Openings · レグスペ
Leghorn Special.
The Bishop Exchange Fourth File Rook with the king dug into an Anaguma instead of a Mino, here played by White.
The idea
This line is White’s. You swing the rook to 4b with your bishop’s diagonal still open, and trade bishops once Black’s king has stepped to 6h. Black takes back with the silver on 8h, on the path of Black’s own king. Then your king walks right, 6b, 7b, 8b, and into the corner on 9a, behind a lance on 9b, a silver on 8b and golds on 7a and 7b; both golds guard the silver.
It is the Bishop Exchange Fourth File Rook with an Anaguma in place of the Half Mino. The name is short for 白色レグホンスペシャル, after the nickname of its inventor, 大窪俊毅 of the Waseda University shogi club: White Leghorn, a breed of chicken. He won the 1988 spring Kantō university championship with it, playing it in all nine games.
The castle is low and far from the fight, and the Anaguma side has plenty of ways to attack, so it is popular in short amateur tournament games.
How it goes together
Both sides’ moves are shown, because this opening is an agreement rather than a system: one player cannot reach it alone, so a one-sided list of moves would be a fiction.
Step through the moves, or press play.
Tap a move to jump to it. Arrow keys work once the board has focus.
Every move of the line, with reasons
| # | Black | White | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ▲７六歩 7g7f | △３四歩 3c3d | Black opens the bishop’s diagonal. You open yours: both diagonals are open. |
| 3 | ▲２六歩 2g2f | △４二飛 8b4b | Black pushes the rook pawn: a static rook. The rook swings to the fourth file first, with the diagonal still open. ja.wikipedia gives the reason: it guards against a Black bishop dropped on 6e. |
| 5 | ▲４八銀 3i4h | △６二玉 5a6b | Your king starts walking right. |
| 7 | ▲６八玉 5i6h | △８八角成 2b8h+ | Black’s king steps to 6h. Now the trade, on 8h. |
| 9 | ▲同銀 7i8h | △２二銀 3a2b | Black takes back with the silver, which now stands on 8h, the square Black’s king wants. Your left silver goes to 2b, on its way to 3c. |
| 11 | ▲４六歩 4g4f | △３三銀 2b3c | The silver reaches 3c. |
| 13 | ▲４七銀 4h4g | △７二玉 6b7b | The king to 7b. |
| 15 | ▲７八玉 6h7h | △８二玉 7b8b | And to 8b. |
| 17 | ▲８六歩 8g8f | △９二香 9a9b | The lance steps up to 9b: the hole is dug. |
| 19 | ▲８七銀 8h8g | △９一玉 8b9a | The king goes into the corner on 9a. |
| 21 | ▲７七桂 8i7g | △８二銀 7a8b | Your right silver closes the lid on 8b. |
| 23 | ▲８八玉 7h8h | △７一金 6a7a | The right gold to 7a. |
| 25 | ▲７八金 6i7h | △５二金 4a5b | The left gold sets off, to 5b. |
| 27 | ▲６六歩 6g6f | △６二金寄 5b6b | It comes on to 6b. |
| 29 | ▲６五歩 6f6e | △２四歩 2c2d | |
| 31 | ▲６六角 B*6f | △１二香 1a1b | Black drops its bishop on 6f. The lance on your left edge steps up to 1b. |
| 33 | ▲５八金 4i5h | △７二金寄 6b7b | And the gold to 7b: the Anaguma is complete, king 9a, lance 9b, silver 8b, golds 7a and 7b. |
The plan once you are set up
- Swing to the fourth file before trading. ja.wikipedia says this guards against Black’s bishop drop on 6e.
- Trade bishops after Black’s king moves to 6h, so Black recaptures with the silver.
- Castle into the Anaguma: king to 9a, lance to 9b, silver to 8b, golds to 7a and 7b.
- Attack from a solid castle. The usual way is to swing the rook again, to the opponent’s rook file, and attack there, rather than push forward on the fourth file.
What to watch for
- Bishop drops. An Anaguma puts all the generals on one side, and both players hold a bishop.
- A slow game. If you have nothing to attack with and your position fills up, a bishop dropped onto your camp can be hard to stop.
What it is played against
A static rook. The book on this opening, 『角交換振り穴スペシャル』, covers Black answering with a Static Rook Anaguma, a Silver Crown and a Yagura, and says the ranging rook can play against all of them.
Play it against the bot.
The bot’s search levels, 9 to 12, open from a book that holds two of these openings, the Fourth File Rook and the Yagura; the Mino levels play the openings people play. Either way the review afterwards shows you where the game left the line. Try the line, then try the plan.