Yeah your rating would probably slip a bit using a new set.
But the key to making it so you could still concentrate might be to use instantly recognizable conventions, like knights who look aggressive and bishops who look zen somehow and rooks who look heavier then either, queens who are majestic and kings regal or brooding.
Maybe the appeal wouldn't be so limited if you used mass appeal subject matter. Star Wars, etc. One company could specialize in making the molds for each new offering, so they'd have the process figured out and wouldn't waste lots of money in the R&D stage each time.
I started searching for excellent chess sets, historical as well as currently mass produced. And the lack of variety was the first depressing result, but even beyond that it became painful when I discovered NO kind of good looking human-like chess pieces except for a couple embarassingly uncool ones.
The truth was shocking, shaming, and stupifying.
Because my grandfather's set was amazing compared to the stuff that's out there today, and it didn't take super-duper craftsmanship or anything: the faces are just hints of lines and not in-depth sculpting of entire bodies. No "master craftsmen" needed, I daresay. The knight for example is like a big mohawk helmet wearing guy that simultaneously looks like the mane of a horse head but has a human face. The rooks wear tower-top hats and the bishops wear those miters.
That set looks great compared to the bland nothings available today, and it wouldn't be all THAT much more effort from the manufacturer! So, growing up with this set, I assumed that all kinds of creativity like this was available. Apparently not. I wish now that I'd tracked down the "Cavalier" set that used to be available from the same company, because it was even better looking, with actual horses and riders for the knights, and the horse rearing up as if to jump over someone. (Not even goofy looking at all! Real classy, you know?)
You just don't see anything like that now. There's two major categories: the competition style sets we use and the historical "extra stick-like sets" from around the world when I guess the convention was to make the carvings super thin and tall and only different from each other in the most minor of ways, like a thickness near the top to represent a rook, a curved snout like thing for a knight, etc., with the majority of each stick figure being identical. SAD!!!!!!
Sad for such a creative game to be saddled with so profound a lack in creativity when it comes to its presentation. How could things be better?
I only remember a few exceptions that actually wowed me, ever, like the american civil war set that had cannons as rooks, riders holding flags as knights, etc. I've seen hisorical period sets with elephant rooks. And then you had the Star Wars chess sets at discount retailers that looked lousy in terms of quality, but hey at least they were trying something. But imagine the possibilities of a really well made wooden set of angels and demons, drawing on the myths of the orient and india and pacific islanders to make them look especially spooky and "authentic." Or a set of undead clashing with woodland sprites and faerie folk.
You know what I'm saying? A caliber of chess set that would more truly reflect our love of the game than do these silly stick figures with no personality and no gravity to them that we're given as our only option.