From: "'Gary Whelan'" <gwshogi <at> ENTERMAIL <dot> NET>
Date: 22 apr 2003
Subject: Play Makruk (Thai chess) online!

I know this has nothing to do with Shogi, and I
only have a mild interest in Makruk myself, but I
know some people on this list will find this
interesting.  After a confusing but fun adventure
through obscure Thai language web sites (without
the aid of translation software!) I've finally
found a site for playing Makruk (Thai chess)
against live opponents that is user-friendly for
for English-speaking players:

http://www.thaibg.com/TSOnline/index.php

All the important stuff is in English.  The
registration process is the most seamless I've
ever seen.  Just click on "Register" on the menu
bar, enter your info, assign yourself a password,
and you can log in immediately (no waiting for an
e-mail).  And it's free.

The interface is fascinating, with beautiful
graphics.  When you first get in (after
slecting "Thai chess" from the games listed),
you're given a "birds eye view" of several
boards.  Some are games in progress, some are
players waiting for an opponent.  You can watch
several games at once this way.  If you choose a
board to play at ("sit") or watch more closely,
you are taken to a larger view of the board.
Blitz seems to be the only time control!  At
least I can't figure out how to set it to
anything else.

For those who may not be familiar with the game,
Makruk is the eastern "variant" of chess which
most closely resembles the Western game: 8x8
board, king, queen, two rooks, two bishops, two
knights, eight pawns.  You can easily play it
with a Western chess set.  The pawns, knights,
king, and rooks move and capture exactly like
their Western counterparts.  The queen is the
primordial sort, moving one square diagonally.
It is very popular in its home countries of
Thailand and Cambodia, much more so than chess is
in the west (or at least the US), but perhaps not
quite as popular as shogi is in Japan.

There are three intriguing resemblances to
shogi:  (1) The bishops move like shogi silvers!
(2) The pawns start on the third rank (3) Pawns
promote on reaching the sixth rank (to queens).

It seems to be at least as drawish as chess,
maybe more, but I'm determined to play until I
win a game!

Enjoy!