Let's invent some very weird pieces

The Prism (P)

The Prism is a 2 x 1 x 1 piece that can occupy two squares at once or it may occupy just one square depending on the situation.

I have no idea how to design a piece. This is the best I could do.

The vertical prism will always tip over to move. It moves and captures two blocks forward. It has the possibility to capture two pieces at once.

The horizontal prism can either stay horizontal by rolling on its side. Thus allowing it to capture two pieces. The horizontal prism can also move forward or backward reverting it back into a vertical prism.

Chess Notation: Due to the prism being able to occupy two squares at once special notation must be used. If the prism moves to only one square normal chess notation will be used. If the prism moves to two squares at once both squares will mentioned. Ex. Pe4-e5.

Capturing: An enemy piece may capture the prism on either square it occupies. The prism may not capture it's own piece even if it would capture an enemy piece in the process. The prism can capture two enemy pieces at once.

Super-Nightrider can move like an ordinary nightrider (many knight moves in one direction: from a4 nightrider cannot go to c8 with a piece on b6 but he can go to g7 or capture that piece if it's opponent). If any enemy piece is in his range, this piece becomes transparent only for piece's enemies except nightriders. But if any allied piece (not edge of board) is in his range, he can also rotate and move another direction and so far.

Inverted knights represent SKRs. SKR on a5 can move to c6,e7,g8,c4,e3,g2 or it can eat pawns on b3 and b7. Note that he can't move to c1 or flip out the edge of board. SKR on b8 can move to c6,d4 or capture on e2. Rook on a3 can move to a4,a2,a1, capture on b3 or of course because of transparent pawn on b3 move to c3,d3,e3 or f3! If rook moves to e3, then a SKR on a5 can move to c6,e7,g8,c4,b6,a8,d2 or capture on b3,d6,b7 or e5. Then it is checkmate because of transparent pawn on e5. Rook on a7 can't capture SKR nor move to e7 because SKR does not influences own pieces and also enemy pieces can't move throungh SKR-influenced enemy pieces.

Offer chess: before moving, you make an offer to your opponent. it can be anything at all. this leads to some very silly and fun games.

some examples:

I take one pawn and get to place it anywhere on the third rank, but you get an extra move.

you get can move your knight like a rook, I can move my rook like a knight.

You resign, I'll buy you a capuccino.

The Wizard (WZ)

The wizard can move like a king. If you wish, you can perform a spell on all the pieces a knights move or a two square queen move away. The spell turned those pieces into their opposite color. It can not capture but it can be captured. The spell takes a move. If a king gets transformed, the side with the two kings wins.

Pawnmaster: moves 1 space diagonally (can capture) or as a knight (non-capturing).

Passive ability (Train): all friendly adjacent pawns can move like a king or make the initial double-move, but can only capture in their normal directions.

Active ability (Retaliate): all friendly adjacent pawns have the ability to capture an enemy piece without using a move, if the opponent has moved a piece where it can be captured by such a pawn. Make a normal move immediately after this effect is used.

Active ability (Recruit): if at least 5 friendly pawns are adjacent to the Pawnmaster, instead of a normal move, place a new pawn onto the board at one of the initial pawn squares. This counts as a move. This effect cannot be used on consecutive moves.

Passive ability (Mourn): if all friendly pawns have been captured, the Pawnmaster explodes, removing itself from the board and capturing all pieces (of both players) within a 2 square radius.

Passive ability (Pawndemonium): a player who has 8 friendly pawns adjacent to their Pawnmaster can teleport the entire group of 9 pieces anywhere available on the board (that does not put pawns on either the first or last rank). This counts as a move.

Range Pawn:

Takes pieces like a bishop but moves like a pawn (1 square forward). No jumping 2 squares or en passant is allowed.

Short Rook .The short rook can move only four squares at once. 

Centaur. The centaur moves like the knight or the king.

