As fun as Cosplay Chess sounds, there are meny conflicts:
-Money is needed to make the giant table/tarp with squares.
Ask for contributions or help with making the squares/playing area. *raises hand* I'm not that talented but between now and Fanime, we and others should be able to come up with something usable. The cardboard idea sounds good, but we have to remember some of our pieces may be wearing heels which would punch through cardboard (did you mean like what boxes are made of?). We should look for some material that would take being stepped on or stood on for an amount of time, something rug-like. There's a discount fabric store near me that carries a variety of fabrics. We might be able to find something suitable. 3'x3' sounds like a good size square. 32 black pieces, 32 white if we go that route.
-No one I know uses the same set of rules/moves for one single game.
You can set the rules we will be following. Perhaps these can be included in the official post for the cosplay chess so everyone can read them. The rules should be as simple as how to move and what piece may capture what piece. Also, how the piece may be captured: if two sword wielding pieces, then a battle (easy now, no bloodshed) with the swords. If Naruto vs Sanji, then Naruto would be allowed a kick movement and Sanji a swing of his blade(s).
-Finding space for the giant table/tarp where the cosplayrs can all play and where the guests can also see the game in play.
This is tricky. If we go with 3'x3' size squares, we'd need an area to play on at least 24' square. Then extra space for the two chessplayers. And space for an audience.
The only place I can think of is in the area below the stairs by the main entrance, but I don't know if it's at least 24' square (where's my measuring tape!) AND there'd be a problem with people on the stairs watching from above. One way around this is to have foot-stools (yeah, I know 32 footstools will cost but if we can find some of those plastic ones on sale somewhere ...) so the pieces would sit while waiting to move. Then stand when they move. But then they'd have to take their stool with them, unless they were going to capture a piece ... Maybe have stage ninjas move the stools for the pieces? This could really get interesting looking and involve more people than we want ... 32 pieces, 2 - 4 stage ninjas, 2 players, an emcee.
I still favor making this a performance rather than an actual game. The moves are planned out ahead of time, and practiced, then the game is 'played' out in front of an audience. Hell, if we could guarantee it would take only 15 minutes, maybe we could put this on at Masquerade as an intermission or something. Just plan on the endgame, with only about 20 or fewer pieces left on the board and maybe 8 moves to capture the king.
-Finding enough people to participate in the game well enough to cooperate without goofing off. Here's a hint: we would need 32 "pieces".
Well, I've said enough about enough people ...
-Finding two people who are eligible to play the "main players" who also agree on all the sets of rules/moves.
Well, if it becomes a performance, we only need two people who can read the moves out loud.
I do realize that I may be "crapping on a dream", these are the main factors to making the event go though. As far as I know for this year, it isn't going through because of these factors.
Fanime '06 is when I got my job as the Tabletop Head approximately three months before con. There was no way in H$%^ that I was going to be able to pull it all together in such a short period of time.
Yeah, this may take more planning than we have time for.
Anyone, feel free to edit/comment on these ramblings ...
