Skip to Content
 

Empire Chess

7 replies [Last post]
Anonymous

This is a new board game I designed. It's played with chess pieces and coins on a chess board. It is quite fun. Here are the rules. The numbers by units are hp, attack, range, movement a turn, and cost. It is very similar to Age of Empires but on the chess board.

Object: Take turns battling until one player takes over the board by eliminating all opposing pieces.
Setup: Standard Game – Both players place their Capitol in the corner to their left in the correct spot. Then both players place their civilians in a square adjacent to their capitol’s square. Player 2 starts with 1 food.
Pieces:

<br />
Chess     Empire<br />
Piece     Chess Piece    HP      ATTACK RANGE MOVEMENT       COST<br />
King      Capitol        5       0      1     0              1 wood<br />
Queen     Town Center    4       0      1     0              1 wood<br />
Pawn      Civilian       1       1      1     1              1 food<br />
Rook      Tower          4       1      1     0 (passable)   1 stone<br />
Knight    Sword Cavalry  2       1      1     2              1 food; 1 iron<br />
Bishop    Foot Archer    2       1      2+h   1              1 food; 1 wood<br />
Bishop<br />
w/ pawn   Cannon         2       1&2    3     1 (no attack)  1 gold; 1 iron<br />
Knight<br />
w/ pawn   Siege Ram      2       5      1     1 (can attack)  1 gold; 1 wood<br />
Upside-                  =Tower<br />
down Rook Improved Tower used HP 1      2     0 (passable)   2 stone; 1 tower<br />
Checkers<br />
or Coins  Walls          4       0      0     0 (passable)   1 stone= 3 wall parts<br />

