Pieces

There are 6 different pieces in shatranj: 1 shah, 1 counsellor, 2 elephants, 2 asbs, 2 chariots and 8 sarabazes. The shah moves like a king in chess. The counsellor moves 1 space diagonally. The chariot moves like a rook in chess. The elephant jumps over 1 square diagonally.The asb moves like a knight in chess. The sarabaz moves and captures like a pawn in chess, but it doesn't move 2 spaces on its first move, and when it reaches the opposite end of the board, it can only change into a counsellor. The two sides are red and green rather than black and white. Back to Chess Back to Part I-Origins