Editing Cyvasse

[[File:Sara Biddle The Long PlanII.png|350px|thumb|Prince [[Doran Martell]] eyeing the dragon piece in a game of ''cyvasse'', by Sara Biddle © Fantasy Flight Games]]
'''''Cyvasse''''' is a board game originating from [[Volantis]], played by two players, and features ten types of pieces, each with different powers and attributes.{{Ref|AFFC|13}} In Volantis, there are ''cyvasse'' parlors.{{Ref|ADWD|27}}

==Gameplay==
{{See also|:Category:Images of cyvasse|l1=Images of cyvasse}}
''Cyvasse'' is played on a board that changes from game to game. The players arrange their tiles on the board,{{Ref|AFFC|21}} with a screen in the middle, so neither can see how the other arranges their board.{{Ref|ADWD|14}} Mountains are among the squares that the players can place themselves.{{Ref|AFFC|21}} After the screen is removed, the players move their pieces across the board, in alternating turns.{{Ref|aFfC|13}}{{Ref|ADWD|14}} 

According to [[George R. R. Martin]], ''cyvasse'' is complex and profound, but he has not come up with rules for the game.<ref name=cyvasse>[https://youtu.be/OMvFNaqSWEo?t=17m42s George R R Martin visiting SF-Bokhandeln]</ref>

===Game Pieces===
[[File:A. L. Ashbaugh Outthought.JPG|350px|thumb|Dragon and elephant game pieces in ''cyvasse'', by  A. L. Ashbaugh © Fantasy Flight Games]]
There are ten different kinds of pieces available:{{Ref|AFFC|13}}
* [[smallfolk|rabble]]{{Ref|ADWD|22}}
* [[spear]]men{{Ref|ADWD|22}}
* [[crossbow]]men{{Ref|ADWD|22}}
* [[horse|light horse]]{{Ref|ADWD|14}}{{Ref|ADWD|22}}
* [[horse|heavy horse]]{{Ref|AFFC|40}}{{Ref|ADWD|22}}
* [[trebuchet]]{{Ref|ADWD|14}}
* catapult{{Ref|ADWD|22}}
* [[dragon]]{{Ref|aDwD|22}}
* [[elephant]]{{Ref|AFFC|40}}{{Ref|ADWD|22}}{{Ref|ADWD|14}}{{Ref|AFFC|21}}{{Ref|ADWD|33}}
* [[king]]{{Ref|ADWD|22}}

The dragon is the most powerful piece in the game.{{Ref|ADWD|22}} It is not exactly known how many pieces each player has of each different kind, but one player has multiple elephants.{{Ref|ADWD|22}} The goal of the game is to "kill" the king.{{Ref|ADWD|22}}

Known color combinations of pieces include [[ivory]] and [[onyx]],{{ref|AFFC|40}} ivory and [[jade]],{{ref|ADWD|6}} and [[alabaster]] and onyx.{{ref|ADWD|22}} Squares of the game board can be colored jade, [[carnelian]], and [[lapis lazuli]].{{ref|AFFC|13}} Cheaper sets are carved from wood.{{Ref|ADWD|14}}

===Known Rules===
Several rules are briefly mentioned in ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'':
* Pieces cannot travel across mountains, which are set up before the start of play to make strategic choke points. The exception is the dragon piece, which can ignore and cross mountains (because real dragons fly).{{Ref|ADWD|22}}
* A dragon can remove elephants from the board.{{Ref|ADWD|22}} 
* A catapult can remove a dragon from the board.{{Ref|ADWD|22}}
* A trebuchet can remove a dragon from the board.{{Ref|ADWD|14}}
* An elephant can apparently defeat a light horse - as when [[Tyrion]] advanced his light horse, [[Haldon]] "answered" with an elephant. Tyrion then moved up his heavy horse to support the light, which might imply elephants cannot kill heavy horse.{{Ref|ADWD|22}}

It is possible for players to be overly aggressive or overly defensive, as there are counter-strategies for each. A recklessly aggressive offense immediately advances with the dragon, elephants, and heavy horse. This risks the dragon being killed by catapults or trebuchets.{{Ref|ADWD|22}} Conversely, an overly defensive play style is to place the powerful elephant pieces in the mountain passes: this immobilizes the defender while leaving them vulnerable to the enemy's dragon, which can fly across mountains as well as kill elephants.{{Ref|AFFC|21}} Ultimately, success comes down to the individual player's skill.

