Sideways Hourglass Chess

I read about the 40-square contest shortly after the documentation was published online. I immediately thought of a 6x7 board of some fashion, where two squares are punched out. This is the end result. However, while working on my second variant, I stumbled across a third possibility which works even better than my second and this one. Thus, this one is not a competing entry in the contest.

I am not herein attempting to replace Uri Brick's variant by the same name. I stumbled across it after thinking up the name, and my creativity regarding new names is minimal. Hence, I renamed it by adding the word "Sideways".

This game was invented on July 26, 1999.

Preparation

You can take a standard board and cover it with a cut-out piece of paper to reduce the board to it's desired setting. Evidently, you should trace a cutout for your own board and use it, rather than my providing one here, which would not necessarily fit some boards.

If all else fails (as often happens sometimes), just try to remember which squares are OB (out of bounds).

Board Setup

The board is a six-by-seven checkered board with two holes punched out of it. The setup is as follows:

White:
King e1; Queen c1; Rooks a1, g1; Bishop f1; Knight b1; Pawns a2, b2, c2, d2, e2, f2, g2.

Black:
King e6; Queen c6; Rooks a6, g6; Bishop f6; Knight b6; Pawns a5, b5, c5, d5, e5, f5, g5.

d1 and d6 do not exist in this game.

I've made the lower-right square (g1) black in this variant.

Rules

Pieces move exactly the same as orthodox chess, except Pawns can only move one square on the first move. (Of course, why step two squares and be captured outright?)

I've decided, after some thought, that castling would be unfeasable in this variant.

Comments

My original idea was a board where two holes on the sides were punched out, but this would have made pawn moves difficult, so I rotated it 90 degrees.

If you would like to add any comments regarding strategy or even challenge me to a game, contact me by email anytime. (For the email address, select the link `Bryan Lambert' at the bottom of this webpage; editor.)