07-02-2013, 10:19 PM
The king which moves first can deliver stalemate (with help, of course) but can never be stalemated.
Just as in normal chess a knight that starts on a white square can reach other white squares only in an even number of moves and can reach black squares only in an odd number of moves, so in this form of chess a king can reach certain squares only in an even number of moves and others only in an odd number of moves.
A king starting on a1 can reach a1, a3, a5, a7, c1, c3, c5, c7, e1, e3, e5, e7, g1, g3, g5 and g7 in an even number of moves, and b2, b4, b6, b8, d2, d4, d6, d8, f2, f4, f6, f8, h2, h4, h6 and h8 in an odd number of moves. A king starting on h8 reaches the first set of squares in an odd and the second in an even number of moves.
In all cases, the square on which a king can be stalemated is the same quality (either odd or even) of distance away for that king as the square on which the stalemating king must land - but for the latter king both squares have the opposite quality. So if the king which is to be stalemated arrives at its destination in an even number of moves, the other king must arrive in the stalemating square in an odd number of moves. And so the king which moves first can never be stalemated, because the opposing king cannot arrive at the stalemating square in the same number of moves -it needs one more move.
Simple!
Just as in normal chess a knight that starts on a white square can reach other white squares only in an even number of moves and can reach black squares only in an odd number of moves, so in this form of chess a king can reach certain squares only in an even number of moves and others only in an odd number of moves.
A king starting on a1 can reach a1, a3, a5, a7, c1, c3, c5, c7, e1, e3, e5, e7, g1, g3, g5 and g7 in an even number of moves, and b2, b4, b6, b8, d2, d4, d6, d8, f2, f4, f6, f8, h2, h4, h6 and h8 in an odd number of moves. A king starting on h8 reaches the first set of squares in an odd and the second in an even number of moves.
In all cases, the square on which a king can be stalemated is the same quality (either odd or even) of distance away for that king as the square on which the stalemating king must land - but for the latter king both squares have the opposite quality. So if the king which is to be stalemated arrives at its destination in an even number of moves, the other king must arrive in the stalemating square in an odd number of moves. And so the king which moves first can never be stalemated, because the opposing king cannot arrive at the stalemating square in the same number of moves -it needs one more move.
Simple!