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QueryIn the summer of 2010, while working on a chapter about grids in "The Evolution of Draughts Variants", Query happened. I was contemplating the relationship between the hexgrid and the square grid.
 grid 1 |  grid 2 |  grid 3 |  grid 4 |
In (1) and (2) the diagonal grids are divided in a red and a blue half. Removing the blue half from each brings us to (3) and (4). In (3) we recognize the Alquerque board. Its twin (4) is the 'triangular' grid, albeit in a square jacket. But topologically (4) is equivalent to the hexgrid. That led to the question whether (3) would also fit a 'connection' theme. The most basic one in the hexgrid is Hex itself. Query is 'square Hex' with a twist.
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| Rules The rules are so simple that I might as well include them here. Black and White take turns to put one stone on a vacant c8 intersection or two stones on two vacant c4 intersections. Black moves first, after which White is entiteld to a swap.
The twist is of course the choice between two c4 placements and one c8 placement. Because there are bad opening moves as well as good ones, a swap balances the game implicitly. At the same time, comparing the value of a c8 move that of two c4 moves is not very fruitful because you will need both options at different times. |