==History==
''Cyvasse'' originates from [[Volantis]].{{Ref|AFFC|13}}{{Ref|ADWD|47}} [[Ben Plumm]] learned the game when Volantis contracted the [[Second Sons]].{{Ref|ADWD|47}} ''Cyvasse'' is frequently played in [[Lys]]{{ref|ADWD|6}} and Volantis.{{Ref|ADWD|22}}

Around {{Date|299}}, the game came to [[Westeros]], starting in [[Dorne]], where a trading galley from [[Volantis]] introduced the game. It was spread from [[Planky Town]] up and down the [[Greenblood]] by the [[orphans of the Greenblood|orphans of the river]].{{Ref|AFFC|13}} The game came to [[King's Landing]] in {{Date|300}}.{{Ref|AFFC|36}}

==Recent Events==
===''A Feast for Crows''===
[[File:DoransGameJT.png|350px|thumb|Prince [[Doran Martell|Doran's]] game, by Serena Malyon © Fantasy Flight Games]]
''Cyvasse'' is a craze among the [[House Martell]] court at [[Sunspear]]. Princess [[Myrcella Baratheon]] learns the game from her [[betrothed]], Prince [[Trystane Martell]], when she comes to live with the Martells in [[Dorne]].{{Ref|aFfC|13}} She takes to the game quickly, and wins more often that Trystane, though he does not seem to mind.{{Ref|AFFC|13}} Ser [[Arys Oakheart]] finds the game maddening.{{Ref|AFFC|13}} When riding through the desert with Princess [[Arianne Martell]], Myrcella comments that Trystane always places his squares the same way.{{Ref|AFFC|21}} 

When Arianne is imprisoned in a chamber in the [[Spear Tower]] for her failed attempt at kidnapping Myrcella, she finds that her father [[Doran Martell]], the [[Prince of Dorne]], has had a ''cyvasse'' table placed there. She ignores it, but he later tells her it was there to teach her to study a game before she attempts to play it. When Arianne is summoned to her father's rooms at the end of her imprisonment, she finds him sitting across a ''cyvasse'' table, studying the pieces. He hands her an onyx dragon piece as he explains the [[secret marriage pact]] between [[House Martell]] and [[House Targaryen]].{{ref|AFFC|40}}

In [[King's Landing]], Queen [[Margaery Tyrell]] and her cousins are studying the game when Queen Regent [[Cersei Lannister]] brings the news that Ser [[Loras Tyrell]] has [[siege of Dragonstone|taken Dragonstone]] but received severe injuries in the process.{{Ref|AFFC|36}}

===''A Dance with Dragons''===
[[File:Marc Fishman tyrion cyvasse.jpg|350px|thumb|[[Tyrion Lannister]] plays [[Qavo Nogarys]] in a game of ''cyvasse'', by Marc Fishman]]
While is in [[Lys]], Prince [[Quentyn Martell]] spots ''cyvasse'' pieces being sold.{{Ref|ADWD|6}}

