Under The Stones Fuseki

The under the stones fuseki is only possible in real life play and is a variation for people who are tired of the standard handicap placement.

Black handicap stones are placed on the star points as in a usual handicap game. However, under the black stones there are white stones.

So, in addition to countering White's superior technical skill, Black must also keep control of his trembling hands while facing the stronger opponent: when a black stone slides away from its fragile equilibrium, the liberated white stone will in effect occupy the star point and the black stone will either be removed from the board or occupy the new point they have slid to (also known as under the stones tesuji).

Dieter

Dansc: An interesting idea! However, what happens if the white player is the one who drops a black stone off a white one?

Frs: Then White has lost his chance: the white stone counts as a captured stone, while the black stone occupies the the star point.

Anonymous: If you're going to do that, why not just throw a bunch of stones on the board at random to start the game.

MrKoala: Nice! I'll try that tomorrow night.