The Royal Substitute Chess
By Gerd P. Degens
A game in which there are no kings in the starting position. They are replaced by royal pawns, nine in number. They move like pawns, but have the royal function. On the opponent's base line, pawns transform into royal pieces, move like kings from there and retain their royal function unchanged. The game ends when the last royal pawn or king on one side has been captured.
Setup
Pieces
The pieces move and capture according to the table below.
Rules
Stalemate is a win, bare king loses, the en passant capturing does not happen. King pawns are converted into king pieces on the opponent's base line, move from there like kings and retain their royal function. In addition, the game ends when the last royal pawn or king of one side has been captured.
![]() | royal pawn | steps one square straight ahead, or diagonally forward to an empty square, or slides to the 2nd square straight ahead |
![]() | knight | makes a knight's jump |
![]() | rook | slides orthogonally |
![]() | dragon horse | slides diagonally, or steps one square orthogonally |
![]() | halfqueen | slides up to 3 squares in all 8 directions |
![]() | king | steps one square in all 8 directions |
This 'user submitted' page is a collaboration between the posting user and the Chess Variant Pages. Registered contributors to the Chess Variant Pages have the ability to post their own works, subject to review and editing by the Chess Variant Pages Editorial Staff.
By Gerd P. Degens.
Last revised by Gerd Degens.
Web page created: 2025-02-05. Web page last updated: 2025-02-05