A units HP is its max.
Extremely important! All units, both buildings and others cannot perform actions the first turn they are created. (Creating new units is not considered an action.)
• Capitol: New units are created in a square adjacent to this or the town center. The only difference is the Capitol has 1 more hp than the town center. If all spaces around the capitol or towncenter are occupied, you may not create anything there.
• Town Center: New units are created in a square adjacent to this or the Capitol. The only difference is the Capitol has 1 more hp than the town center. If all spaces around the capitol or towncenter are occupied, you may not create anything there.
• Civilians:
o RESOURCES: Civilians gather resources from any space on the board. The five resources are food, wood, stone, iron, and gold. If you save resource gathered, it only lasts till the end of your next turn. Let me repeat, if you save resource gathered, it is destroyed if you don’t spend it by the end of your next turn.
o ACTIONS: Civilians can do two things a turn, a move action and a regular action. A regular action is to gather a type of resource, attack, research cannons/repairing/healing, or build a building after spending correct resource amount. You must declare what type of resource you will collect if that is what you choose to do with that civilian. Civilians may also populate as a third action. When civilians build capitols or town centers, you place the piece on the board and the civilian is always populated. When a civilian is populated it is killed and you receive 1 food.
o ATTACKING: When a civilian attacks, you must use a 50/50 chance to determine the outcome. Flip a coin, paper rock scissors, dice, etc. If correct the civilian does one damage. If not, the civilian is killed, always.
o BUILDINGS: When civilians build towers or walls, the tower/wall is placed under the civilian. Civilians may move on and off the tower/wall if you own it. The only time there can be 2 units on one square is when a one piece unit moves on top of a wall, tower, or an improved tower. When civilians build buildings they are always created in the same square as the civilian. Civilians do not build new units; only buildings. When civilians build walls, they must put one part of the wall under the civilian and the other two parts must be adjacent to each other.
o RESEARCH ACTIONS: You must research to build cannons, repair, or heal. For building cannons you must use a research action from a citizen. From then on, you may build cannons. For repairing buildings you must research repairing. For healing, you must research healing. Citizens may repair or heal from any square. Heal is for movable units and repair is for buildings. Repairing or healing adds one HP to the target. To do research, you declare what you research and it counts as an action.
• Towers: Towers can attack any unit (even your own) in a square adjacent to it. They deal one damage automatically. Towers may attack once a turn. One piece units may move on and off them. When they are created, the civilian is placed on top. The only thing that can attack units on top of towers is foot archers. Units may not attack on top of towers unless they are foot archers. If the tower is destroyed, the unit on top is destroyed.
• Sword Cavalry: Sword Calvary is the quickest unit. Moving 2 squares, they are a powerful unit. They can move one space, attack, and then move back a space. Because of the ineffective use of swords vs. buildings, sword cavalry must use a 50/50 chance against buildings. If right, deal one damage. If incorrect, no damage is done. Get a bonus and does 2 damage against foot archers.
• Foot Archers: Foot archers are powerful because they do 1 damage when attacking non-buildings. They have a 50/50 probability of doing a damage to a building like cavalry. Archers can arch of towers and walls as normal. Also, they can arch units on top of towers and walls. Sword cavalry do two damage to this unit.
• Cannons: Require research. Most powerful unit in the game. With its 3 square range, it is able to attack over any unit. They do not have the ability to attack units on top of buildings. Its default attack is 1, but against buildings, it gets a bonus and does 2 damage points and doesn’t ever use 50/50. This and the siege ram may not attack the same turn they move!
• Siege Rams: This may only attack buildings. They don’t use a 50/50 chance when they attack. They may attack the same turn they move.
• Improved Towers: They keep the attack and hp of the tower flipped up-side down as a result of paying 2 stone. They don’t require a civilian to improve them. They only difference is its range is increased to 2. They still can’t attack units on top of buildings. If the tower is destroyed the unit on top is destroyed.
• Walls: These are built under the civilian and the other two must be adjacent to each other. Even if there are diagonal spaces between them, they are impassible by your opponent. Your one piece units may move onto it. If the wall segment is destroyed, the unit on top is destroyed. Walls cost 1 stone two build 3 wall segments with one under the citizen and two adjacent to the first. Total wall segments allowed per player is 9.
Game play: Use 50/50 to find out who goes first. On a standard game, both players would place their capitols and their civilian in the appropriate places and the second player receives 1 food. Starting with one civilian, you can do a movement and a action. Your capitol can create as many new units a turn as able to if you pay for them. You can perform movements and actions with units in any order, as long as you don’t do more than the allowed actions. When you run out of actions or you are finished, the turn goes to the second player. A game is over when one player destroys all of the other player’s pieces. The only player left is the winner.
Random Game: A random game is different because the players can choose where you put you capitol on the board. They second player must choose where their capitol goes after the first player. The second player does not get a food to start with. The second player chooses how many civilians you both start with. Both players place their civilians in any space on the board.

Anonymous
good idea?

good idea?

Jebbou
Jebbou's picture
Offline
Joined: 07/29/2008
Empire Chess

While not being a fan of chess and AOE, I quickly went through the rules anyways. These are the issue that could arise:
1) How will you keep track of damage. If using counters, you will probably find the board overcrowded with damage counters.
2) Balance. For example, if towers and static units are too powerful, you might find yourself stuck in a situation where both players bunk themselves, and stay on their side. You will need to test a lot to make sure there is no "ultimate combo".
3) Resource system: Are all resources available from everywhere on the board? If so, why use different resources. Using a single resource called "Resource" would be faster and would not change gameplay at all. Otherwise, you might want to scater resources token across the map, thus, adding to the number of tokens on board (again). This could also force players to move forward, thus forcing conflict to occur. We had a discussion a short while ago, about using dices as counter. You could use a dice to represent a resource available (you place it with "6" face up). Each time you gather a resource, you decrease it by one. Once its depleted, you must seek another source of "Resources".
4) (edit) Why spend an action repairing/healing a unit, when you can spend an action to gather a resource with which you can create a full health unit.

There goes my feedback and ideas! Sorry mostly pointing out flaws. I think your game has some potential, but there is still some amount of work required to push it to the next level. Keep the spirit!

