The idea was to create a perfectly fair game by removing all components of luck,
chance, or initiative advantage.

Initiative advantage includes things like the first-move edge
(e.g., White in chess or Go).

To achieve that, both players must have perfect information about the board state and each other’s options, while still being able to plan and execute actions without a move-order advantage.

This is done by having both players perform an action simultaneously, with outcomes determined by deterministic rules.
If both players choose the same move—or more specifically, attempt to access the same field in a move—the turn must be repeated to a defined extent.

So the game is played on a chessboard.
Both players have a pen and paper to jot down their moves.
The game is played in turns.
Each player has a certain number of figures.
A turn goes like this:

Both players (A, B) predetermine a move

A move consists of an optional SWAP(x,y)
And a mandatory PLACE(x) of a figure

The swap operations of both players are applied.
If both players choose the same PLACE(A)=PLACE(B), then the board state is evaluated after the swap and the turn starts anew.
Otherwise, the figures are placed on the board.
Next, the board state is evaluated in a cascade until a stable board state is reached.

Board State

So what even is a board state?

We play on a chessboard, and each field on the chessboard maintains an influence value. A field can either be neutral or biased towards player A or B, with a numerical value dictating the amount. The figures themselves have a certain sphere of influence in which they can raise the influence value of fields around them to a certain extent by a certain amount. A pawn, for example, has this pattern:

abcdefgh
8⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
7⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛
6⬛⬜+⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
5⬜+P++⬜⬛⬜⬛
4⬛⬜+⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
3⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛
2⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
1⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛

Here, the + marks where the piece has increased the player’s influence value.

A board state is said to be stable if no figure stands on ground that belongs to the opposing player.

The rules for updating a board state are as follows:

Both players place figures on fields which are neutral or belong to them.
After the placement, the new influence values are calculated for every field, and then all figures that do not obey a stable board state are removed. This happens at once.
Then the new board state is calculated with the potentially removed figures, and this continues until a stable board position is achieved.

Placement

It is not permitted to place a figure on a field you do not control. However, the swap operation happens before the placement of figures. Therefore, you can gain influence on a field by swapping and then placing a figure on a field that was inaccessible before but is accessible after swapping. This is allowed even if the resulting board state would normally make the move illegal, because the opposing player could swap as well.

Swapping

Each player has 2 SWAP(x,y) operations. These must be done during the player’s turn. A player can specify that they want to swap two pieces on the board, and place figures assuming that the swap has taken place. After both players have committed, the swap operations take place first, followed by the placement of figures.

Burning

The last important concept is that of burning. If two players want to place figures on the same field, the field gets burned. A burned square remains unavailable until each player has successfully placed at least one figure elsewhere. Potentially, the players could always choose the same field in every turn at the start of the game, and the game would end with no figures placed because all fields are inaccessible for both players. This allows for blocking opponents from critical protective moves and forcing their hand.

End Condition

The game ends when all figures are placed, or one player is incapable of placing any more figures—either by having no legal fields left or only having burned ground available with no other legal options.

Winning

At the end, the number of fields each player controls is counted, and this decides the winner. Influence can stack, of course—so multiple rooks in a row secure that row strongly, with every field having +2 in that player’s favor. This does not go into scoring, however. Each controlled field is counted once, not the numerical influence value on it.

Other Figures

Pawn

I have shown the pawn above; there is also a diagonal variant:

abcdefgh
8⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
7⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛
6⬛+⬛+⬛⬜⬛⬜
5⬜⬛P+⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛
4⬛+⬛+⬛⬜⬛⬜
3⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛
2⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
1⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛

Rook

The rook is just the extension of the basic pawn to the borders of the game board.

Bishop

Same thing, but based on the diagonal pawn.

Knight

The knight is interesting in that it does not grant influence to the square it is standing on, and instead grants 2 influence on two fields. A kind of glass cannon:

abcdefgh
8⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
7⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛
6⬛⬜++⬛⬜⬛⬜
5⬜⬛++⬛+⬛⬜⬛
4⬛⬜K+++⬜⬛⬜
3⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛
2⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
1⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛

The knight also has an orientation toward one corner of the board which you can choose with PLACE(A), but not change with SWAP(x,y).

Queen

Lastly, the queen: she has a circle of influence around her.

abcdefgh
8⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
7⬜⬛⬜+⬜⬛⬜⬛
6⬛⬜+⬜+⬜⬛⬜
5⬜+⬜Q+⬜+⬜⬛
4⬛⬜+⬜+⬜⬛⬜
3⬜⬛⬜+⬜⬛⬜⬛
2⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜
1⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛⬜⬛

Starting Setup

  • Chessboard
  • 1 Knight, 2 Bishops, 2 Rooks, all pawns, 1 Queen per player
  • Pen and paper to write down SWAP(x,y) and PLACE(x)