Grand chess
Grand Chess is a popular large-board chess variant invented by Dutch games designer Christian Freeling in 1984. It is played on a 10×10 board, with each side having two additional pawns and two new pieces: the marshal and the cardinal.
The marshal combines the powers of the rook and knight.
The cardinal combines the powers of the bishop and knight.A superficial similarity exists between Grand Chess and an early version of the historic chess variant Capablanca chess because the same pieces and game board are used. But differences in initial start position, rules governing pawn moves and promotion, and castling make them significantly different games.
A series of Grand Chess Cyber World Championship matches was sponsored by the Dutch game site Mindsports. Past title holders included R. Wayne Schmittberger (1998, 1999) and John Vehre (2001). Grand Chess tournaments were held annually beginning in 1998 by the (now defunct) correspondence game club NOST.
Rules
The white pieces are placed on the first and second ranks and the white pawns are placed on the third rank as shown in the diagram. The white rooks alone are placed on the first rank, which makes it easier for them to activate earlier in the game since they are not blocked as much by the other pieces as they are in standard chess. The black rooks are placed the same, for the same advantage. Black's pieces are placed on the ninth and tenth ranks, and the black pawns are placed on the eighth rank.
Grand Chess Tour
The Grand Chess Tour (GCT) was a 2015 circuit of chess tournaments where players compete for multiple prize pools. The three tournaments featured in the Grand Chess tour were Norway Chess, the Sinquefield Cup, and the London Chess Classic.
On January 6, 2016, the Altibox Norway Chess event announced it would not be part of the Grand Chess Tour in 2016, mostly due to differences in how much of a priority getting commercial sponsorship should be. Other plans for 2016 are thus up in the air. Malcolm Pein insists that there will still be 3 tournaments, with player invitations issued by the end of January. Even with this move, Altibox Norway Chess expects to lose money in 2016, and the other GCT events are significantly dependent upon large monetary infusions from private patrons.
On February 11, 2016, the GCT announced it was adding two rapid/blitz tourneys for 2016, sponsored by Colliers International France (Paris), and Your Next Move (Brussels-Leuven).
History
The Grand Chess Tour was announced on April 24, 2015 at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis in St. Louis, Missouri prior to the Battle of the Legends: Garry Kasparov vs Nigel Short match. The tour was designed to promote competitive chess by including all of the top players and the World Champion Magnus Carlsen in a single circuit. With the combination of several established tournaments, the Grand Chess Tour aimed to create a large prize pool which would be attractive to the players and media alike.
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