Regards,

Jeb

Anonymous
Empire Chess

Quote:
1) How will you keep track of damage. If using counters, you will probably find the board overcrowded with damage counters.
2) Balance. For example, if towers and static units are too powerful, you might find yourself stuck in a situation where both players bunk themselves, and stay on their side. You will need to test a lot to make sure there is no "ultimate combo".
3) Resource system: Are all resources available from everywhere on the board? If so, why use different resources. Using a single resource called "Resource" would be faster and would not change gameplay at all. Otherwise, you might want to scater resources token across the map, thus, adding to the number of tokens on board (again). This could also force players to move forward, thus forcing conflict to occur. We had a discussion a short while ago, about using dices as counter. You could use a dice to represent a resource available (you place it with "6" face up). Each time you gather a resource, you decrease it by one. Once its depleted, you must seek another source of "Resources".
4) (edit) Why spend an action repairing/healing a unit, when you can spend an action to gather a resource with which you can create a full health unit.

#1. Memory. I should make it so that a unit, after one enemy turn(turn after enemy inflicts damage), goes back to full hp.
#2. I don't think that would happen. I created the ram unit for a reason. It can take down buildings in one attack. If they were bunked up you could build a monestary*( I invented this new unit for long games.)
#3. Very good ideas. Not sure if i should use them though.
-If you made all resourse called "resource" it would diminish the problem of different resources.
-If i made different resource spots on the board, you could capture them and choke your opponent of resources. Maybe bad, maybe good.

I think that i should make units cost more, but make resource spots that give you 2 resource instead of one.

#4. It could cost more, and there is a population limit of the number of pieces. (if you waited for it to die, it would re-create at capitol-distance disadvantage)

Thank you for you input. It was helpful.

* The monestary is a new unit that resembles what a wonder does in AoE.
The monestary is made with 3 citizens(adjacent to the middle citizen), and requires 3 resource (2 stone, 1 wood). It is one building, but is composed of a queen piece, and 2 rook pieces on each side. The citizens go ontop of the rooks, and the middle citizen is populated (recieve one food). You win when you start your 5th (might be too good- maybe 6th) turn. The wonder has 5 hp and each citizen gains the "convert ability. It is a third action and is like an attack. It has a 50/50 chance of destoying an adjacent enemy unit and replaceing it with your own identical piece(s).
Enemy units on converted walls or towers must be destroyed and converted also.

Jebbou
Jebbou's picture
Offline
Joined: 07/29/2008
Empire Chess

Good morning enderbean,

I still wonder why multiple resources are necessary, since you can get anything everywhere, and all units cost one or two resources. This means that in one turn, you activate a civilian to gather the resource you need, and then use the resource right away. What I meant by using only one resource is, from my understanding, the process I just described (gather action, build action) would not change if only one type of resource was used.

I appologize for not reading the ram unit rules, I must have gone through the rules too quickly. What I like the most about your game is the combat rules. They are fairly simple, which renders the game pace faster, and limits the amount of dice rolling, which reduces luck. Most of the time you will know the effect of your move before moving, thus allowing better planing. To keep track of HP of units, a dice could also be used, as I suggested for resources (For those like me who have bad memory).

Regards,

Jeb

Anonymous
Yes.

Yes. You are correct. Converting all resourse to one variable would not be harmful. But it could take away some of the dimensions of the game. Not sure which is more important: simplification, or limiting future game changes.

EX: I could add a deck of "chance" cards. Each turn you could pay a gold to recieve one, and it had and objective.( ex: kill a citizen; build a ram). when the objective is completed you get a prize ( ex: wood resource)

Ex: diplomacy- tribute gold resource for one turn of peace.

Very good idea to use 1 resourse, but note sure if i should use it.

Also, the resource tokens(2 resource a turn in that spot) could be limited to goldmines, iron mines, forests, and farms>(need to build? token farms>2 food instead of 1.)

Do you see what i mean now? I don't know if i want to be that general. Also, its not that hard to say: "I will use two citizens get a wood and a food to make a foot archer."

sedjtroll
sedjtroll's picture
Offline
Joined: 07/21/2008
Empire Chess

Hi Enderbean,

I hope you don't mind, I edited your chart of pieces to try and make it easier to read.

If I understand you right the different resources ARE located at different places throughout the board. I like that different things cost different resources. This feels a little like Starcraft where you go mine crystal and gas and spend that on the different units.

