Ambit Chess is a three-dimensional chessboard on the surface of a sphere. The most interesting part of Ambit Chess is that there are endless new possibilities that arise from a 3 dimensional design.  The outcome of the game is unpredictable even under the principles of classical chess.

The surface of the sphere is divided into 8 x 8 = 64 white and black squares along with 2 round (or octagonal) “squares”, which are the lower (X) and upper (Y) polar squares of the sphere and have a different color (e.g. blue). The sphere is mounted on a rotating stand. The eight vertical squares are called files and the eight horizontal squares are ranks. Squares of the same color, touching each other at the corners are diagonals.

In the first variation of the game, ranks become “annular” (circular) and loop around onto themselves. This is not true for the files, where the poles are the end of the board. In the second and third variation of the game the possibilities are further enhanced as the files and the diagonals too become “annular files” and “annular diagonals” and movement is unrestricted in terms of distance.

Summary: While on a classic chessboard the ranks, files and diagonals are closed by their first and last square, these “walls” do not exist on a sphere, so endless ring-shaped ranks, files and diagonals are created.

Notation

Algebraic notation is used. The files are denoted with the letters a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, from left to right from white’s perspective. The ranks are numbered: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 from bottom to top. These are the 64 squares, plus 2 additional polar squares of the sphere (having a different color), which are denoted as X (light side) and Y (dark side). The a1 square is dark.

Starting position of the pieces

The white queen is placed on a light square, while the black queen is placed on a dark square on the top (eigth) annular rank, opposite of each other. The white queen (Qd1) is positioned on the “d” file and on the first rank. Next to it on the first rank are the king (Ke1), the bishop (Bf1), the knight (Ng1), the rook (Rh1), the other rook (Ra1), the knight (Nb1) and the second bishop (Bc1).