HYDRA

Chess for the Rest of the World

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SIMPLE to learn. . .(SIMPLE does not equal boring – in fact, it’s quite the opposite)

Place 5 random pieces on each back row of a 5×5 board – one color per side.

Then: GO

Every time a piece moves off a back row, a random reserve piece (same color) immediately fills the empty spot.

SIMPLE and profound.

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WATCH a game >>>

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SHARPEN YOUR MIND

HYDRA

Short, intense, random chess.

…Perfect for beginners Easy to learn / Exciting from the first move.

…Designed for people who always wanted to love chess .but just couldn’t get themselves to like it.

…Different starting setup every game

…Intrigue begins before the first move

…Random strategy evolution

…Average game time – 30 minutes

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Sure, it starts off simple enough…then suddenly you notice you’re in the middle of a frickin’ mind storm.

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Do you remember when chess was exciting?

How about the moment you won your first serious game?

Or the year the first (and last!) American handily beat the Russians to win the World Chess Championship? That victory is still widely considered the most famous chess event ever.

All over the United States chess games flew off store shelves, and chess instructors were booked for months in advance.

It was exciting.

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Having soundly defeated the best players on the world stage, new world chess champion Bobby Fischer found himself disillusioned. He decried chess (at the highest levels) as being dominated by “pre-arrangement and memorization” rather than creativity and talent. From then on he endorsed only one game:

Random Chess

He designed his own version (Fischer Random a.k.a. Chess960) specifically to render memorized openings obsolete.  Or, as he put it, to “level the playing field.”

His goal was to return “spontaneous talent and creativity” to the chess world — guaranteeing a dynamic, spirited battle of wits and courage.

Sound exciting?

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“You have to have the fighting spirit. You have to force moves and take chances.” ~ Bobby Fischer

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(We couldn’t agree more.)

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But Fischer knew it was unwise to leave everything to chance — he feared the “anarchy” of a fully randomized game.​

And for good reason . . .

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Disclaimer 1

HYDRA chess isn’t fully random, but we won’t lie –

It’s gonna scare you the first time you play.  Either before your first move, or near the middle of the game.  

But, if you don’t give up, and don’t back down, near the end you’ll start believing you just may pull off a victory.

Maybe even a shocking upset.

By game two, the fear will start feeling a bit more like excitement.

And by game three, well . . . let’s just say that during game three you’ll never wanna go back to who you were before.

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Disclaimer 2   

THIS GAME IS NOT “FAIR”

. . . unless you are bold enough to define fair as both players eventually receiving the same set of pieces – if they survive long enough.

It’s a roller coaster.

HYDRA chess is like life in that way. Those who demand fairness are doomed to perpetual disappointment.  The only way to win at life is to stay focused on your goal, and when something gets in your way outsmart it, overpower it, or outlast it (regardless of how “fair” it may be).

No need to be mean, just focused.

That’s the same attitude that wins at HYDRA chess. And, trust us, winning against the odds is sweet.

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Knightmare chess. That’s what I call it. You’ll see why.

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