Mann (chess)


A mann or man is a fairy chess piece often used in chess variants. It moves like a king, but is not otherwise treated as one. In diagrams in this article, the mann is represented by an inverted king. Chess moves in this article use M as notation for the mann.

Movement

The mann moves as a king in chess but is otherwise treated as a normal chess piece. It is simply a fused compound between the Ferz, and the Wazir.

Value

A mann is approximately equal in strength and value to a knight, generally. Often it takes a few moves to get the mann properly in the opening. It is effective at close proximity, where its striking power is considerable. Although it is rather slow, the mann is excellent at both attacking and defending nearby pieces and pawns, similar to the king. The mann reaches its peak strength during the endgame, in which its value is slightly more than a knight, despite being slightly less than a knight in the opening. It is possible to force checkmate with a mann and a king against a lone enemy king. Since the enemy king cannot move to attack either, it is quite easy to box the king into a corner.

History

The mann is one of the most simply described chess pieces and as such has a long history and has gone by many names. A similar piece was described c. 950 in a form of chess on a 10×10 board and called a dabbaba. The mann has been used since at least the 12th century in Courier chess, and continued to be played in this game for at least six hundred years. Many chess variants have used the mann, for example these modern variants:
Each mann is represented by an inverted king in the following examples.