Dai Dai Shogi Page
 
Dai-Dai (Great-Great) Shogi is played on a board of 17 by 17 squares with a total of 192 pieces. - In the initial position each side has 64 different types of pieces.

The oldest record of Dai Dai Shogi is in the book
"Sho Shogi Zushiki" published in 1694 by Nishzawa Teijin.
The moves given in this book are the source for the rules used in the west and given in these pages. They were considered the definitive rules, but it seems there is some discrepancy (see the Wikipedia link). Prior to the Sho Shogi Zushiki, rules in various documents differed and were confused. The game was mentioned in the 15th century "Shogi Rokushu No Zushiki".

New Information

Sample game below
by Shumby
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Dai Dai Shogi Rules
This is Lucky Dogs own
page of rules for DaiDai
New: alternative moves.

Dai-Dai Tutorial
(Simple advice on play)
Opening ideas
Strategy and Illustrations

Dai-Dai-Shogi Games
Beginners games
 Current game.
With notes + Illustrations

Dai-Dai-Shogi Links
Not many Dai-Dai links yet
but good ones.
Plus a couple of downloads

Ancient wisdom
For Dai-Dai and for life
The page of 5 rings is
shared with other games
Promotion is compulsory and made by capturing an enemy piece, not by reaching some predetermined zone. This is the smallest of the Shogi variations to use this method of promotion and probably the best.

This is the first game with the powerful hook movers (double rook, able to reach any square in one move on an empty board!). The Long-Nosed Goblin is the bishop hook mover (less powerful).

Last Update [06/May/06] New Game and Link
It is the promotion rule that makes this sufficiently different from the smaller variants to be a great game. (Piece movements alone do not make a game, they can be invented two a penny).

 

Dai Dai Shogi is a difficult game to learn and play, resembling a war game more than a chess game. With so many new pieces, unlike Dai and Tenjiku, a knowledge of Chu Shogi is very little help. But it is a still great game and well worth the effort.
There are no quick attacks or wins in this game, careful long term planning is needed from the start. A full board strategy may be hard, but it is possible and desirable.



Dai Dai Shogi piece set up.
   
 

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Variants like Dai that have boards with an odd number of files and a symmetrical layout, suffer from a little flaw. That is, diagonal movers like bishops all belong to the same colour on a chequered board.
Dai-Dai overcomes this nicely by having an asymmetrical layout, hence the extra large number of unique pieces.

Advancing and creating space:

Push some pawns - advance minor pieces - bring up some more powerful pieces behind them - support that thrust with a few promoting pieces.

Beware when leaving weak pieces undefended, the loss of the piece may be unimportant but you must also consider any promotion for the capturing piece.

Try to ensure that in exchange sequences;
If you make the last capture it is with a good promoting piece.
If your opponent makes the last capture it is not with a promoting piece.