and are not played with drops. Thus, in many

1442

ways they are really more like giant chess games than like modern shogi.

1443

The only one of these games to have survived in Japan is Chu (middle)

1444

shogi, which is still played a little bit. Thanks to the efforts of

1445

George Hodges and John Fairbairn of the Shogi Association (two British

1446

shogi enthusiasts), these games were resurrected and rules and sets for

1447

them can still be purchased from George Hodges (@pxref{References and

1448

links}). I hope to eventually extend GNU shogi so that it can play at

1449

least some of these games. There are also several non-historical

1450

variants of shogi; I don't know much about them but you can find

1451

information about them on the internet (@pxref{References and links}).

1452

1453

The historical variants include:

1454

1455

@sp 1

1456

1457

@enumerate

1458

1459

@item

1460

Tori (bird) shogi, played on a 7x7 board with 32 pieces in all; this is

1461

the only variant that is known to have been played with drops.

1462

1463

@item

1464

Wa shogi, played on an 11x11 board with 54 pieces. This game can be

1465

played with or without drops but the historical evidence favors the view

1466

that it was played without drops. However, most people who have tried

1467

it claim it is a much better game with drops, being even more intricate

1468

than standard shogi.

1469

1470

@item

1471

Chu (middle) shogi, played on a 12x12 board with 92 pieces. This was

1472

(and is) by far the most popular of the variants, and has 21 different

1473

kinds of pieces in the starting line-up alone (along with several others

1474

that appear upon promotion). Unlike modern shogi, there are a

1475

tremendous number of ranging pieces and the game is definitely not

1476

played with drops. There is also an amazing piece called the Lion which

1477

has a double king move and can capture two pieces at once! Chu shogi

1478

has a small but fanatical following, some of whom consider it better

1479

than modern shogi.

1480

1481

@item

1482

Dai (great) shogi, played on a 15x15 board with 130 pieces. Other than

1483

the larger board, this game is very similar to Chu shogi.

1484

1485

@item

1486

Tenjiku (exotic) shogi, played on a 16x16 board with 176 pieces. This

1487

game is possibly the most complex tactical game in existence. There are

1488

many astoundingly powerful pieces, including one (the Fire Demon) that

1489

can capture up to eight opposing pieces in a single move! Despite the

1490

size of the game, checkmates can occur very suddenly (and often very

1491

early on) if one player makes a wrong move. Tenjiku also has a small

1492

but fanatical following, one of whom (Colin Adams) has written a book on

1493

the game which is available for download at

1494

@uref{http://www.colina.demon.co.uk/tenjiku.html}.

1495

1496

@item

1497

Dai-dai (great-great) shogi, played on a 17x17 board with 192 pieces.

1498

The opening setup alone has 64 different kinds of pieces! This game and

1499

the larger ones that follow sound pretty outlandish, but they have

1500

actually been played; a game of Dai-dai can supposedly be played in

1501

about 12 hours.

1502

1503

@item

1504

Maka-dai-dai (great-great-great) shogi, played on a 19x19 board with 192

1505

pieces. For those for whom Dai-dai shogi is just too small :-)

1506

1507

@item

1508

Tai (grand) shogi, played on a 25x25 board with 354 pieces! Until

1509

recently, this was thought to be the biggest chess game ever devised,

1510

but now there is...

1511

1512

@item

1513

Kyoku tai (extremely grand?) shogi, played on a 36x36 board with 402

1514

pieces. The rules for this have just been unearthed in an old Japanese

1515

book. Hopefully someone will soon organize a postal Kyoku tai shogi

1516

championship; maybe their distant ancestors could finish it :-)

1517

1518

It is thought that the really huge games (Dai-dai and up) were never

1519

really played to any significant extent (gee, wonder why?) and were

1520

devised merely so that the creators could have the fun of inventing

1521

enormous games, amazing their friends and confounding their enemies.

1522

However, the games up to Tenjiku shogi at least appear to be quite

1523

playable, assuming one has the time.

1524

1525

@end enumerate

1526

1527

@sp 1

1528

1529

@c

1530

@c Differences between shogi and chess.

1531

@c

1532

1533

@node Differences between shogi and chess, , Shogi variants, About shogi

1534

@section Differences between shogi and chess

1535

@cindex Shogi vs. Chess

1536

1537

Some differences between shogi and international chess have been

1538

mentioned elsewhere in this document; I summarize them here for people

1539

who are interested in game comparisons. I won't try to deal with the

1540

thorny question of which game is ``better'' although my bias may have

1541

already come through :-) In fact, the drop rule makes the two games so

1542

different in character that arguing over which game is better is like

1543

comparing apples to oranges (you'd be better off comparing chess to Chu

1544

shogi (@pxref{Shogi variants}). However, I believe that if you are a

1545

chess fan you'll really like shogi as well, and shogi is also popular

1546

with many people who don't particularly like chess.

1547

1548

Here are the significant differences between chess and shogi:

1549

1550

@sp 1

1551

1552

@enumerate

1553

1554

@item

1555

In shogi, captured pieces become the property of the capturer and can

1556

re-enter play by being dropped onto almost any vacant square. In chess,

1557

captured pieces are out of the game. Thus, in shogi, piece exchanges

1558

complicate the play significantly while in chess they simplify it.

1559

1560

@item

1561

The shogi board is 9x9; the chess board is 8x8.

1562

1563

@item

1564

Shogi has five pieces with no counterpart in chess: the gold and silver

1565

generals, the lance, the promoted rook and the promoted bishop. Chess

1566

has one piece with no counterpart in shogi: the queen. The knight's

1567

move in shogi is much more restrictive than in chess. Pieces in shogi

1568

generally have a much smaller range of movement than in chess (unless

1569

they are in hand).

