Help System

NAME
alyrian chess - information on playing the Alyrian Chess game

SYNTAX
chess list
chess info [<#>]
chess board [<#>] [<'flip'>]
chess history [<#>]
chess start '<title>' [<password>]
chess stop
chess resign
chess draw [<'cancel'>]
chess join <#> [<password>]
chess lock
chess move <source> <destination> [<piece name>]
chess castle <'kingside', 'queenside'>

DESCRIPTION
Chess is a game of logic and skill between two players called "White"
and "Black". Each player has sixteen pieces: A King and a Queen, two
Rooks, two Knights, two Bishops, and eight Pawns. These pieces face
each other in individual squares on opposing sides of the chess board,
which has sixty-four squares - eight across, eight down.

Each piece is moved according to its own rules. When a piece is allowed
to move onto a square occupied by an opposing piece, the piece is
considered "taken" and is removed from play.

The King is considered in "check" if he is in imminent danger of being
taken by an opposing piece.

The objective of the game is to get the opponent's King in "checkmate";
which means that the King is trapped on all sides and cannot move and
no pieces on his side can come to his rescue. When a checkmate occurs,
the game is over.

It is possible to reach a stalemate in chess. This means that enough
pieces have been taken by both sides that there is no real way to get
the opposing player's King in check. When a stalemate occurs, the
game is considered a draw (neither side wins) and is ended.

COMMANDS
CHESS LIST - Lists all games and suspended Alyrian Chess games.

CHESS INFO [<#>] - If you are currently playing an Alyrian Chess game,
     this will display information about that game (such as whose turn
     it is). If a number is specified, it will display information about
     that specific Alyrian Chess game. Numbers are displayed in CHESS LIST.

CHESS BOARD [<#>] {<'flip'] - If you are currently playing an Alyrian chess
     game, this will display the current chess board visually (note that this
     doesn't look good on clients that can't handle ANSI). If a number is
     specified, it will display the board of that specific Alyrian Chess
     game. Game numbers are displayed in CHESS LIST.

     The 'flip' option shows you the board reversed from your current
     view.

CHESS HISTORY [<#>] - If you are currently playing an Alyrian chess game,
     this will display the current chess board move history. If a number is
     specified, it will display the move history of that specific Alyrian
     Chess game. Game numbers are displayed in CHESS LIST.

CHESS START '<title>' [<password>] - Begins a new chess game. Titles
     must adhere to normal public channel rules. If you do not specify
     a password, the game will be considered "open", which means anyone
     can join. If you specify a password, only a player who knows the
     password can join that game.

CHESS STOP - Stops the current chess game, if no other players have
     joined. If other players have joined you must use the CHESS RESIGN
     option.

CHESS RESIGN - Resigns you from the current Alyrian Chess game and
     cancels it.

CHESS DRAW - Offers your opponent a draw. Your opponent, on his next move,
     must issue a CHESS DRAW as well, or the match will continue. If you make
     another move before the CHESS DRAW command is accepted, it will be
     automatically cancelled.

     To cancel/reject an offer of a draw, type CHESS DRAW CANCEL.

CHESS LOCK - Registers a chess game as being between the two players
     that are currently playing it. This means that if one or both of
     you quit, the game will be saved and only you and the other player
     can rejoin it later.

     Normally, if a character logs out of the game while playing an
     Alyrian Chess game, another player can step in and pick up where
     he left off. The CHESS LOCK command prevents that.

     Alyrian Chess games will not be saved unless they are LOCKed.

CHESS MOVE <source> <destination> [<piece name>] - Moves a chess piece
     as requested, based on the rules outlined below under 'PIECE
     MOVEMENT'.

     If your King falls in check, your next move must take him out of
     check.

     When a Pawn reaches the other end of the board, it must be
     promoted - when moving the Pawn the last square, you must specify
     the piece name to which you wish to promote the Pawn. The piece
     to which the Pawn is promoted can be any of the chess pieces
     of your color, with the exception of a King or another Pawn.

     When it is your turn to move, a yellow [TURN] flag will appear
     on your prompt, as an extra reminder to move.

CHESS CASTLE <'kingside', 'queenside'>
     When your King and one of your Rooks have not been moved during
     a game and there are no pieces inbetween them, you can "castle".
     This means your King will be moved two spaces towards the
     chosen Rook, and the Rook is moved to the opposite side of the
     King.

     Castling counts as one move.

PIECE MOVEMENT
Each piece is governed by its own rules, as follows:

Pawn      - Can move only forward, never sideways or backwards. Pawns
             can move forward diagonally only to capture an opposing
             player's piece.

             The first time a Pawn moves, it may move one or two
             squares forward. After that, it can move once every turn.

             If a Pawn reaches the opposite end of the chess board,
             it must be promoted into another piece. Promotion means
             the Pawn is removed and replaced by another piece of the
             player's choosing - any piece except another Pawn or a
             King.

Knight    - The Knight moves in an "L" shape - that is, one square
             in any direction and then diagonally one square away
             from its starting square. Knights can jump over any
             piece in their path, so long as the square to which they
             are moving is empty (or filled with an opponent's piece,
             which would then be taken).

Rook      - Rooks can move horizontally or vertically any number
             of squares along their row or column. Rooks must have
             a free path to move; that is, they cannot be blocked
             by other pieces. If an opponent's piece is in the way,
             the Rook stops on that piece's square and the piece
             is considered taken.

Bishop    - Bishops can only move diagonally. There is one Bishop on
             each color square for each player. Bishops can move
             diagonally any number of squares, and must have a free
             path to move; that is, they cannot be blocked by other
             pieces. If an opponent's piece is in the way, the Bishop
             stops on that piece's square and the piece is considered
             taken.

Queen     - The Queen can move any number of squares diagonally or
             horizontally, and must have a free path to move; that is,
             they cannot be blocked by other pieces. If an opponent's
             piece is in the way, the Queen stops on that piece's square
             and the piece is considered taken. The Queen is considered
             the most powerful piece on the chess board.

King      - The King can move one square in any direction, horizontally
             or diagonally. The King must have a free path to move; that
             is, it cannot be blocked by other pieces of the same color.
             If an opponent's piece is on the square to which the King
             moves, that piece is considered taken.    

SPECIAL MOVES
castling  - When your King and a Rook have not been moved during a game
             and there are no pieces in between them, you can "castle".
             This means your King will be moved two spaces towards the
             chosen Rook, and the Rook is moved to the opposite side of
             the King.

en passant - A special capture of a pawn by another pawn which can only
             be made immediately after the victim pawn moves two squares
             forward. The capturing pawn captures by moving diagonally
             as it would for a regular capture, but in this case, the
             capturing pawn moves one square behind the victim pawn.
            

TIMEOUTS
If a chess game has not had a move made in three real life days, it is
considered defunct and is automatically removed from the list. Non-locked
chess games are cleared during reboots as well.

RESOURCES
How To Play Chess
     http://chess.about.com/library/ble10ndx.htm?terms=Learn+To+Play+Chess

So You Wanna Learn How to Play Chess?
     http://www.soyouwanna.com/site/syws/chess/chess.html

SEE ALSO
Ctf, Challenge, Rules