You do not start with any pieces, but with four deployment squares (represented as ?’s in the diagram), and have one king, two pawns, two bishops, two knights, and one rook in reserve. On your turn, you have the choice of either moving a piece or placing a piece from your reserve onto an empty deployment square.

If you don’t have any pieces in play, and it is not your first turn, you lose the game automatically. However, your pieces may not be captured until the end of your second turn. Three of the first five pieces you play must be the king and two pawns.

First appearance: 11/28/06 (1st draft of rules).
Tags: Complex rules  Time Bomb power  Un-Lightning-able