Abstract:
A modified chess game known as Royal Chess is disclosed in which the traditional king and queen pawns are replaced by shield pawns ( 42, 42 A) possessing the traditional moves and characteristics of traditional pawns ( 40 ), plus the ability to move laterally one file in either direction of their rank.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates generally to board games, and more particularly to a modified chess game. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The game of chess is played around the globe by millions of enthusiasts. The standard game of chess is played on a square game board divided into an eight-by-eight grid of alternately colored squares. Two sets of game pieces are arranged on opposite sides of the game board. The ‘high value’ pieces are arranged on the row furthest from the opponent. The ‘lowest value’ piece, the pawn, is arranged in a row directly in front of the latter. The objective is to place the opponent&#39;s king piece in a condition which is formed by positioning the high value pieces such that the opponents king piece cannot move without violating the high value pieces territory. 
     Unlike other sports, chess is constant in that the game is played the same throughout the world—same movements, same rules. All of the potential moves have been documented and, given time, one can find the best counter move for any scenario presented by an opponent. In fact, the moves and counter moves are so well known that computers have been developed that can play the game against humans or against another computer. Many advanced players study these materials and find that the excitement of the game is somewhat dulled. 
     Numerous innovations for modifying the conventional chess game have been provided in the prior art. Typically, such modifications have taken the form of additional play pieces and/or altered board layouts. For instance, examples of modified chess games are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,690,334; 5,735,523; 5,692,754; 5,901,957; 5,536,014; 5,421,582; and 4,033,586. Often, such modified chess games vary from conventional Chess to such a degree that many, if not a majority, of the basic moves and strategies learned by players through years of practice lose their relevance. 
     Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a modified version of Chess wherein the modification expands upon the basic proven game by providing more of a challenge to the players while maintaining the effectiveness of most of the core moves and strategies. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A modified version of traditional chess, referred to as “Royal Chess,” is played upon a conventional chess board  20  having an eight-by-eight square checkerboard pattern comprising files and rank. The game comprises traditional chess pieces initially set up on the board  20  pursuant to the rules of chess. On each player&#39;s second rank (the rank immediately forward of each player&#39;s back rank), each player has a row of eight pawns. Six of the pawns are traditional chess pawns  40 ,  40 A, and two of the pawns, positioned directly in front of the king and queen, are “shield pawns”  42 ,  42 A. The traditional chess pieces move pursuant to the traditional rules of chess. In addition to the traditional pawn movements and characteristics, each shield pawn can move laterally one file in either direction of its rank. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a top view of a conventional prior art Chess board game; 
     FIG. 2 is a top view of a modified Chess board game in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 3 is a top view of a section of board  20 , illustrating the potential moves of a Shield pawn,  42 , in accordance with the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring now to FIG. 2, the modified chess game of the present invention, referred to as “Royal Chess,” is played upon a conventional chess board  20  having a checkerboard pattern comprising files and ranks. As used herein, the terms “files” and “ranks” are used in the same sense as they are used in the conventional game of chess to describe board positions. The eight files (rows that run left to right for White and right to left for Black) are indicated by small letters a, b, c, d, e, f, g and h, respectively. The eight ranks (columns that run from bottom to top for White and from top to bottom for Black) are numbered  1  through  8 . 
     The game comprises traditional chess pieces initially set up on the board  20  pursuant to the rules of chess. That is, the player having the White pieces has pieces disposed on the player&#39;s back rank (a 1  through h 1 )—the rank furthest away from the Black player&#39;s pieces—which include from left to right a rook  30 , knight  32 , bishop  34 , queen  36 , king  38 , bishop  34 , knight  32  and rook  30 . The king  28  is disposed on a black square. The player having the Black pieces has on that player&#39;s back rank (a 8  through h 8 ) pieces consisting of, left to right from the White player&#39;s perspective, a rook  30 A, knight  32 A, bishop  34 A, queen  36 A, king  38 A, bishop  34 A, knight  32 A and rook  30 A. The king  38 A of the player having the Black pieces is initially disposed on a white colored square. 
     On each player&#39;s second rank (the rank immediately forward of each player&#39;s back rank), each player has a row of eight pawns. Six of the pawns are traditional chess pawns  40 ,  40 A. However, in the modified chess game of the present invention the two traditional pawns initially positioned directly in front of the king and queen are replaced with “shield pawns”  42 ,  42 A. Preferably, the shield pawns are constructed to have a slightly greater height (e.g., 15%) than the traditional pawn pieces. With the exception of the shield pawns  42 ,  42 A, which will be described in more detail below, each of the aforementioned traditional chess pieces moves pursuant to the traditional rules of chess. 
     Referring now to FIG. 3, a single White shield pawn  42  is shown isolated on a section of board  20  for the purpose of illustrating its potential moves. Each shield pawn  42  possesses all of the traditional pawn movements and characteristics. In particular, shield pawn  42  can move forward one square at a time into an unoccupied position, and diagonally forward one square to capture an opposing player&#39;s piece. Furthermore, if the shield pawn  42  has never moved, it has the option of moving either one or two squares forward. Also, like the traditional pawn, the shield pawn can be promoted to a piece of its own color upon reaching the opposing player&#39;s first rank. In addition to the these traditional movements, each shield pawn  42  can move laterally one file in either direction of its rank. Thus, shield pawn  42  can move forward from square  21  to square  24 , or laterally from square  21  to either square  22  or square  23 . Furthermore, shield pawn  42  can move diagonally from square  21  to either square  25  or  26  to capture an opposing Black piece. 
     The enhanced mobility of the shield pawns, vis-a-vis the traditional pawns, expands the offensive and defensive strategies of the opening, middle and end portions of the chess game. As a result, the traditional chess game strategies are expanded to provide a more interesting game, without entirely altering the way the game is played.