Zachary Wade wrote on Mon, Jun 12, 2017 04:26 PM UTC:
Another thing I've realised is that even though it looks similar to chess and Xiang qi, the ideas are different.
In xiangqi many of the pieces are weaker and can be blocked, such as the knight and cannon. However the pieces in Congo are a lot stronger and can't really be blocked. Even though there are no real long range pieces, most of the pieces are strong in the short range. The only piece that can really be shut out is the monkey. But the monkey still has a kings move with a different taking move.
A similar theme with xiangqi however, is that there is often a sort of standoff between the pawns on either side of the river. In Congo the board is small and often there are lots of pawn trades. In xiangqi, often these standoffs will only be resolved in perpetration for the end game. Often in Xiangqi a chariot is moved up to defend the rank before the river to prevent pieces such as pawns from landing on that line. In Congo, the crocodile has its strongest powers of movement when patrolling the river performing a similar task.
One of the main differences between Congo and International chess is the strengths of the pieces. In chess, you have a long range diagonal slider, a long range orthogonal slider, and a combination of the two which are respectively the bishop, rook and queen. In Congo, the maximum distance any piece can move is 2 spaces away (with the exception of the monkey when taking, and the crocodile moving too or along the river).
Another thing I've realised is that even though it looks similar to chess and Xiang qi, the ideas are different.
In xiangqi many of the pieces are weaker and can be blocked, such as the knight and cannon. However the pieces in Congo are a lot stronger and can't really be blocked. Even though there are no real long range pieces, most of the pieces are strong in the short range. The only piece that can really be shut out is the monkey. But the monkey still has a kings move with a different taking move.
A similar theme with xiangqi however, is that there is often a sort of standoff between the pawns on either side of the river. In Congo the board is small and often there are lots of pawn trades. In xiangqi, often these standoffs will only be resolved in perpetration for the end game. Often in Xiangqi a chariot is moved up to defend the rank before the river to prevent pieces such as pawns from landing on that line. In Congo, the crocodile has its strongest powers of movement when patrolling the river performing a similar task.
One of the main differences between Congo and International chess is the strengths of the pieces. In chess, you have a long range diagonal slider, a long range orthogonal slider, and a combination of the two which are respectively the bishop, rook and queen. In Congo, the maximum distance any piece can move is 2 spaces away (with the exception of the monkey when taking, and the crocodile moving too or along the river).