Thursday, January 05, 2017

A Welcome to 2017 with cooperations

I will open the January with wishes for health and successes to all composers.

Let us hope that the new year 2017 will bring joy and happiness to all people.



Three compositions - cooperations of mine, belonging to fairy chess because they use grasshoppers, were published last year and I have learned about it this year.

I offer my thanks for the cooperation to Vito Rallo (with colours of Italy) and to Kostas Prentos (with colours Greece/USA).

The Grasshoppers are pieces - hurdlers. They see on a row or file or diagonal another piece - hurdle, and they jump on the square exactly after the hurdle. If this square is nonempty, it could only contain an opponent piece, which is captured by the Grasshopper.


Problem-833
Vito Rallo (ITA) and Emmanuel Manolas (GRE)
Phenix 265, 09/2016
8/8/8/GK6/8/3g1k2/3P4/8
(3 + 2), (Grasshoppers a5 + d3)
 Helpmate h#6

1.Gg3 Ge1 2.Kf4 d4 3.Ge5 d5 4.Ke4 d6 5.Kd5 d7 6.Kd6 d8=Q#

Theme Excelsior (a pawn starts from its initial position until it is promoted). Self-blocking. Miniature. A comment : A beautiful mate is presented.


Problem-834
Emmanuel Manolas (GRE) and Vito Rallo (ITA)
Phenix 268, 12/2016
3g4/8/8/k7/8/7G/8/s3K3
(2 + 3), (Grasshoppers h3 + d8)
Helpmate h#7, fairy condition Andernach

1.Ka4 Kd2 2.Gd1 Kc3 3.Ka3 Gb3 4.Ka2 Kb4 5.Sxb3(wSb3) Sc1+ 6.Ka1 Ka3 7.Gb1 Sb3#

The fairy condition Andernach changes the colour of the capturing piece. Self-blocking. Miniature. A comment : Difficult manouver, to change the colour of the piece that will mate.


Problem-835
Emmanuel Manolas (GRE) and Kostas Prentos (Greece/USA)
Strategems, 12/2016
1g6/5G1G/8/2pk4/7K/8/1pp5/5G1G
(5 + 5), (Grasshoppers f1f7h1h7 + b8)
Helpmate h#4

1.c4 Gb5 2.Kc6 Gd7 3.Kb7 Gc7+ 4.Ka8 Gb7# (mate at a8, northwest, NW)
1.Ke6 Gd5 2.Kf6 Gf7 3.Kg7 Kh5 4.Kh8 Kg6# (mate at h8, northeast, NE)
1.Ke4 Ge1 2.Kf3 Gf2+ 3.Kg2 Gh2 4.Kh1 Kg3# (mate at h1, southeast, SE)
1.Kc4 Gf8 2.Kb3 Gb1+ 3.Ka2 Gb3+ 4.Ka1 Gf6# (mate at a1, southwest,SW)

Star of the bK, who gets mated at the four corners of the chessboard. In two variations the White activates the white royal battery with mirror symmetry.


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