From: "george (g.) jost" BNR CA> Date: 16 apr 1996 Subject: Re: Checkmate rule In message "Re: Checkmate rule", Reiger writes: > >The problem as I see it is as follows: in Shogi there is no checkmating rule. >As a result it is perfectly legal to leave your king in check, even though >that would not be very wise because your opponent might spot this and take >your king, thereby ending the game. A Shogi game is only truly finished when I think that any opponent worth mentioning would spot this? I mean could you imagine a Dan player losing a tournament because he/she missed that crucial opportunity? Talk about embarassing. I feel intuitively that the drop rule adds an additional level of difficulty to the game. Certainly I with my humble 13-14 Kiu self appointed rating have had opportunities where I'd just love to drop that crucial pawn and oblitterate my opponent. Perhaps the frustration is that I have of not being able to drop captured pieces in chess? Or the anger of the person at the black jack table who feels that someone playing stupidly stold his/her card. Cannot any rule be a two-edged sword? How is it that Black would have an advantage over white without the drop rule? Is this statistical or what? Have people played without the drop rule? How about without the other pawn dropping rule? I find again with my novice hands that one can used an opponents untaken pawns against him/her. -- George (ESN 395-2895) (613)-765-2895 :) e-mail: jost bnr ca H.G Wells was probably the best science fiction writer of all time. (If others, since, seem to have reached greater heights, it is only because they stand on Well's shoulders.) Isaac Asmov 1984, essay on Time Travel ---------------------------------------------------- This memo does not represent the views of Nortel