From: Takako Noda JA2 SO-NET OR JP> Date: 17 sep 1997 Subject: "QUEST" yagura (6) Chapter 1 Section 2 (continued) Now let me show you how the R-2i side should play against the bo-gin, the old emeny of suzume-zashi. Diagram 3, below, is from the Nippon Series game between Kunio Yonenaga(b) and Kiyosumi Kiriyama(w), played on June 6th, 1982. 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 +---------------------------+ |wL wN * * * * * wN wL |a White in hand: nothing | * wR * * * * wG wK * |b |wP * wS wP * wG wS wP wP |c | * * wP wB wP wP wP * * |d | * wP * * * * * * bP |e | * * bP bP bP * bP bP * |f |bP bP bS bG * bP bN * * |g Black in hand: nothing | * * bG bB * bS * * * |h |bL bN * bK bR * * * bL |i +---------------------------+ Diagram 3. Yonenaga(b) vs Kiriyama(w), up to B-6h. Moves from Diagram 3: (from White) S-8d; P-6e B-4b; S-6f N-7c; P-5e Px5e; Sx5e P-8f; Px8f S-9e; S-5d Gx5d; Rx5d Central field is the place to attack, as Yonenaga did in this game, which brought him a victory by a big margin. Another game in the same vein: a play-off for the meijin challenger, played by Tanigawa(b) and Nakahara(w) on March 24, 1983. Diagram 4 shows where Tanigawa shifted his R from 2i to 5i. 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 +---------------------------+ |wL wN * * * * wK wN wL |a | * wR * * * wB wG * * |b White in hand: nothing | * * wS wP * wG wS wP wP |c |wP * wP * wP wP wP * * |d | * wP * * * * * * bP |e |bP * bP bP bP * bP bP * |f | * bP bS bG * bP bN * * |g Black in hand: nothing | * * bG * * bS * * * |h |bL bN bB bK bR * * * bL |i +---------------------------+ Diagram 4. Tanigawa(b) vs Nakahara(w), up to R-5i. Moves from Diagram 4 :(from White) P-7e; Px7e Bx7e; P-5e Px5e; Rx5e B-4b; R-5i S-7d; N-2e S-2d; B-4f P-6d; P*7e Sx7e; P*7f P-8f; Px8f Sx8f; Sx8f Rx8f; P*8g R-8b; S*5a After those moves, if White plays B-5c, Black can counter with the series of moves: Nx1c- through P*5d. Thus, the game was another example to prove that the center-attack worked. Tanigawa won this game, and went on to claim the meijin title. He was just 20 years old when he played this game. This R-on-2i formation is never played now. But why? A clue to the mystery can be found in the following game. Take a look at Diagram 5, from a Mei-sho-sen(now defunct) game, played by Yonenaga(b) and Kato(w) on October 31st, 1984. 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 +---------------------------+ |wL wN * * * * * wN wL |a | * wR * * * * wG wK * |b White in hand: nothing | * * wS wP * wG wS wP wP |c |wP * wP wB wP wP wP * * |d | * wP * * * * * * bP |e | * * bP bP bP * bP bP * |f |bP bP bS bG bB bP bN * * |g Black in hand: nothing | * bK bG * * bS * * * |h |bL bN * * * * * bR bL |i +---------------------------+ Diagram 5. Yonenaga(b) vs Kato(w), up to K-8h. The R-2i formation is essentially a passive strategy, in which Black delays his/her plan until he/she sees how the opponent deals with the position. This is exactly what White takes advantage of. White's answer at Diagram 5 is B-4b. You may say it's just a move waisted, but it evades in advance a possible attack on B's head by P-6e, an effective countermeasure against White's offence. This kind of slow move gives Black a headache, because White will then play S-8d if Black does nothing about it. Moves from Diagram 5: (from White) B-4b; P-4f S-8d; N-2e S-2d; P-6e N-7c; After White's B-4b, Black, seeing that P-6e was pointless, played P-4f instead, only to give White enough time to build up the intended foothold: S on 8d and N on 7c. The rest of the game went in favor of Kato, who eventually won the game. What Kato did in the aforementioned game proved that the R-2i formation didn't work when White chose to wait. It functions when Black takes advantage of White's offense, but is not fit for having the initiative. Did White's cautious move, B-4b, become joseki, then? The answer is no. There was a big change in the yagura conception which drowned out a minor adjustment like B-4b. The big-bang in the yagura, as it were, was the idea of immobile Fu(P) on the Rook file. I have to add that the idea of keeping the P unmoved was not exactly novel. But it used to appear in combination with suzume-zashi, so the meaning was different. Now we distinguish the new yagura from the old one, the immobile P on the R file demarcating the boundary line. In the old yagura, P-2f was thought of as an unnecessary move, if Black was about to attack along the first file. The idea came along with the idea of the P-on-2g suzume-zashi. The present view is: P-2f is not necessary because R will come on the third file, which is to be the field to open fire. It took a long time for the present view to replace the old one. The old-style suzume-zashi with P on 2g also fell prey to the bo-gin, and made its exit. Then there was an explosion of the immobile P on the second file, together with the idea of shifting the R on the third file. (End of Sec.2) Takako Noda