Kevin Pacey wrote on Tue, Jul 18, 2017 07:50 PM UTC:
@ V. Reinhart: I missed where H.G.'s formula was previously discussed, but I gather in case of your computation for the Star-Cat's value, "N" in the formula would be worth about 1/3 approximately. The value for the Star-Cat you gave (approximately 12 Pawns) doesn't seem too far off to me, if it weren't for the multi-capturing capability, as you noted in a later post. Based on some guesswork at a formula of my own, I'd only make the Star-Cat worth about a Pawn more on a 12x12 board with this variant's pieces in the setup position, due to it's multi-capturing ability.
A possible problem with this sort of value I'd note is that it's greater than what I'd put a queen at on a 12x12 board (say 10.5 Pawns approximately, which many might more or less agree with). A queen might not have too much trouble swapping itself off for a Star-Cat, or else delivering a series of checks or attacks, at least when there aren't many pieces left on the board, if nothing else. Fwiw, I had the same sort of vexing trouble when estimating the values of a couple of otherwise powerful pieces in the case of one of my own variants (i.e. Full house hexagonal chess, in case of the otherwise powerful Unicorn and Hydra pieces there, compared to the value I gave for a queen). Sometimes it's hard to come up with even approximate values that fully satisfy.
P.S.: Fwiw, by my crude & incomplete piece variant estimating methods, for a 12x12 board with this variant's pieces I would have put the Star-Cat at about 9.75 Pawns initially, then further added about a pawn's value (to take into account it's multi-capturing ability). The Cat I'd have initially estimated at about 5.75 Pawns on such a board, then further added about 1/2 a pawn's value.
@ V. Reinhart: I missed where H.G.'s formula was previously discussed, but I gather in case of your computation for the Star-Cat's value, "N" in the formula would be worth about 1/3 approximately. The value for the Star-Cat you gave (approximately 12 Pawns) doesn't seem too far off to me, if it weren't for the multi-capturing capability, as you noted in a later post. Based on some guesswork at a formula of my own, I'd only make the Star-Cat worth about a Pawn more on a 12x12 board with this variant's pieces in the setup position, due to it's multi-capturing ability.
A possible problem with this sort of value I'd note is that it's greater than what I'd put a queen at on a 12x12 board (say 10.5 Pawns approximately, which many might more or less agree with). A queen might not have too much trouble swapping itself off for a Star-Cat, or else delivering a series of checks or attacks, at least when there aren't many pieces left on the board, if nothing else. Fwiw, I had the same sort of vexing trouble when estimating the values of a couple of otherwise powerful pieces in the case of one of my own variants (i.e. Full house hexagonal chess, in case of the otherwise powerful Unicorn and Hydra pieces there, compared to the value I gave for a queen). Sometimes it's hard to come up with even approximate values that fully satisfy.
P.S.: Fwiw, by my crude & incomplete piece variant estimating methods, for a 12x12 board with this variant's pieces I would have put the Star-Cat at about 9.75 Pawns initially, then further added about a pawn's value (to take into account it's multi-capturing ability). The Cat I'd have initially estimated at about 5.75 Pawns on such a board, then further added about 1/2 a pawn's value.