codex · nerf

War of Attrition

You lose if you ever make more than twelve non-capturing moves in a row.

At a glance

Type
Nerf
Tier
IV. SevereSevere: a strong swing, offered as games open up.
Focus
Capturing, Movement, Positioning, Win/Loss, Timing / Turn
Collection
Core
Appears in
Nerf mode
How it works
Passive and secret: it is always on, and your opponent cannot see it.

How it works

War of Attritionis one of Nerf Chess's secret handicaps. In Nerf mode you choose one of two nerfs before the first move, in secret, and carry it for the whole game.

The board quietly enforces it: any move it forbids is simply never offered, so you cannot break it by accident. Your opponent never sees which nerf you took until the game ends, so every move you make is also a clue they are trying to read.

An idle army rots in the field.

History

  1. July 5, 2026Added in the expanded-nerfs wave: 82 new handicaps across all eight tiers. (PR #144)

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