1570

1571

@item

1572

In shogi, all pieces except the gold general and the king can promote,

1573

but only to one kind of piece. Promotion is easier in shogi because the

1574

promotion zone is closer to the starting position of the pieces

1575

(especially pawns). In chess, only the pawn can promote, but it can

1576

promote to any other piece except the king.

1577

1578

@item

1579

In shogi, pawns capture the same way they move. There is no initial

1580

two-space pawn move and hence no @emph{en-passant} captures. In chess,

1581

pawns capture diagonally which means that opposing pawns can block each

1582

other.

1583

1584

@item

1585

In shogi, you only have one rook and one bishop. Note that the bishop

1586

is not restricted to only one ``color'' square (squares in shogi aren't

1587

colored, but never mind) because promoted bishops can also move one

1588

square orthogonally.

1589

1590

@item

1591

There is no special castling move in shogi. The term ``castle'' is

1592

used in shogi to denote a defensive formation consisting of (usually)

1593

three generals which protect the king. There are many such castles

1594

(about 40 or so have names). @xref{Sample game}.

1595

1596

@item

1597

Draws are much rarer in shogi than in chess. Perpetual check is not

1598

allowed. Stalemate is a virtual impossibility, and is a loss for the

1599

stalematee.

1600

1601

@item

1602

Since pieces are never out of play in shogi, chess-type endgames

1603

involving only a few pieces do not occur.

1604

1605

@item

1606

Shogi games are generally longer than chess games (about 60-70 moves is

1607

typical).

1608

1609

@item

1610

Shogi has a well-developed handicap system which is in general use;

1611

chess does not.

1612

1613

@end enumerate

1614

1615

@sp 1

1616

1617

The effects of all these differences on play include (in my opinion):

1618

1619

@sp 1

1620

1621

@enumerate

1622

1623

@item

1624

Piece/pawn structures in chess are more rigid than in shogi. Pawns

1625

block each other and pawns, once advanced, cannot ever retreat. In

1626

shogi, you can repair the hole caused by a pawn advance by exchanging

1627

the pawn and dropping it back where you want it. Thus shogi is more

1628

fluid than chess and less ``structural''.

1629

1630

@item

1631

Counterattack is MUCH more common in shogi than in chess. Games

1632

typically end in mutual mating attacks, where each player is trying to

1633

checkmate the other player before being checkmated himself. This makes

1634

tempo incredibly important and also makes sacrificial play quite common.

1635

1636

@item

1637

Attacks involving only ranging pieces are more a feature of chess than

1638

of shogi. A shogi attack typically uses a ranging piece or pieces to

1639

support an attack by short-range pieces (especially generals). It is

1640

very rare to mate a king with a non-adjacent ranging piece in shogi

1641

since the player whose king is threatened can almost always interpose by

1642

dropping a piece.

1643

1644

@end enumerate

1645

1646

@sp 1

1647

1648

1649

@c --------------------

1650

@c gnushogi.

1651

@c --------------------

1652

1653

@node gnushogi, xshogi, About shogi, Top

1654

@chapter gnushogi

1655

@cindex gnushogi

1656

1657

This section describes how to run the ``gnushogi'' program.

1658

1659

@sp 1

1660

1661

SYNOPSIS

1662

1663

@sp 1

1664

1665

gnushogi [ [[-]a] [-b bookfile] [-B binbookfile] [-C] [-h langfile]

1666

[-L langfile] [-r length] [-R] [-s pathname] [-l pathname] [-S binbooksize]

1667

[-t] [-c size] [-T size] [-v] [-x] [-X] arg1 arg2 ]

1668

1669

@sp 1

1670

1671

DESCRIPTION

1672

1673

@sp 1

1674

1675

GNU shogi (gnushogi) plays a game of japanese chess (shogi) against the

1676

user or it plays against itself.

1677

1678

At startup gnushogi reads the binbook file if it is present. It then

1679

looks for a book file. If it is present it adds its contents to the

1680

binbook data. If the binbook file is writable a new combined binbook

1681

file is written.

1682

1683

Gnushogi is a modified version of the gnuchess program. It has a simple

1684

alphanumeric board display, or it can be used with the xshogi program

1685

under X windows. The program gets its opening moves from the file

1686

gnushogi.bbk which is located in a directory specified in the Makefile.

1687

To invoke the program type:

1688

1689

@sp 1

1690

1691

@table @samp

1692

1693

@item gnushogi -C

1694

simple curses based version

1695

1696

@item gnushogi -X (or just gnushogi)

1697

xshogi compatible version

1698

1699

@item gnushogi -R

1700

raw test display version

1701

@end table

1702

1703

@sp 1

1704

1705

TIME CONTROLS

1706

1707

@sp 1

1708

1709

If one argument is given, it is the search time per move in

1710

[minutes:]seconds. So gnushogi 30 will generate one move every 30

1711

seconds, while gnushogi 5:00 will generate one move every 5 minutes.

1712

1713

If two or more arguments are given, they will be used to set tournament

1714

time controls with the first argument of each pair being the number of

1715

moves and the second being the total clock time in minutes[:seconds].

1716

Thus, entering gnushogi 60 5 will set the clocks for 5 minutes (300

1717

seconds) for the first 60 moves, and gnushogi 30 3:30 will allow 3

1718

minutes and 30 seconds for 30 moves.

1719

1720

gnushogi 30 5 1 :30 will allow 5 minutes for the first 30 moves and 30

1721

seconds for each move after that. Up to 4 pairs of controls may be

1722

specified.

1723

1724

If no argument is given the program will prompt the user for level of

1725

play.

