The standard set optimizes for mass production. All pieces except the knight can be turned on a lathe, with minor post-processing to cut notches in the rook and

The standard set optimizes for mass production. All pieces except the knight can be turned on a lathe, with minor post-processing to cut notches in the rook and bishop. Older chess sets like the Lewis Chessmen from the 1200s look substantially different, having both better aesthetics and usability than the currently popular set. Like having a bishop that is recognizable as a bishop, not a medium-height round thing with a notch in the top. If you don't want to imitate the standard chess set, improving on it isn't that difficult as long as you don't care about mass production from wood. This set somehow manages to be worse