The chess rating system is a method for calcualting the relative skill levels of competing chess players. The actual system is relatively complex mathematically speaking, but there are ways to gauge your rating through simple tests. These ratings are handy when playing computer chess games, as they give you a way to gauge the level of AI play.

http://homepage.eircom.net/~reidr1/index.html

http://www.banaschak.net/pdf/thechessofchina.pdf

When I lived in the Republic of China, the Chinese taught me how to play "syang chi" -- Chinese Chess. What an amazing game! 5,000 years old and still the best game around! Especially the short board version.

The Chinese actually have two versions, the long board, which is like our Chess, and the short board which is my favorite since a game can be played in 10 to 15 minutes.

This link explains the origins, the pieces and strategy.

To share this game with Americans, I used a label gun and ranked the pieces, and put each number ranking so that people can tell by the number.
(i.e, 1=king killer,
2J=the jumper,
3= horse,
4=chariot,
5=elephant,
6=warrior,
K=king).

I have other sets of the game that don't have the numbers on them which a lot of people enjoy playing.

If you find any great syanchi sites--or that better fit your needs, please email me at:
hunter621@yahoo.com

I have taught this game to dozens of people and they love it! I am a counselor and many of the teens had counseling--but I can teach them ancient game that no one else can comprehend and not only do the teens learn it quickly they accept me as a counselor!!


Visit the Board Games Site