1726

1727

For use with xshogi see the documentation on that program.

1728

@xref{xshogi}.

1729

1730

@sp 1

1731

1732

@page

1733

1734

BOOK

1735

1736

@sp 1

1737

1738

The book gnushogi.tbk consists of a sequence of openings. An opening

1739

begins with a line starting with a # (the rest of the line is a comment).

1740

Following this is a series of moves in algebraic notation alternating

1741

between black and white separated by whitespace. A move may have a ?

1742

after it indicating this move should never be made in this position. Moves

1743

are stored as position:move so transpositions between openings can take

1744

place.

1745

1746

@sp 1

1747

1748

HASHFILE

1749

1750

@sp 1

1751

1752

The hashfile if created should be on the order of 4 megabytes; you can

1753

create such a hashfile by typing ``gnushogi -c 22'' (see below). This

1754

file contains positions and moves learned from previous games. If a

1755

hashfile is used the computer makes use of the experience it gained in

1756

past games. Tests run so far show that it plays no worse with the

1757

hashfile than without, but it is not clear yet whether it provides a

1758

real advantage.

1759

1760

@sp 1

1761

1762

LEGAL MOVES

1763

1764

@sp 1

1765

1766

Note: Piece letters are determined by the language file. What is

1767

specified here is the default (English).

1768

1769

Once gnushogi is invoked, the program will display the board and prompt

1770

the user for a move. To enter a move, use the notation 7g7f where the

1771

first letter-number pair indicates the origin square and the second

1772

letter-number pair indicates the destination square. An alternative is

1773

to use the notation P7f where the first letter indicates the piece type

1774

(P,L,N,S,G,B,R,K). To promote append a + the type of the new piece to

1775

the move, as in 2d2c+ or P2c+. Note that you must use capital letters

1776

for the pieces by default.

1777

1778

@sp 1

1779

1780

COMMAND-LINE OPTIONS

1781

1782

@sp 1

1783

1784

@table @samp

1785

1786

@item -a

1787

Do not search on opponent's time.

1788

1789

@item a

1790

Do search on opponent's time.

1791

1792

@item -b @var{bookfile}

1793

Use bookfile for opening book.

1794

1795

@item -B @var{binbookfile}

1796

Use binbookfile for binary opening book.

1797

1798

@item -c @var{size}

1799

Create a new HASHFILE. File size is 2^size entries of approximately 65+?

1800

bytes.

1801

1802

@item -C

1803

Use curses-based display mode.

1804

1805

@item -h

1806

Do not use hashfile.

1807

1808

@item h

1809

Do use hashfile.

1810

1811

@item -l @var{pathname}

1812

Pathname of the loadfile used with get or xget.

1813

1814

@item -L @var{lang}

1815

Use language lang from the file gnushogi.lang. If -L is not specified

1816

it uses the first language in the file.

1817

1818

@item -P @var{plylevels}

1819

Number of plys to include in the binbookfile. For generating a

1820

binbookfile.

1821

1822

@item -r @var{length}

1823

Rehash @emph{length} times in searching entries for position in

1824

transposition table.

1825

1826

@item -R

1827

Use raw text display mode. This can be used for dumb terminals or for

1828

systems that don't have curses.

1829

1830

@item -s @var{pathname}

1831

Pathname of the save file to use with the save command.

1832

1833

@item -S @var{size}

1834

Size of binbookfile for memory based books. For creating a binbookfile.

1835

1836

@item -t

1837

Show statistics for HASHFILE.

1838

1839

@item -T @var{size}

1840

Set the transposition table size to 2^size entries.

1841

1842

@item -v

1843

Show version and patchlevel.

1844

1845

@item -x @var{value}

1846

Use value as the evaluation window xwndw.

1847

1848

@item -X

1849

Use xshogi display mode (the default).

1850

1851

@end table

1852

1853

@sp 1

1854

1855

COMMANDS

1856

1857

@sp 1

1858

1859

In addition to legal moves, the following commands can be entered at the

1860

gnushogi prompt. Note: command names are determined by the language

1861

file and may vary with the implementation. The default language is

1862

English.

1863

1864

@table @samp

1865

1866

@item alg

1867

allow algebraic input (not implemented).

1868

1869

@item Awindow

1870

change Alpha window (default score + 90).

1871

1872

@item Bwindow

1873

change Beta window (default score - 90).

1874

1875

@item beep

1876

toggles beeping after each move (default: on).

1877

1878

@item bd

1879

updates the current board position on the display.

1880

1881

@item book

1882

turns off use of the opening library.

1883

1884

@item both

1885

causes the computer to play both sides of a shogi game.

1886

1887

@item black

1888

causes the computer to play as White, if the computer was to move

1889

first.

1890

1891

@item bsave

1892

saves a game to disk as a book textfile. The program will prompt the

1893

user for a file name.

1894

1895

@item gamein

1896

toggles game mode time control. Assumes the time specified for time

1897

control is the time for a complete game. Input with the level command

1898

should be the game time and the expected number of moves in a game. go

1899

command must be given.

1900

1901

@item coords

1902

show coordinates on the display (visual only).

1903

1904

@item contempt

1905

allows the value of @emph{contempt} to be modified.

1906

1907

@item debug

1908

asks for a piece as color piece, as wb or bn, and shows its calculated

1909

value on each square.

1910

1911

@item debuglevel

1912

sets level of debugging output if compiled with debug options.

