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Solving Kriegspiel Endings with Brute Force: The Case of KR vs. K

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Advances in Computer Games (ACG 2009)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNTCS,volume 6048))

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Abstract

Retrograde analysis is a tool for reconstructing a game tree starting from its leaves; with these techniques one can solve specific subsets of a complex game, achieving optimal play in these situations, for example a chess endgame. Position values can then be stored in “tablebases” for instant access, as is the norm in professional chess programs. While this technique is supposed to be only used in games of perfect information, this paper shows that retrograde analysis can be applied to certain Kriegspiel (invisible chess) endgames, such as King and Rook versus King. Using brute force and a suitable data representation, one can achieve perfect play, with perfection meaning fastest checkmate in the worst case and without making any assumptions on the opponent.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Scienze dell’Informazione, University of Bologna, Italy

    Paolo Ciancarini & Gian Piero Favini

Authors
  1. Paolo Ciancarini
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  2. Gian Piero Favini
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Games and AI Group, MICC, Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, Universiteit Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    H. Jaap van den Herik

  2. Institute for Knowledge and Agent Technology, Universiteit Maastricht,  

    Pieter Spronck

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Ciancarini, P., Favini, G.P. (2010). Solving Kriegspiel Endings with Brute Force: The Case of KR vs. K. In: van den Herik, H.J., Spronck, P. (eds) Advances in Computer Games. ACG 2009. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 6048. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-12993-3_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-12993-3_13

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-12992-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-12993-3

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

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