The March, 1934 issue of Modern Mechanix introduced this remarkable Depression-era chess-variant that pitted "agitators" against "engineers." Love how the entire historical zeitgeist appears to have been captured in 16 chessmen.
Agitators, Engineers Are Chessmen (Mar, 1934)
MODERN as tomorrow morning's headlines, a newly simplified form of the game of chess has for its game board the Modern World, and for its pieces Farmers, Mechanics, Engineers and even Agitators struggling against forces symbolized by opposing Armies, Bankers, Radio, Press, Law and Middlemen trying to become Rankers.The play, which is solely a matter of skill, centers around opposing forces trying to dominate one neutral piece called Government while either the red or white side, as the antagonists are named, is in power.
The game may be played by either two, three, or four persons and is substantially like chess. But gone are the Pawns, the Knights, and the Kings and Queens,
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I swear I read that as "alligators against engineers" which would be even better.
Heh. I read "alligators" too, for some reason. But the article seems to contradict itself; weren't the agitators and the engineers on the same side? That would seem to make more sense (particularly in the modern context).
Anybody know anything else about this "Nira" Chess Variant? I looked through my chess encyclopedia and some websites and couldn't find anything...
Strangely, Pantograph, I read it the same way. Perhaps we ought to make our own chess variant pitting alligators against engineers. "Moat Mutiny"? "Moatiny?"
I wonder what the equivalent chess set would be today? Republicans vs. Democrats? Rush Limbaugh as King, Michelle Bachmann as Queen? And all the pawns are Fox News-anchors.
Another alligator reader.
This is pretty cool. It does, look, though, like Black has way more than 16 chessmen.
Count me as another alligator reader.
Someone needs to get to work on that variation.
I continued to read alligators through the first sentence, even, momentarily, curious as to what the hell was the zeitgeisty symbolism of this reptilian conflict
Another "alligator" reader.
Because of that though, iI re-read it a couple of times. It would seem the agitators are not against the engineers. They're on the same side, working against the "rankers"... no?
This is not a real game, it's political satire. Nira is the National Industrial Recovery Act (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Industrial_Recovery_Act), which was passed in 1933. In part, it sought to establish cartels in various industries to aid in recovery during the Depression. This portion of NIRA was declared unconstitutional in 1935.
Well I didn't see alligators.
Where are the gd rules of this game? I want to play it.
I was going to make some comment about it being easy to guess which side was "red" and which was "white," but then I re-read the description, and I'm not sure the BoingBoing headline is right.
Are the "agitators" actually against the engineers? Obviously we're assuming so, but the description doesn't actually say that:
It sounds to me like the engineers and the agitators are actually on the same side, along with the farmers and mechanics, and they are against the armies, bankers and law.
Anyone else read it this way?
(Note that the original blog article doesn't make BB's assumption.)
Arrggh! Where are the rules for this? Someone please post a link if you find one.
I suppose it would be too much to ask for the actual rules?
Also interested in the rules and I read it the same way as SamSam. It looks like it's
Farmers, Mechanics, Engineers and even Agitators
vs.
Opposing Armies, Bankers, Radio, Press, Law and Middlemen trying to become Rankers
Read the original newspaper cutout, it is not "trying to become Rankers" in the last sentence, but "trying to become Bankers".
Farmers, Mechanics, Engineers and even Agitators
V.S.
Armies, Bankers, Radio, Press, Law and Middlemen
Red Vs. White?
This steeps heavily of the russian revolution; the Proletariat vs the Bourgeoisie. Considering the time it was made (1934) it very well could be propaganda from the 1917 russian revolution. Very interesting to say the least.
I'm guessing, on no evidence, that "Middlemen trying to become Bankers" is their clever way of talking about pawns being promoted. I, too, would love to see the rules, though it looks like a custom set of pieces would be required. Is Government the piece with the big flag, do you reckon?
Aggghh, I'm at work and not allowed to look at this cuz it is a "game" website =P
Someone please check with British Chess Variant Society:
http://www.bcvs.ukf.net/
Cute decimal (metric?) board. Hundred squares instead of 64.
Welcome to the future, where the engineers ARE the agitators.
Okay, I didn't read Alligators. I read it as "Gladiators".
My thoughts were: "Geez, that'll be a short fight."
I guess today, I'm someone.
Alligators vs Engineers, rules for a standard chess set, v 0.1
All of the pawns are alligators and the rest of the pieces are the engineering team.
Setup:
Mark the river by marking a row, two squares wide, across the board, two squares from one edge.
Place all of the alligators in the river to start.
Place the engineering team on the larger side, in standard position, 2 layers deep.
Play:
The goal for the engineers is to get all the engineers to safety across the river before being eaten. An engineering piece exits the board by moving off of the board on the side across the river using normal movement.
The goal for the alligators is to eat engineers, for they are tasty.
Choose who starts using your favourite randomness generator.
Movement:
Alligators can move one space in any direction while in water, but only forwards and back while on land. They may move one or two spaces from the river, then one space afterwards. Alligators attack targets on land by moving diagonally, but may attack any adjacent target in the water.
Lunging: Alligators always have the option of moving one or two spaces from the water, not just on their first move. This means that they can exit the water, re-enter the water, then lunge again. Only rooks may be attacked with a lunge.
Kings are extra tasty - killing a king will hatch a new alligator in the river, restoring a previously killed alligator. This new alligator must be placed at the edge of the board (upstream or downstream).
Engineering team pieces move following their normal movement rules. Engineers cannot enter or cross the river, except:
Drawbridges: Rooks, placed beside the river allow any unit that starts its turn adjacent to the rook to move through the rook to the opposite side of the river. Units use their normal movement rules to enter the square the rook is on (diagonal for bishops, L-shaped for knights, etc), then end their movement on side of the river opposite the bishop. Rooks may only be destroyed by a lunging alligator.
Boats: Bishops can enter the river, but cannot enter and exit on the same turn. Other engineering units may move through bishops while they are on the river, according to the moving unit's movement rules. Other units cannot stop on a bishop, but can only pass through them.
Lightfooted: the queens may pass through any square occupied by an alligator as if it was unoccupied, but must stop if they enter an unoccupied square. They may cross the river this way.
http://alligators-vs-engineers.blogspot.com/2009/10/alligators-vs-engineers.html for some rule tweaks and followup..
This reminds me of the chess sets they sell in Peru to tourists. They are usually Incas vs Conquistidors. But I once saw a set in a shop aimed at upper-class Peruvians that was Campesinos vs Ladinos, that is Indian farmers vs "modern" engineers, doctors, and other professionals. Supposedly, the last Inca emperor played a lot of chess with his captors, and they executed him for beating them at it. Not likely, but it's a good story to sell chess sets with.
Reminds me of the lovely Capitalists v. Communists chess set (1923, Natalia Danko and Yelena Danko, Russian, Lomonosov State Porcelain Factory, Leningrad. Porcelain with polychrome enamels and gilding). Saw these and others at a Detroit Institute of Arts exhibition last spring. More here: http://www.dia.org/museum_info/chess/thumbnails.pdf
Dang, I must be hungry. I keep misreading pawns as prawns.
Reminds me of the variant called "Djambi", or "Machiavelli's chessboard".
Each player has an army, and taking your chief to the center square makes him in power, allowing the player to play twice.