1913

1914

@item depth

1915

allows the user to change the search depth of the program. The maximum

1916

depth is 29 ply. Normally the depth is set to 29 and the computer

1917

terminates its search based on elapsed time rather than depth. If depth

1918

is set to (say) 4 ply, the program will search until all moves have been

1919

examined to a depth of 4 ply (with extensions up to 11 additional ply

1920

for sequences of checks and captures). If you set a maximum time per

1921

move and also use the depth command, the search will stop at the

1922

specified time or the specified depth, whichever comes first.

1923

1924

@item easy

1925

toggles easy mode (thinking on opponents time) on and off. The default

1926

is easy mode ON. If easy mode is disabled, the keyboard is polled for

1927

input every so often and when input is seen the search is terminated. It

1928

may also be terminated with a sigint.

1929

1930

@item edit

1931

allows the user to set up a board position.

1932

@itemize @minus

1933

1934

@item #

1935

clear the board.

1936

1937

@item c

1938

toggle piece color.

1939

1940

@item .

1941

command will exit setup mode.

1942

1943

@item p3b

1944

place a pawn on 3b

1945

1946

@item p3b+

1947

place a promoted pawn on 3b

1948

1949

@item p*

1950

place a pawn in hand (among the captured pieces)

1951

1952

@end itemize

1953

1954

Pieces are entered by typing a letter (p,l,n,s,g,b,r,k) for

1955

the piece followed by the coordinate. Here, letter case is ignored.

1956

1957

The usual warning about the language file applies.

1958

1959

@item exit

1960

exits gnushogi.

1961

1962

@item first

1963

tells the computer to move first. Computer begins searching for a move.

1964

(same as ``go'').

1965

1966

@item force

1967

allows the user to enter moves for both sides. To get the program to

1968

play after a sequence of moves has been entered use the ``black'' or

1969

``white'' commands.

1970

1971

@item get

1972

retrieves a game from disk. The program will prompt the user for a file

1973

name.

1974

1975

@item go

1976

tells the computer to move first. Computer begins searching for a move.

1977

(same as ``first'').

1978

1979

@item hash

1980

use/don't use hashfile.

1981

1982

@item hashdepth

1983

allows the user to change the minimum depth for using the hashfile and

1984

the number of moves from the beginning of the game to use it.

1985

1986

@item help

1987

displays a short description of the commands and the current status of

1988

options.

1989

1990

@item hint

1991

causes the program to supply the user with its predicted move.

1992

1993

@item level

1994

allows the user to set time controls such as 60 moves in 5 minutes etc.

1995

In tournament mode, the program will vary the time it takes for each

1996

move depending on the situation. If easy mode is disabled (using the

1997

``easy'' command), the program will often respond with its move

1998

immediately, saving time on its clock for use later on.

1999

2000

@item list

2001

writes the game moves and some statistics on search depth, nodes, and

2002

time to the file ``shogi.lst''.

2003

2004

@item material

2005

toggle material flag - draws on no pawns and both sides < rook.

2006

2007

@item new

2008

starts a new game.

2009

2010

@item p

2011

evaluates the board and shows the point score for each piece. The total

2012

score for a position is the sum of these individual piece scores.

2013

2014

@item post

2015

causes the program to display the principal variation and the score

2016

during the search. A score of 100 is equivalent to a 1 pawn advantage

2017

for the computer.

2018

2019

@item quit

2020

exits the game.

2021

2022

@item random

2023

causes the program to randomize its move selection slightly.

2024

2025

@item rcptr

2026

set recapture mode.

2027

2028

@item remove

2029

backout the last level for both sides. Equal to 2 undo's.

2030

2031

@item reverse

2032

causes the board display to be reversed. That is, the Black's pieces will

2033

now appear at the top of the board.

2034

2035

@item rv

2036

reverse board display.

2037

2038

@item save

2039

saves a game to disk. The program will prompt the user for a file name.

2040

2041

@item switch

2042

causes the program to switch places with the opponent and begin

2043

searching.

2044

2045

@item test

2046

performs some speed tests for MoveList and CaptureList generation, and

2047

ScorePosition position scoring for the current board.

2048

2049

@item time

2050

set computer's time remaining, intended for synchronizing clocks among

2051

multiple players.

2052

2053

@item tsume

2054

toggle tsume mode. In tsume mode, not all possible moves will be

2055

generated. If a king is in check, only moves that get the king out of

2056

check are generated. If the king is not in check, only moves that give

2057

check to the opponent's king are generated.

2058

2059

@item undo

2060

undoes the last move whether it was the computer's or the human's. You

2061

may also type ``remove''. This is equivalent to two ``undo'''s

2062

(e.g. retract one move for each side).

2063

2064

@item white

2065

causes the computer to play as Black; if the computer is to move

2066

first the go command must be given.

2067

2068

@item xget

2069

read an xshogi position file.

2070

2071

@item xsave

2072

save as an xshogi position file.

2073

2074

@item xwndw

2075

change X window. The window around alpha/beta used to determine whether

2076

the position should be scored or just estimated. Note: this has

2077

@emph{nothing} to do with xshogi or X windows; the terms are completely

2078

separate.

2079

2080

@end table

2081

2082

@sp 1

2083

2084

2085

@c --------------------

2086

@c xshogi.

2087

@c --------------------

2088

2089

@node xshogi, References and links, gnushogi, Top

2090

@chapter xshogi

2091

@cindex xshogi

2092

2093

This section describes how to run the ``xshogi'' program.

2094

2095

@sp 1

2096

2097

SYNOPSIS

2098

2099

@sp 1

2100

2101

xshogi [ options ]

2102

2103

@sp 1

2104

2105

DESCRIPTION

2106

2107

@sp 1

2108

2109

xshogi provides an X11/Xt/Athena Widgets user interface for gnushogi.

