Move Zero: Chess Variant

Chess for people who like thinking, not memorising. Two players. One board. But before a piece is moved, you each buy an army in secret and set it out yourself, so there is no opening theory to learn here, because there is no opening position to learn. Every game starts somewhere neither of you has been. BUY YOUR ARMY A budget, a shelf of pieces, and a choice about what to spend it on. More knights, or the queen you cannot afford twice? PLACE IT IN SECRET Neither of you sees the other's setup until the first move is made. THEN IT IS CHESS The same rules you already know, from a position nobody has ever published a book about. A RANKED SEASON Twenty-three rungs from Iron I to Radiant, and a crest for every one of them. Placement games decide where you start, and the ladder shows you exactly how far you have come and how much is left. FRIENDS BY CODE No search by name, no search by email. The only way anyone finds you is a code you handed them, and you can throw it away. PLAY ANY TIME If nobody is queuing, a bot holding a real rank fills in, so there is always a game. No ads. No trackers. No analytics SDKs. Your email is used to sign you in and for nothing else, and deleting your account deletes it.