Courtesan: The courtesan was made to add some variety to the ‘promotion’ mechanic. In base chess, there’s little reason to ever promote a pawn to anything other than queen, and it’s also a bummer when your promoted pawn is doomed to be captured the millisecond it gets promoted. Enter the courtesan. Neither player starts the game with any, meaning they can only be obtained through promotion of a pawn. The courtesan moves like a mann, but whatever piece captures her is also removed from the board (unless it’s a king). I like the concept behind a piece that can only enter the game through pawn promotion, though I still think in most situations I’d take a new queen over a courtesan. Though maybe that was the point, to create something that doesn’t overshadow the queen but has reasons to sometimes be picked.

 Mann: This is another famous fairy piece. The mann moves like a king but is not royal; he cannot castle and he’s allowed to be captured. The mann is most popular for chess theorists who wish to discuss the king as an attacking piece, or for chess puzzles that wish to use a non-royal king. Personally I love the symbolism behind the piece’s name; a king without his power is just a man. Whoever decided on that name did the world a real favor.

Anti-Pawn: Goes backwards 1 space and captures diagonally backwards 1 space. If it captures anything, the side with it wins.

Stain: moves like a bishop. Any enemy piece that moves through the path it took in its most recent move is turned into a pawn.

Jester: He is a mixture of all the chess pieces. Attacks diagonally, move one way forever until something stops it, but when a queen or a pawn is close to it, he can escape like a knight, once it is dead, it can bring back a character.

I like this piece. I think this is very creative! 

Can the prism ever simply pivot on its side without moving in range?  

And, these blocks must be worth a lot of material points: controlling more than 2 times what the Rook controls would suggest a power that might almost be twice the Queen's.

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The one thing I would caution you on is your method in chess notation: when you put a hyphen inbetween two squares, some will misread the first notated square (e4) as the starting position and the second notated square after the hyphen (e5) as the destinition square. It's informally taught many, including myself, to record games this way. (Many folks, as myself, feel a sense of security in recording in "full notation", which is writing the before- and destination square; writing just the destination square is merely a shorthand, deployed when the scorekeeper has to record extremely quick.)

As a kindly suggestion, which you can totally take or leave, some alternative ways of writing two squares may be the incorporation of Brackets [], Braces {}, Parenthesis (), commas (((,))), Amphersands &, slashes \ /, Absolute-Vallue domain | |, and semi-colons [[[;]]] ;  or perhaps a combination of these.

Thanks for the suggestion. If anyone wants to try a game with the prism I would change the notation to a colon (ex. Pe4:e5). I'm not sure if it would be that powerful of a piece. I would value it at 6 points. The prism is bad in the opening and is vulnerable when horizontal, but in the endgame it is a force being able to move faster than a pawn and can capture multiple pieces at a time.

Do you mean knight-rider?

Ranger of Gondor

Moves like a king, cannot capture unless there are two Rangers threatening a piece (for Dwarves three) once a turn can place a "Campfire" on one square orthogonally adjacent. Any piece orthogonally adjacent to a campfire is immune to any effects of the Nazgûl. AllNazgûl cannot go within 1 tile of a campfire. When a new campfire is placed, the old one is destroyed.   A ranger of Gondor can capture a piece that a Ranger of the North is threatening (will post moveset soon).

It seems weak. How are you going to get two rangers threatening a piece. The other problem with it is that its power only applies to one other piece. 

Teleporting pieces, force fields that trap pieces, pieces that shoot other pieces with "zapping rays," long distance leapers, pieces that drop "blockers" to keep sliders from passing through...

complete rules:

http://GothicChess.info/Stargate.pdf

Lovely advert

now please read the OP and actually do something other than plug your beloved variant.

Sure it is weak

I hope to make the RON stronger however, and useful generally as a piece combo

Ok

My new piece is called the Evert. The Evert moves and captures in any direction like Queen+Knight. But after moves with capturing it invents a new fairy chess piece on the board near with it.