2110

With xshogi you can play gnushogi, set up arbitrary positions, force

2111

variations, or watch xshogi manage a game between two shogi programs.

2112

Furthermore, it can be used as an interface between two players on

2113

different displays.

2114

2115

xshogi can also be used as a shogi board to play out games. It will

2116

read through a game file or allow a player to play through a variation

2117

manually (force mode). This is useful for keeping track of email postal

2118

games or browsing games off the net.

2119

2120

After starting xshogi, you can make moves by pressing mouse button 1

2121

while the cursor is over a square with your piece on it and dragging the

2122

mouse to another square. If the move is illegal, gnushogi will not

2123

allow it. xshogi will then retract the move.

2124

2125

@sp 1

2126

2127

COMMAND-LINE OPTIONS

2128

2129

@sp 1

2130

2131

The following command line options also correspond to X resources that

2132

you can set in your .Xdefaults file.

2133

2134

@sp 1

2135

2136

@table @samp

2137

2138

@item [standard Xt options]

2139

xshogi accepts standard Xt options like -display, -geometry, and

2140

-iconic.

2141

2142

@item -tc or -timeControl minutes[:seconds]

2143

Amount of time for a set of moves determined by movesPerSession. If

2144

this number of moves is played within the time control period, xshogi

2145

resets the time clocks. Default: 5 minutes.

2146

2147

@item -mps or -movesPerSession moves

2148

Number of moves in a time control period. Default: 40 moves.

2149

2150

@item -st or -searchTime minutes[:seconds]

2151

Tell gnushogi to spend at most the given amount of time searching for

2152

each of its moves. Without this option, gnushogi chooses its search

2153

time based on the number of moves and amount of time remaining until the

2154

next time control. Setting this option also sets -clockMode to False.

2155

2156

@item -sd or -searchDepth number

2157

Tell gnushogi to look ahead at most the given number of moves when

2158

searching for a move to make. Without this option, gnushogi chooses

2159

its search depth based on the number of moves and amount of time

2160

remaining until the next time control. Setting this option also sets

2161

-clockMode to False.

2162

2163

@item -clock or -clockMode (True | False)

2164

Determines whether or not to use the clock. If clockMode is False, the

2165

clock does not run, but the side that is to play next is still

2166

highlighted.

2167

2168

@item -td or -timeDelay seconds

2169

Time delay between moves during ``Load Game''. This doesn't have to be

2170

a round number. Try -td 0.4. Default: 1 second.

2171

2172

@item -nsp or -noShogiProgram (True | False)

2173

If this option is True, xshogi acts as a passive shogi board; it does

2174

not try to start a shogi program, not even to check whether moves made

2175

in Force mode are legal. It also sets -clockMode to False. Default:

2176

False.

2177

2178

@item -fsp or -firstShogiProgram program

2179

Name of first shogi program. In matches between two machines, this

2180

program plays white. Default: ``gnushogi''.

2181

2182

@item -ssp or -secondShogiProgram program

2183

Name of second shogi program, if needed. In matches between two

2184

machines, this program plays black; otherwise it is not started.

2185

Default: ``gnushogi''.

2186

2187

@item -fh or -firstHost host

2188

Name of host the first shogi program plays on. Default: ``localhost''.

2189

2190

@item -sh or -secondHost host

2191

Name of host the second shogi program plays on. Default: ``localhost''.

2192

2193

@item -rsh or -remoteShell shell_name

2194

Some systems do not use rsh as the remote shell. This option allows a

2195

user to name the remote shell command. This should be done in the

2196

resource file.

2197

2198

@item -mm or -matchMode (False | Init | Position | Opening)

2199

Automatically run a game between firstShogiProgram and

2200

secondShogiProgram. If matchMode is set to Init, xshogi will start the

2201

game with the initial shogi position. If matchMode is set to Position,

2202

xshogi will start the game with the position specified by the

2203

loadPositionFile resource. If matchMode is set to Opening, xshogi will

2204

play out the opening moves specified by the -loadGameFile resource. If

2205

the -saveGameFile resource is set, a move record for the match will be

2206

saved in the specified file. Default: ``False''.

2207

2208

@item -lgf or -loadGameFile file

2209

Name of file to read a game record from. Game files are found in the

2210

directory named by the SHOGIDIR environment variable. If this variable

2211

is not set, the current directory is used unless the file name starts

2212

with a /.

2213

2214

@item -lpf or -loadPositionFile file

2215

Name of file to read a game position from. Position files are found in

2216

the directory named by the SHOGIDIR environment variable. If this

2217

variable is not set, the current directory is used unless the file name

2218

starts with a /.

2219

2220

@item -sgf or -saveGameFile file

2221

Name of file to save a game record to. Game files are saved in the

2222

directory named by the SHOGIDIR environment variable. If this variable

2223

is not set, the current directory is used unless the file name starts

2224

with a /.

2225

2226

@item -spf or -savePositionFile file

2227

Name of file to save a game position to. Position files are saved in

2228

the directory named by the SHOGIDIR environment variable. If this

2229

variable is not set, the current directory is used unless the file name

2230

starts with a /.

2231

2232

@item -coords or -showCoords (True | False)

2233

If this option is True, xshogi displays algebraic coordinates along the

2234

board's left and bottom edges. The default is False. The coordFont

2235

resource specifies what font to use.

2236

2237

@item -mono or -monoMode (True | False)

2238

Determines whether xshogi displays its pieces and squares with two

2239

colors or four. You shouldn't have to specify monochrome. xshogi will

2240

determine if this is necessary.

2241

2242

@item -pc or -pieceColor color

2243

Color specification for pieces suitable for XParseColor().

2244

Default: #FFFFD7.

