Chess Setup Question

Originally posted by Paul Leggett

I have never heard that in any form until now. It strikes me as a contrived reason, to be perfectly honest, but if it works for you, have at it!

Paul, what you've heard or haven't heard in your still tender/impressionable years is totally inconsequential. Chess courtesy was alive and well before we were even born and it will still be here after we're gone. All we do is apprehend it or not. Period. You may enjoy meeting one of my remarkable mentors, Russian born E.M. Reubens, who taught me proper Staunton Design knight board positioning on my own beige and green vinyl board on night one during the decade of my twenties...

http://boylston-chess-club.blogspot.com/search?q=emil+reubens



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I position and play the Knights facing forward.

I set both knights facing me. They get to admire my beauty and render their opinion of my opponent at the same time.

I set them sideways to face the king. Once I start moving pieces I couldn't care less how they stand, or look.

Originally posted by paulbuchmanfromfics
Step 1

Go set up a real (3D) chess board. Don't read Step 2 until you have completed Step 1.

If you don't have a set near you, you may skip to Step 2.


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Step 2

How did you set up the knights?

I am always curious about this, myself.

Do they

A.) both face left

B. ...[text shortened]... th descriptive notation.


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Your thoughts?

My knights start facing the King and Queen always. I like to know where they started from, and since they can touch either color this is often the only way to know without reading through the PGN.

Same for my Bishops, though it's easy enough to know by color.

My Rooks are a bit different. The King Rook lines up with the path it follows, while the Queen rook is rotated 45 degrees based on the dips in the bricks on top.

No one I play OTB cares, and it really makes little difference I suppose... but it's what I do. My brother in law once turned my knights to face forward like his and I had to lay into him about... it was pretty funny because I think it now bothers him that I care, and won't let him touch my pieces. There is never a need for my pieces to be adjusted, I always place them dead center.

Footnote: Also proper chess etiquette to position the king with its cross in plain profile

view (same reason as knights relative to bishops) to distinguish it from your queen.


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I make sure the knights face forward. Back at school this caused quite a few games to end in schoolboy silliness as we spun rooks and queens around and starting knocking each other's pieces over.

Looking at some G.M. chess games the Knight was placed in any number of positions. Facing forward were Spassky and his opponent, opponent of J. Polgar, and Kamsky. Facing left were Kramnik, Keres, Browne, and J. Polgar ( her QN was facing forward). Facing right were Miles and his opponent's QN. All of these game were in progress.

Originally posted by gambit3
Looking at some G.M. chess games the Knight was placed in any number of positions. Facing forward were Spassky and his opponent, opponent of J. Polgar, and Kamsky. Facing left were Kramnik, Keres, Browne, and J. Polgar ( her QN was facing forward). Facing right were Miles and his opponent's QN. All of these game were in progress.

I really don't think it matters. I'm a patzer, and I never notice how my opponents' knights are oriented during a game. In OTB, with 3-D stereo vision, looking downward at the pieces, I don't think there's any way you can mistake the knight for any other pieces. (Although I've never had anyone pull greenpawn's dirty trick #73. But I don't think it would affect me. I think he was just "a funnin' " us. )

Originally posted by gambit3
Looking at some G.M. chess games the Knight was placed in any number of positions. Facing forward were Spassky and his opponent, opponent of J. Polgar, and Kamsky. Facing left were Kramnik, Keres, Browne, and J. Polgar ( her QN was facing forward). Facing right were Miles and his opponent's QN. All of these game were in progress.

Chess etiquette rules are chess etiquette rules... irrespective of which players observe

and respect them and which don't. Chess prowess in no way defines poise or manners.


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Originally posted by Grampy Bobby
Chess etiquette rules are chess etiquette rules... irrespective of which players observe

and respect them and which don't. Chess prowess in no way defines poise or manners.


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No, they aren't. You can hardly call your rules common etiquette if you're the only one on a chess website that has heard of them.

Originally posted by randolph

No, they aren't. You can hardly call your rules common etiquette if you're the only one on a chess website that has heard of them.

And now there's two, Randolph. Since when have the unwashed philistine masses ever got anything significant right;

since when have the enlightened few ever depended upon the trivial many to determine correct attitudes and values?



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Originally posted by Grampy Bobby
Footnote: Also proper chess etiquette to position the king with its cross in plain profile

view (same reason as knights relative to bishops) to distinguish it from your queen.


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I always snap the crosses off the Kings because I'm an atheist

Originally posted by SwissGambit
I always snap the crosses off the Kings because I'm an atheist

I played a guy once who had removed his king's cross and had replaced it with a finial more in tune with his religion. I thought it was odd but harmless. (True story! )

Footnote (2): Also considered in poor taste to climb out of your chair, in otb, to waltz a 180

for the express purpose of examining the sixty four from your opponent's vantage point.



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