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Gryphon Aanca Chess. Large Variant with Gryphons, Aancas, and a few other not-so-common pieces. (12x12, Cells: 144) [All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]
Christine Bagley-Jones wrote on Sun, Oct 7, 2012 01:16 AM UTC:
Missed this lively convo about these interesting pieces a few years ago.
Yes it seems the first appearance of 'Hunter' (forward rook, backward bishop) was from 'Tenkiju Shogi', called 'Multi-General'.

I notice though, no mention is made about the first appearance of these pieces in the west.  In '100 SQUARES FOR CHESS+DAMANTE' by V.R.Parton, which is from this site too, link here (22 lines from top) ..

http://www.chessvariants.org/parton/100Squares.txt

'DECIMAL FALCON-HUNTER 
(Schulz Chess) The variant of Decimal Chess described in this section 
is derived from a very original idea due to the imagination of an 
Austrian player Karl Schulz who invented about 1943 two new kinds of 
chessmen. The common characteristic of these two pieces, which are 
named Falcon and Hunter, is that they move forward in a different way 
to that in which they move backward. The Falcon moves forward 
diagonally like the Bishop, but moves backward orthogonally like the 
Rook; it cannot move left or right along its rank.'

'The Hunter moves forward vertically like the Rook, but moves backward 
diagonally like the Bishop; it has no movement along its rank. These 
two pieces are complementary and together form a logical couple, being 
one another opposite or reverse in type of movement.'

The article goes on to say about the placement of the pieces, which is on a 10x10 board, with normal queen, rook, knight and bishop and pawns.  So this is way before 'ABC Chess'.  George Jelliss also mentions these pieces and game by Karl Schulz and the year 1943.

So, with these kind of pieces, we have 'hunter' (multi general) and 'falcon', with 'Firehorse' in 'jupiter' and 'typhoon' games of Adrian King, and this game by you Gary is first appearance of 'Noclaf' is it, the 'forward bishop, backward knight' piece?

Can we find 'forward knight, backward bishop' and 'forward knight, backward rook' pieces anywhere?

EDIT- oh i see Ralph Betza's army 'Forward Fide's' has ..

'Bishight', moves forward as Bishop or backward as Knight, and 
'Knishop', moves forward as Knight or backward as Bishop.

Can't see 'forward knight, backward rook' still.