2245

2246

@item -sc or -squareColor color

2247

Same for squares. Default: #EBDFB0.

2248

2249

@item -wps or -westernPieceSet (True | False)

2250

Choose the Western style piece set.

2251

2252

@item -npb or -normalPawnBitmap file

2253

@item -nnb or -normalKnightBitmap file

2254

@item -nbb or -normalBishopBitmap file

2255

@item -nrb or -normalRookBitmap file

2256

@item -nkb or -normalKingBitmap file

2257

Names of the bitmap files for the bitmap piece icons.

2258

2259

@item -rpb or -reversePawnBitmap file

2260

@item -rnb or -reverseKnightBitmap file

2261

@item -rbb or -reverseBishopBitmap file

2262

@item -rrb or -reverseRookBitmap file

2263

@item -rkb or -reverseKingBitmap file

2264

Names of the bitmap files for the outline piece icons.

2265

2266

@item -debug or -debugMode (True | False)

2267

Turns on debugging printout.

2268

2269

@end table

2270

2271

@sp 1

2272

2273

@page

2274

2275

OTHER X RESOURCES

2276

2277

@sp 1

2278

2279

@table @samp

2280

2281

@item initString

2282

The actual string that is sent to initialize the shogi program can be

2283

set from .Xdefaults. It can't be set from the command line because of

2284

syntax problems. The default value is ``new\nbeep\nrandom\neasy\n''.

2285

The ``new'' and ``beep'' commands are required. You can remove the

2286

``random'' command if you like; including it causes gnushogi to

2287

randomize its move selection slightly so that it doesn't play the same

2288

moves in every game. Even without ``random'', gnushogi randomizes its

2289

choice of moves from its opening book. You can also remove ``easy'' if

2290

you like; including it toggles easy mode off, causing gnushogi to think

2291

on your time. That is, if ``easy'' is included in the initString, GNU

2292

Shogi thinks on your time; if not, it does not. (Yes, this does seem

2293

backwards, doesn't it.) You can also try adding other commands to the

2294

initString; see the gnushogi documentation (@pxref{gnushogi}) for

2295

details.

2296

2297

@item blackString and whiteString

2298

These resources control what is sent when the Machine Black and Machine

2299

White buttons are selected. This is mostly for compatibility with

2300

obsolete versions of gnushogi.

2301

2302

Alternate bitmaps for piece icons can be specified either by choosing

2303

one of the built-in sets or with the file name resources described

2304

above. There are three built-in sets of piece bitmaps available, large

2305

(the default), medium, or small. It is easiest to select the set you

2306

prefer in the .Xdefaults file:

2307

2308

XShogi*boardSize: Medium

2309

2310

The font used for button labels and comments can be changed in the

2311

.Xdefaults file. You may want to choose a smaller font if you are using

2312

the small pieces:

2313

2314

XShogi*font: helvetica_oblique12

2315

2316

The font used for coordinates (when the showCoords option is True) can

2317

be set similarly:

2318

2319

XShogi*coordFont: helvetica_10

2320

2321

If you are using a grayscale monitor, try setting the colors to:

2322

2323

XShogi*pieceColor: gray100 @*

2324

XShogi*squareColor: gray60 @*

2325

2326

@end table

2327

2328

@sp 1

2329

2330

COMMAND BUTTONS AND KEYS

2331

2332

@sp 1

2333

2334

@table @samp

2335

2336

@item Quit

2337

Quits xshogi. Q or q is a keyboard equivalent.

2338

2339

@item Reset

2340

Resets xshogi to the beginning of a shogi game. It also deselects any

2341

game or position files.

2342

2343

@item Flip View

2344

inverts the view of the shogi board.

2345

2346

@item Hint

2347

displays a move hint from gnushogi.

2348

2349

@item Load Game

2350

plays a game from a record file. If no file is specified a popup dialog

2351

asks for a filename. Game files are found in the directory named by the

2352

SHOGIDIR environment variable. If this variable is not declared then

2353

the current directory is used unless the file name starts with a /. G

2354

or g is a keyboard equivalent. The game file parser will accept almost

2355

any file that contains moves in algebraic notation. If the first line

2356

begins with `#', it is assumed to be a title and is displayed. Text

2357

enclosed in parentheses or square brackets is assumed to be commentary

2358

and is displayed in a pop-up window. Any other text in the file is

2359

ignored.

2360

2361

@item Load Position

2362

sets up a position from a position file. If no file is specified a

2363

popup dialog asks for a filename. Position files are found in the

2364

directory named by the SHOGIDIR environment variable. If this variable

2365

is not declared then the current directory is used unless the file name

2366

starts with a /. Position files must be in the format that the Save

2367

Position command writes.

2368

2369

@item Save Game

2370

saves a game to a record file. If no file is specified a popup dialog

2371

asks for a filename. If the filename exists, the user is asked whether

2372

the current game record is be appended to this file or if the file

2373

should be replaced. Game files are saved in the directory named by the

2374

SHOGIDIR environment variable. If this variable is not declared then

2375

the current directory is used unless the file name starts with a /.

2376

Game files are human-readable, and can also be read back by the Load

2377

Game command. Furthermore, they are accepted as gnushogi text bookfiles.

2378

2379

@item Save Position

2380

saves a position to a position file. If no file is specified a popup

2381

dialog asks for a filename. Position files are saved in the directory

2382

named by the SHOGIDIR environment variable. If this variable is not

2383

declared then the current directory is used unless the file name starts

2384

with a /. Position files are human-readable, and can also be read back

2385

by the Load Position command.

2386

2387

@item Machine White

2388

forces gnushogi to play white.

2389

2390

@item Machine Black

2391

forces gnushogi to play black.

