Sir-Toby.Com

If anyone wants to follow the chess game that is taking place in a current thread, I've just downloaded Winboard, which I've found very useful (though it can do a lot more than just keeping track of moves): http://www.tim-mann.org/xboard.html

It's a 2MB download. I found a utility that was only 33KB, but unfortunately it couldn't save a position from one run of the program to the next.

I have posted an image of the game after episode 35782: http://home.earthlink.net/~anableps/images/35782.JPG It includes the names of the characters.

Thanks. Reassuringly, it matches what I thought the position was.

Who would have thought that, with his incisive mind, the Doctor would be such a mediocre chess player. Certainly for the moves I've made myself I've been trying to do my best for each side, but somewhere things seem to have gone wrong for White. Maybe some power is affecting the Doctor's mind? Perhaps he can ask if his opponent will agree to make it best out of three!

I placed this episode on the wrong option. I meant to choose 35970, as Fred is looking for ways out of the sealed room in that episode. If it is too difficult to change the link, I can re-write the episode so that it starts with Astra and Fred having a conversation about what may or may not happen to them. It would not change the action much.

By the way, as black, I am trying to divert Susan (on the knight's file) into the center so that I can attempt to walk the king's rook pawn down the board, with a rook supporting it. As the Doctor, I would try to develop the queen in combination with the bishops to force the black king out into the open, where the advantage that white may soon have in pieces can be exploited.

I'll see to correcting it. The easiest way will be for me simply to transpose the texts of the relevant two options in the parent episode.

Could one of you post a pic of the game as it is at the moment.

ODS, I have posted it to my website. Here is the URL: http://home.earthlink.net/~anableps/images/36003.JPG.

Am I missing something, or is White in terrible trouble again? Whilst White threatens B-KB7, which would win the rook, Black has the tempo and I don't think White will ever get to make that move. It looks as though after B-KN5, Black will have a massive attack and at the minimum will take White's Queen.

I am following Keegan's episode. I can follow the sequence through white's 23rd move, N-K4. However, I do not see black's response, B-QN2, as being legal. I have a black pawn on that square.

If my reading of the board after white's 23rd move is correct, the bishop in trouble on black's QB4 has some defenses. B-Q5 is possible. There are also a couple of pawn moves that would be an annoyance for white. P-QN3 forces an exchange and develops a black pawn, and P-KB4 threatens Susan.

I think that the Doctor is letting his concern for keeping his party on the board affect his game. It would be natural under the circumstances, as he probably does not know what happens to the captured pieces. In a normal game, if the Doctor were just playing for material, it appears that he can leave Susan on KN3. If the rook takes her, then the doctor takes the rook on the next move, and black has lost his best attacking threat.

Ah, I seem without realising it to have interpreted B-QN2 as to mean moving the other bishop to QN3. Hence my assimption that the bishop on Black's QB1 remained there and so was threatening B-KN5 next time.

Hopefully Keegan will be reading this, and can edit his episode.

Doh! I meant to say QN3. I have a bad habit of occasionally counting squares from the pawn's line. Oh well, we all make mistakes.

I am trying to write it as though the Doctor is more concerned about the safety of his players than anything else. It also sort of fits my personal playing style.

I'm finding it impossible to follow the chess game due to my unfamiliarity with the notations used. Starting from episode 36003, I was figuring it out allright until Susan moved to threaten the bishop in Keegan's episode. The bishop then retreated to QN2, later changed to QN3 when it was pointed out there was a pawn in that square.

Well, I assumed that QN2 was the square down from the black queen's starting square, ie d7 in the regular notation. But there is no pawn there, at least according to the picture of the game at episode 36003, nor do I see how the bishop Susan was threatening could move there from c5. Could someone please help by explaining these notations or directing me to a website where they are explained?

Are you wanting to know the basic movements of chess?
If so i would be glad to help, i am quite profitionent in chess.

The only reason i have not made an episode is because of the Q8 B1 stuff messing me up.

The reason the Bishop was able to move to the square is because Bishops Only move Diagonally, Same with Rooks but they move foward backwards left and right, and both can move an infinite amout of squares.

If i am wrong in understanding you question please Tell me what you mean.
Just for the hell of it, here are the moves for all peices.

Pawn: Forward one step, unless one it's original square, if so, it can move two.

Rook: Forward, Backward, Left, And right, For an infinite amount of squares, unless something is blocking it.

Knight: The knight moves in And L shape, ex. Two Steps forward, and one to the left, or right.

Bishop: The bishop Move only in diaganol Patterns, it also can move an infinite amount of steps.

Queen: The Queen can move in all directions, for an infinite amount of steps, but cannot move like a Knight.

King:The King Moves in all directions but only one step.

Special moves: Castling: If The king, And one rook have not been moved, and there are no pieces inbetween them, The can perform this move.

The King Moves two steps in the direction of the Rook, and the rook is moved right next to the king.

There is also a french move that alows you to move a pawn one space forward, and one diagonanly to take a piece, all in one move. It starts with a P but i can't remeber.

Hope this answers your question
Please correct me if i am wrong

Well, I assumed that QN2 was the square down from the black queen's starting square

No, QN2 is short for Queen's kNight 2 (since K stands for "King", N has to be used for the knight), ie one square down from the knight on the queen's side's starting position. So it's e7 rather than d7. I'm afraid that I'm the old-fashioned type who finds this old notation easier than the modern "algebraic" notation. (d7 would have just been Q2.)

Hopefully that clarifies things, but if you've got any other queries please don't hesitate to ask.