Chess!

It's here. 21" by 21" (extra inch due to notation) with 3 3/4" King. Now, the biggest chess set I own. This is my first true table chess set. Everything's so smooth and weighted nicely. I didn't know what that meant until I picked one up. I started playing Chess as a kid but didn't really get into it until about a few years ago. After learning things like Castling, En Passant, and the use of a Chess Clock, I was even more interested in actually getting better. This is probably my favorite board game to "feel". What I mean by that is, there's a certain level of maturity to this game. 

Picking up each piece feels like an important decision, and the difference in play depends on, at least for me, the look and the weight of the board. Chess players will probably tell you otherwise, but there's nothing fun about this game when you're feeling a crowded, small sized board. I prefer Sheesham over Ebonized, and my clock has to be analogue. These are little things that make the game more enjoyable for me. Most of the time, if those things are all in place, I'm perfectly comfortable with losing. I'd tell you that I still felt really good making and reacting to my opponents' moves.

Another game that comes close to the feel of Chess is Oware. I haven't spent too much time in looking for those boards as I have with Chess. Oware is more of a mathematical game, and its setup is so simple that it can be played without having to spend any money at all. Though, I'm happy with what I got for the price of this set. I'm usually really picky when it comes to the style of the Knight piece, so I had to get used to this one. As long as their teeth aren't hanging all out, I can get down.

There's just something demoralizing about seeing a horse with his big buck teeth out on a board. Man, I must either have really weird values or I can sense when someone's trying to make my Chess game look goofy as hell.