2392

2393

@item Force Moves

2394

forces a series of moves. That is, gnushogi stops playing and xshogi

2395

allows you to make moves for both white and black.

2396

2397

@item Two Machines

2398

plays a game between two computer programs.

2399

2400

@item Forward

2401

moves forward through a series of remembered moves. F or f is a

2402

keyboard equivalent.

2403

2404

@item Backward

2405

moves backward through a series of remembered moves. As a side effect,

2406

puts xshogi into Force Moves mode. B or b is a keyboard equivalent.

2407

2408

@item Pause

2409

pauses the clocks or (in Load Game mode) pauses the game being loaded.

2410

Press Pause again to continue. P or p is a keyboard equivalent.

2411

2412

@item Edit Position

2413

lets you set up an arbitrary board position. Use mouse button 1 to drag

2414

pieces to new squares, or to delete a piece by dragging it off the board

2415

or dragging an empty square on top of it. To drop a new piece on a

2416

square, press mouse button 2 or 3 over the square. This brings up a

2417

menu of black pieces (button 2) or white pieces (button 3). Additional

2418

menu choices let you empty the square or clear the board. You can set

2419

the side to play next by clicking on the Black or White indicator at the

2420

top of the screen.

2421

2422

@item Challenge

2423

allows you to make a two display game between two human players. Enter

2424

the display you want to connect to. If you are allowed to connect, a

2425

new board is displayed at the remote display. Challenge mode can only

2426

be stopped by pressing ``quit''.

2427

2428

@item Select Level

2429

allows you to reset the clocks for both players. Enter the number of

2430

moves and the number of minutes in which the moves should be done.

2431

2432

@item Move NOW

2433

force computer to stop thinking and to make the current best move.

2434

2435

@item Iconify I, i, C or c

2436

iconifies xshogi.

2437

2438

@end table

2439

2440

@sp 1

2441

2442

LIMITATIONS

2443

2444

@sp 1

2445

2446

If you press the Pause button during GNU Shogi's turn,

2447

xshogi will stop the clocks, but gnushogi will still make a

2448

move.

2449

2450

After a mate or draw when playing against gnushogi, if you

2451

back up with the Backward button, the clocks are reset

2452

(because gnushogi has exited and must be restarted).

2453

2454

The game parser recognizes only algebraic notation.

2455

2456

@sp 1

2457

2458

AUTHORS

2459

2460

@sp 1

2461

2462

Original authors of XBoard: Chris Sears and Dan Sears.

2463

2464

Enhancements for XBoard (Version 2.0): Tim Mann.

2465

2466

Conversion to XShogi (Version 1.1): Matthias Mutz.

2467

2468

Current maintainer: Mike Vanier.

2469

2470

@sp 1

2471

2472

COPYRIGHT INFORMATION

2473

2474

@sp 1

2475

2476

XShogi borrows its piece bitmaps from CRANES Shogi.

2477

2478

2479

2480

2481

Michael Vanier and the Free Software Foundation, Inc.

2482

2483

The following terms apply to Digital Equipment Corporation's copyright

2484

interest in XBoard:

2485

2486

2487

2488

Permission to use, copy, modify, and distribute this software and its

2489

documentation for any purpose and without fee is hereby granted,

2490

provided that the above copyright notice appear in all copies and that

2491

both that copyright notice and this permission notice appear in

2492

supporting documentation, and that the name of Digital not be used in

2493

advertising or publicity pertaining to distribution of the software

2494

without specific, written prior permission.

2495

2496

DIGITAL DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES WITH REGARD TO THIS SOFTWARE, INCLUDING

2497

ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS, IN NO EVENT SHALL

2498

DIGITAL BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR

2499

ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER RESULTING FROM LOSS OF USE, DATA OR PROFITS,

2500

WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION,

2501

ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THIS

2502

SOFTWARE.

2503

2504

The following terms apply to the enhanced version of XShogi distributed

2505

by the Free Software Foundation:

2506

2507

This file is part of XSHOGI.

2508

2509

XSHOGI is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT

2510

ANY WARRANTY. No author or distributor accepts responsibility to anyone

2511

for the consequences of using it or for whether it serves any particular

2512

purpose or works at all, unless he says so in writing. Refer to the

2513

XSHOGI General Public License for full details.

2514

2515

Everyone is granted permission to copy, modify and redistribute XSHOGI,

2516

but only under the conditions described in the XSHOGI General Public

2517

License. A copy of this license is supposed to have been given to you

2518

along with XSHOGI so you can know your rights and responsibilities. It

2519

should be in a file named COPYING. Among other things, the copyright

2520

notice and this notice must be preserved on all copies.

2521

2522

2523

@c ---------------------

2524

@c References and links.

2525

@c ---------------------

2526

2527

@node References and links, Acknowledgements, xshogi, Top

2528

@chapter References and links

2529

@cindex References

2530

@cindex Books

2531

@cindex Mailing lists

2532

@cindex Web sites

2533

2534

2535

There are very few English-language books for people learning shogi.

2536

The two I recommend are:

2537

2538

@sp 1

2539

2540

@enumerate

2541

2542

@item

2543

@cite{Shogi for Beginners, 2nd. Edition}, by John Fairbairn. This is a

2544

superb beginner's book in every way, covering all phases of the game.

2545

It was out of print for a long time, but has now been reprinted and is

2546

available either from Kiseido (@uref{http://www.labnet.or.jp/~kiseido})

2547

or from George Hodges (see below).

