Martian Chess

Players move pyramid pieces on a chessboard and capture opponents’ pieces to score points. Ownership of a piece depends on which player’s quadrant contains it, so captured pieces change control based on board location rather than color. Each piece type has a distinct movement rule similar to chess, and turns proceed in a fixed order. The game resolves by tallying points from captured pieces, allowing a player to win even if they end the game with no pieces in their quadrant. It supports 2–4 players on a standard board and can expand to more players with additional board sections.

Players: 2–4 best 2
Playing time: 20 min
Age: 8+
Complexity: 2.4 / 5