You can't immediately checkmate, so I think the optimal strategy if you go first is to take the pawn in front of the queen, then take the car using your car.

Driving in circles is a weird one, because it seems like you don't have to be able to complete the circle (otherwise what would be the point, and can it be an ellipse?), so I wouldn't immediately know if it could be optimal to take out the queen if car got only one move. However, you definitely take the opposing car with its two moves.

Edit: Wait, okay, this is fucked. That checkmates you. If you take the queen, car checkmates; if you take the car, queen checkmates. This is very fucked.

Edit 2: WAIT. Car up one, right one, because that's part of a circle. Then up to take car. So you lose out on the pawn, but you take the opposing car. I don't know because this seemingly screws you over positionally a bit, but the car just seems too dangerous to be left alive (it controls the Senate and the courts).

[–] Rhaedas@fedia.io 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I've found that most chess alternates are fucked. They always seem cool at first, but then, thinking far into gameplay, you realize why chess is what it is after centuries of changes. The most reasonable I've seen was an old German variation of 3d chess, I think five levels, that introduced a new unicorn piece. But I don't know how full gameplay works out.

The best fucked up chess, 5D chess. Not only because it's mind-blowing once you get into it, but it sort of works. Sort of. It depends on how you play it out. And it's funny, I saw one of the famous grandmasters of chess play it once, and I thought it would be interesting to see their take on it. They didn't seem to even understand the idea, and played basically normal chess using the 5D structure. Shows that a genius in one thing doesn't guarantee anything in others.

[–] funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 weeks ago

well because the game becomes a randomizer after a while, you fork in this time-line but they introduce a check from another time-line, and you only need mate it one time-line to win