From: Colin Paul Adams COLINA DEMON CO UK> Date: 17 dec 1997 Subject: TENJIKU: A Requiem for a dearly beloved game? It is with great sorrow that I have to announce that I fear I have demonstrated a forced win for Black in Tenjiku Shogi. I appeal for your help to prove me wrong! On the 20th March, I published the first edition of my book, The Book of Tenjiku. The tentative conclusion I had come to then, was that Black could gain material with the sequence: P - 9k HF - 13f BGn x 13f P - 8f VGn - 14g VGn - 3j VGn x 10c VGn x 7n VGn x 9b G x 9b LHK x 7n P x 13f Gaining A Free King and a Horned Falcon for the Bishop General. But this was by no means a forced win. Very swiftly it became apparent that if my version of the Lion Hawk was used (combined Bishop and Lion), then by replying LHk x 9b - 10c instead of G x 9b, White could get a fair middle game, with distinct prospects of an endgame advantage (promotion of the Bishop General to a Vice General is a tremendous advantage in the endgame, as a Vice General is the only piece that can defend the King against a Fire Demon (or promoted Water Buffalo)). Because of that new assessment, Black's advantage became uncertain. Therefore it became sensible to look for alternative second moves for Black. Unfortunately, I seem to have found one that is far too strong. VGn - 7k. This threatens both FiD - 12i (aiming at the Horned Falcon and the move FiD - 11h -- a double attack on 14e and 10e) and VGn - 3g (winning a Fire Demon) and I can find no defence to these threats! Oh well, I thought - White can always fall back on the symmetrical defence : P - 9k P -8f VGn - 14g VGn - 3j etc., which loses a Free King. Of course, this is a theoretical loss for White, but at least the game is playable (you have to be very good indeed to be able to translate this theoretical loss into a win every time, I am by no means confident that I could do so, even though I have never lost a game yet). But then it occured to me that the same move VGN - 7k can be used against P - 8f. If White responds symmetrically (and what else can he do?) then this time he loses a whole Lion. This is more than just a theoretical loss - it is close to a resigning matter. If this analysis holds, then the game can only be played with a handicap (anything between a Free King and a Lion). So I am appealing to you all for suggested lines of defence for White. I am most reluctant to entitle the second edition of my book (due out in March) "Requiem for a beloved game", but I fear that will happen. -- Colin Paul Adams Preston, Lancashire, England colin colina demon co uk