Blindfold chess (also known as sans voir) is a form of chess play where the players do not see or touch the pieces. This forces players to maintain a mental model of the positions of the pieces.
Each square of the chessboard is identified by a unique coordinate pair of a letter and a number. The vertical columns of squares are labeled A. through H. from White's left to right. The horizontal rows of squares are numbered 1 to 8 starting from White's side of the board. Thus, each square has a unique identification of a letter followed by a number. For example, White's king starts the game on square E1, and Black's knight on B8.
Moves are communicated via the recognized Universal Chess notation. This is done by first saying the cordinates of where the piece currently is, followed by the cordinates of where you want to move the piece. For example, Black's knight on B8 can move to open square A6 by saying, 'Alexa, move B8 to A6'. To castle indicate the final position of the King. For example, for white to castle kingside say, 'Alexa, move E1 to G1'. Similarly, to en passant, indicate the final position of the pawn.
A new game can be started at anytime by saying, 'Alexa, start a new game'. You will then be asked what skill level you want your computer apponent to be. Level one is the easiest and level twenty is the hardest. Finally, you will be asked if you want to be 'black' or 'white'. According to the rules of chess, the player who moves the first piece is referred to as white', and the player who moves the second piece is referred to as 'black'.
Do not worry if this blindfold chess skill closes before you have made your move, the state of the game is saved and you can resume the game at any time by saying, 'Alexa, open blindfold chess'.
This skill has benefited greatly from the use of open source software and creative commons media. We specifically acknowledge, with thanks, the producers of the following. The python-chess library, licensed under GPL 3. The Stockfish Open Source Chess Engine, licensed under GPL 3. Johann Sebastian Bach's Sinfonias where played on the piano by Randolph Hokanson, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0.
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