Maybe if instead of Civilians mining different resources directly (any civilian can mine any resource), maybe you'd have to assign a specific Civilian to a specific resource- so only the Farmer can collect Food, and only the Gold Miner can collect Gold.

Also, the Gold Mines and other resource locations could be on face down chits, so you have to explore to find what you want. that way the game could be a little different each time.

Finally, rather than the resources getting destroyed each turn, why not simply store them. It might mean making them a little harder to get though. This is admittedly based on Starcraft where you tell your drones to mine crystals and then they keep doin it until further notice. Maybe once a Civilian is at a Gold Mine (for example) then you get 1 Gold to use each turn. If you have 2 there you get 2. That kind of thing. So if you want to build something that costs 1 Food and 1 Stone, you'd have to have a Civilian on a Farm and a Civilian on a Quarry (or whatever they're called in your game). You could maybe store a max of 1 each so it's a little more reasonable.

What do you think of those ideas?

- Seth

Anonymous
Reply

Quote:

#1. If I understand you right the different resources ARE located at different places throughout the board. I like that different things cost different resources. This feels a little like Starcraft where you go mine crystal and gas and spend that on the different units.

#2. Maybe if instead of Civilians mining different resources directly (any civilian can mine any resource), maybe you'd have to assign a specific Civilian to a specific resource- so only the Farmer can collect Food, and only the Gold Miner can collect Gold.

#3. Also, the Gold Mines and other resource locations could be on face down chits, so you have to explore to find what you want. that way the game could be a little different each time.

#4. Finally, rather than the resources getting destroyed each turn, why not simply store them. It might mean making them a little harder to get though. This is admittedly based on Starcraft where you tell your drones to mine crystals and then they keep doin it until further notice. Maybe once a Civilian is at a Gold Mine (for example) then you get 1 Gold to use each turn. If you have 2 there you get 2. That kind of thing. So if you want to build something that costs 1 Food and 1 Stone, you'd have to have a Civilian on a Farm and a Civilian on a Quarry (or whatever they're called in your game). You could maybe store a max of 1 each so it's a little more reasonable.

What do you think of those ideas?

Thank you for fixing the chart! I edited the ram part, because I changed its movement. Before rams and cannons couldn't attack the same turn they moved. Due to diffuculty useing the ram efficiently, I changed it so the ram CAN attack the same turn it moves.

1. So far, no. Right now, all the squares deliver 1 of any resource...But, i plan to change that, maybe. I will probably make units cost more resource to produce, but make certain areas deliver more than one unit of resource per action.(EX, goldmines produce only 2 gold, instead of 1 of anything) Therefor, many citizens will be needed, and there will be more opportunity cost of sacrificing a citizen for a cannon or ram.

2. Interesting idea. Only problem is that im limited to chess pieces. It would be hard to destinguish between one pawn farmer from a pawn miner.

3. I'm sorry, but i don't know what chits are. Sounds like a good idea.

You know what, that made me think of a good idea, a unit may be able to have 2 actions total(exept third actions.EX: populating citizens). So, a citizen may be able to sacrifice a movement action to do two gather resource actions! A foot archer could sac. an attack to move twice. It would give more choices, strategy, and game posibilities. Do you think i should add it to the rule book after testing?

4. If i make units cost more resource, i will need to do something like that to store resource (a max of one would work with the current rules, but not if i increase the cost). Maybe, use 4 dice for resource, a total of 6 of each type of resourse to store.
I can't have more than one citizen on a square, cause they won't fit.

Good ideas! Thank you! I'm glad that some people are interested in this game.

Also, im thinking of producing the boardgame in a form that doesn't need chess pieces. And you know what that means! Way more units! I could even make WW games with planes and aa guns, and ships on the ocean.
I've already thought of making airplane pieces that use 3 legs(lifting it into the air like its a 3 legged chair), so they can go above a land or sea piece. I would probably make the board way bigger than the chess board and make squares fit more units onto them.(smaller infantry pieces) And there would be much more population available.(not limited to the amount of chess pieces.

Thanks Seth.
-Did you know that my name is Seth too? Crazy weird.

Syndicate content


forum | by Dr. Radut