''Cyvasse'' is played during [[Tyrion Lannister]]'s voyage on the ''[[Shy Maid]]'' with [[Haldon]]{{Ref|ADWD|14}} and [[Young Griff]], and he learns the game.{{Ref|ADWD|22}} While playing against Haldon, Tyrion places a bet, and wins the game, thereby learning from Haldon the true identity of Young Griff. In the game against Young Griff, Tyrion tells the boy to go to [[Westeros]], instead of seeking the hand of Queen [[Daenerys Targaryen]]. Later on, when he is separated from Young Griff's group, Tyrion learns that Young Griff actually listened.{{Ref|ADWD|27}} Tyrion, under Haldon's direction, plays against the custom officer [[Qavo Nogarys]] in [[Volantis]], in order to gain information from him.{{Ref|ADWD|22}}

On board the ''[[Selaesori Qhoran]]'', Tyrion attempts to teach [[Penny]] how to play ''cyvasse'', though he soon realizes it is a lost cause.{{Ref|ADWD|33}} When Tyrion is captured by [[slaver]]s and displayed for sale in the slave market outside [[Meereen]], he boasts about his ''cyvasse'' skills as a selling point.{{Ref|ADWD|47}} After Tyrion is bought by the [[Yunkai|Yunkish]] [[Wise Master]] [[Yezzan zo Qaggaz]], he plays a game of ''cyvasse'' against a man who had originally wanted to buy him (and remembered his claims), and later against [[Ben Plumm]].{{Ref|ADWD|47}}

===''The Winds of Winter''===
{{Warning/twow}}
In the camp of the [[Second Sons]] outside [[Meereen]], Tyrion plays numerous ''cyvasse'' games in [[Brown Ben Plumm]]'s tent. As the [[second siege of Meereen]] commences, a [[Yunkai|Yunkish]] nobleman enters Brown Ben's tent during a meeting. When he recognizes Tyrion, he demands that the dwarf be surrendered for punishment as an escaped slave. [[Jorah Mormont]] opens the Yunkish nobleman's throat with his longsword. The man takes two wobbly steps, falls across the ''cyvasse'' board, scatters the wooden armies everywhere, and dies on the carpet. The white dragon piece ends up at Tyrion's feet. He scoops it off the carpet and wipes it on his sleeve, but some of the man's blood has collected in the fine grooves of the carving, so the pale wood appears to be veined with red.{{ref|twow||[[Tyrion II (The Winds of Winter)|Tyrion II]]}}

Arianne Martell, on her way to [[Jon Connington]]'s army in the [[Stormlands]], loses in games of ''cyvasse'' against Ser [[Daemon Sand]] and Ser [[Garibald Shells]].{{ref|twow||[[Arianne I (The Winds of Winter)|Arianne]]}}

==Quotes==
{{Quote|''Cyvasse'', the game was called. It had come to the [[Planky Town]] on a trading [[galley]] from [[Volantis]], and the [[orphans of the Greenblood|orphans]] had spread it up and down the [[Greenblood]]. The [[Sunspear|Dornish court]] was mad for it. Ser Arys just found it maddening.{{Ref|AFFC|13}}|thoughts of [[Arys Oakheart]]}}

{{Quote|[[Young Griff]] arrayed his army for attack, with [[dragon]], [[elephant]]s, and heavy [[horse]] up front. A young man's formation, as bold as it is foolish. He risks all for the quick kill.{{Ref|ADWD|22}}|thoughts of [[Tyrion Lannister]]}}

{{Quote|I hope Your Grace will pardon me. Your [[king]] is trapped. Death in four.{{Ref|ADWD|22}}|[[Tyrion Lannister]], when defeating [[Young Griff]]}}

{{Quote|'''Young Griff:''' My [[dragon]]—<br>'''Tyrion:''' —is too far away to save you. You should have moved her to the center of the battle.<br>'''Young Griff:''' But you said—<br>'''Tyrion:''' I lied. Trust no one. And keep your dragon close.{{Ref|ADWD|22}}|[[Young Griff]] and [[Tyrion Lannister]]}}

{{Quote|You have other pieces beside the [[dragon]], princess. Try moving them sometime.{{ref|twow||[[Arianne I (The Winds of Winter)|Arianne]]}}|[[Daemon Sand]], mocking [[Arianne Martell]] after she loses to him}}