2548

2549

@item

2550

@cite{The Art of Shogi}, by Tony Hoskings. This is one step up from the

2551

Fairbairn book. It covers a lot of ground, and is especially noteworthy

2552

for its detailed treatment of opening lines. You can order this book

2553

from Amazon.com's UK branch (@uref{http://www.amazon.co.uk}).

2554

2555

@end enumerate

2556

2557

@sp 1

2558

2559

Another book you may find is @cite{Shogi: Japan's Game of Strategy} by

2560

Trevor Leggett. This book is very elementary and is somewhat outdated,

2561

having been published first in 1966. However, it does feature a paper

2562

shogi board and punch-out pieces, so if you want a really cheap shogi

2563

set you might pick this book up. It is still in print.

2564

2565

Two books that are no longer in print but are definitely worth getting

2566

if you find them are @cite{Guide to Shogi Openings} and @cite{Better

2567

Moves for Better Shogi}, both by Aono Teriuchi. They are published in a

2568

bilingual edition (English/Japanese) and are the only books on shogi in

2569

English written by a Japanese professional shogi player. John Fairbairn

2570

did the translation from Japanese to English.

2571

2572

Shogi sets are available from:

2573

2574

@sp 1

2575

2576

@quotation

2577

George F. Hodges @*

2578

P.O. Box 77 @*

2579

Bromley, Kent @*

2580

United Kingdom BR1 2WT

2581

@end quotation

2582

2583

@sp 1

2584

2585

George also sells equipment for all the historical shogi variants

2586

(@pxref{Shogi variants}) (except for Kyoku tai shogi) and also sells

2587

back issues of the magazine ``Shogi'' which he published for 70 issues

2588

in the late 70's to late 80's. This magazine is STRONGLY recommended;

2589

it contains more information about shogi in English than you will ever

2590

find anywhere else.

2591

2592

Here are some useful URLs:

2593

2594

@sp 1

2595

2596

@table @asis

2597

2598

@item Pieter Stouten's shogi page: @uref{http://www.shogi.net}

2599

This is the main shogi-related site on the internet, with links to

2600

almost all the other sites.

2601

2602

@item Roger Hare's shogi page: @uref{http://www.ed.ac.uk/~rjhare/shogi}

2603

This has lots of information, including full rules to most of the shogi

2604

variants.

2605

2606

@item Patrick Davin's Shogi Nexus: @uref{http://www.vega.or.jp/~patrick/shogi/}

2607

There's lots of cool stuff on this site; my favorite is the extensive

2608

collection of Tsume-shogi (mating) problems, both for beginners and

2609

more advanced players.

2610

2611

@item Steve Evans' shogi page: @uref{http://www.netspace.net.au/~trout/index.html}

2612

Steve has written a program that plays almost all of the shogi variants,

2613

unfortunately it only runs on Windows :-(

2614

2615

@item Hans Bodlaender's chess variant pages: @uref{http://www.cs.ruu.nl/~hansb/d.chessvar}

2616

This page has an almost unimaginable variety of rules for different

2617

chess variants, including many shogi variants (historical and non-historical).

2618

2619

@end table

2620

2621

@sp 1

2622

2623

@c -----------------

2624

@c Acknowledgements.

2625

@c -----------------

2626

2627

@node Acknowledgements, Bugs, References and links, Top

2628

@chapter Acknowledgements

2629

@cindex Acknowledgements

2630

2631

I would like to thank the following people:

2632

2633

@sp 1

2634

2635

@itemize @bullet

2636

2637

@item

2638

Matthias Mutz, who originally developed GNU shogi as a spin-off of GNU

2639

chess and who very kindly let me take over the maintenance of this very

2640

interesting project.

2641

2642

@item

2643

Richard Stallman and the Free Software Foundation, for creating an

2644

organization where anyone can contribute software for the common good of

2645

all, for making GNU/Linux possible, and especially for writing emacs and

2646

gcc, without which my working life would be intolerable.

2647

2648

@item

2649

Georges Hodges, for starting the Shogi Association in England, without

2650

which I would probably never have heard of shogi, for supplying shogi

2651

equipment, for publishing the excellent magazine ``Shogi'' (now sadly

2652

defunct), for personally answering all my silly questions by mail, and

2653

for being the ambassador of shogi to the West.

2654

2655

@item

2656

Pieter Stouten, for having the most comprehensive shogi site on the

2657

World Wide Web (@uref{http://www.shogi.net}), and for

2658

maintaining the shogi-l mailing list. Go to Pieter's web site for more

2659

information on subscribing to the list. Also thanks to everyone who

2660

contributes and has contributed to that list.

2661

2662

@item

2663

Matt Casters, for testing GNU shogi. Matt and I will be working

2664

together on improving the solution engine in future versions of this

2665

program.

2666

2667

@end itemize

2668

2669

@sp 1

2670

2671

@c -----

2672

@c Bugs.

2673

@c -----

2674

2675

@node Bugs, Index, Acknowledgements, Top

2676

@chapter Bugs

2677

2678

The motto of GNU shogi is ``100% bug-free or you don't pay!'' :-) In the

2679

extremely unlikely case (*ahem*) that you do find a bug, please send me

2680

(Mike Vanier) an email at @email{mvanier@@cs.caltech.edu}. Also, feel

2681

free to send me comments, complaints, out-and-out raves, suggestions,

2682

plane tickets to Hawaii, and/or large suitcases filled with unmarked,

2683

untraceable hundred-dollar bills.

2684

2685

2686

@c ============

2687

@c End of body.

2688

@c ============

2689

2690

2691

2692

@c ====

2693

@c End.

2694

@c ====

2695

2696

@node Index, , Bugs, Top

2697

@chapter Index

2698

2699

@printindex cp

2700

2701

@contents

2702

2703

@bye

2704

2705