“A horse apiece”, meaning “six of one, half a dozen of the other,” comes from an old dice gambling game to describe a draw. This is part of a complete episode.
The term zugzwang comes from chess, and refers to that situation where you can’t make any desirable moves—like being between a rock and a hard place. This is part of a complete episode.
chessically adv.— «I can’t say I’ll miss Bobby Fischer. Chessically speaking, he died years ago. But I’ll continue to miss the player and artist that he was, his courageous honesty and sublime creativity. He wasn’t just a great player. He...
skittles room n.—Gloss: at the venue of a chess tournament, an area or room where players can play informally, either for fun or to hustle each other for money. Note: A commenter remarks that he’s known this term for 40 years, which...
simul n.— «At each event in her new Summer Chess Lecture/Simul Series there, a grandmaster will give a talk about chess and then take part in what is called a simul: boards will be set up for participants, and the grandmaster (Susan...
blitz n.— «Shawn comes to Wall Street to play a type of chess called blitz, a game in which the ticking of a three-minute clock eliminates the ponderous pauses of traditional chess and transforms the game into a fevered, trash-talking...