==Behind the Scenes==
According to [[George R. R. Martin]], ''cyvasse'' is partially inspired by [[w:chess|chess]], ''[[w:Blitzkrieg (board game)|Blitzkrieg]]'', and ''[[w:Stratego|Stratego]]''.{{ref|ssm|2802}} Martin has turned down offers from game companies to develop rules for ''cyvasse'' and market the game, as he prefers to have the profundity and complexity of the game more suggested than detailed.<ref name=cyvasse/>

According to [[w:David J. Peterson|David J. Peterson]], the official language creator for the television adaptations of Martin's works, the etymology of the [[Low Valyrian]] word "''cyvasse''" comes from the [[High Valyrian]] word [https://wiki.languageinvention.com/index.php?title=K%C8%B3vagon "''kȳvagon''"], which means "strategy". Developing the etymology of "''cyvasse''" also helped Peterson develop the sound changes of the Low Valyrian dialects of the [[Free Cities]].<ref name="DJP1">Game of Owns: [https://www.gameofowns.com/500 We Light The Way feat. David J Peterson] <small>(at 1h15min45s)</small></ref> Peterson also developed a specific High Valyrian word for "''cyvasse''", [https://wiki.languageinvention.com/index.php?title=K%C8%B3vakio "''Kȳvakio''"] (literally "Strategist"),<ref name="DJP2">[https://dedalvs.tumblr.com/post/147010602198/is-ky-vanon-plan-strategy-related-to-cyvasse David J. Peterson's tumblr] (July 6, 2016)</ref> as well as a High Valyrian word for "''cyvasse'' parlor", [https://wiki.languageinvention.com/index.php?title=K%C8%B3vakion "''kȳvakion''"].

As for how to [[Pronunciation guide|pronounce]] "cyvasse", in clips from interviews, Martin himself pronounces it as "siv-AHSS" (IPA: "'''sɪv.äs'''"):<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtr7LbrXTUA George R.R. Martin on Cyvasse,] 2018 panel</ref>

*It only has two syllables: the final "e" is silent (so not "sigh-vas-see"). 
*The first syllable sounds like the first syllable of "'''civ'''ilization" - keeping in mind that for many names in the books, Martin has used the letter "Y" to alternatively stand in for both "short I" (as in "if") and "long I" (sounds like "eye"). It is ''not'' a hard C like the letter "K", nor does it sound like the "Cy" in "cyborg". 
*The second syllable uses "short A" (as in "father") not "long A" (as in "ate"). Thus it does ''not'' rhyme with base / grace / space. It sounds closer to the British pronunciation of "vase" - not the American pronunciation of "vase" that rhymes with "base"; however the British "vase" ends with the "Z" sound ("vahz") while Martin pronounces it as just a simple "S" sound (like the final consonant in "mass").

In summary, ("siv" as in "civ-ilization") + ("ah" as in "father" ending with "s" as in "mass").

David J. Peterson, however, pronounces ''cyvasse'' as "SIGH-vass" (IPA: "'''saɪ.væs'''"), with emphasis on the first syllable, a "long I" (like "eye"), and a more nasal "short A" (as in "vat").<ref name="DJP1" />

In adaptations, cyvasse first appeared on-screen in ''House of the Dragon'' Season 3 episode 5, "Unbowed and Unbent". The production team on the TV show pronounce the name as "siv-ASS" (IPA: "'''sɪv.væs'''"): the first syllable the way Martin pronounces it, but the second syllable "ass" with a short "a" like in "mass".<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhCua5EGRQQ&t=800s ''House of the Dragon'',] The House That Dragons Built episode 305</ref>

==References==
{{References}}

{{Games}}

[[Category:Games]]

[[es:Sitrang]]
[[fr:Cyvosse]]
[[ru:Кайвасса]]