🚀 go-pugleaf

A new game "Takotsubo" was introduced in "Shogi Sekai".  The rule is read
as follows.

board --- 6x6 checkered pattern board.
pieces --- 1 king and 6 soldiers in each player
initial set-up  --- See followings.
  S  S  K
S  S  S
          S
S'
  S' S' S'
K' S' S'
K is king, S is soldier of white.  K' and S' are those of black.  Every
piece sits on hatched spuare on the checkered patterned board.  No piece
sits on unhatched square throughout the game.  1a and 6f where King sits
are palaces.

The aim of this game is to capture the opponent king or to move either of
your pieces into opponent's palace.

The movement of pieces is similar to checker.

Any piece can move forward diagonally by one step.  You can take an
opponent piece by jumping over it.  You can jump successively and take more
pieces in your turn, as the same way in "checker".
If you have possible moves to take opponent piece in your turn, you must
take it.  So if an opponent piece is in front of your king sitting in your
palace and if you have no other possible move to take an opponent piece,
your king must jump over it and he must get out of the palace!
Once a piece (including King) reached at the far-most rank, it must
promote.  A promoted piece can move backward diagonally by one step or can
jump backward over opponent piece.  But once a piece promotes, his turn
immediately finishes and it becomes opponent's turn.  No more moves in your
turn after the promotion.

It is not clearly mentioned if a piece can jump over his own side piece.
But I guess it is allowed.  If something I misunderstood in the rule,
please correct it.
Mr. Kohei Azuma created recently this game to spread Shogi-like game among
ladies and kids.  This game looks quite easy, and ends in short time.  But
no one, even among professional Shogi players, has found sure way to win
this game.
If somebody are interested in and find me in the Shogi tournament, let's
play it.


Hiroki Kawada                                 *  "After being defeated,
Abt. GR, Fritz-Haber-Institut          *   valuable time starts."
der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft,         *     Yonenaga, the Meijin
Faradayweg 4-6, Dahlem,                *
14195 Berlin Deutschland               *  "In Shogi, there is no situation
E-mail adress:                                 *   that promises my win."