Step 1: Make the Chessboard surface

Select the CREATE Palette and pick the 2-D Face Vertical object.

When the object appears, click on the SOLO button to see only that object. In the working window, click on it and then on the Attributes Box (A box) and enter the following data:

Position: X =45.66, Y = 0.00, Z = -55.61
Rotation: X =90, Y = 0, Z = 0
Size: X = 257.39, Y = 257.39, Z = 0
Name = chessboard
Boolean = Neutral
Click the Check Mark to close the Attributes Box.

We need to pick a special material for the chessboard, and we'll need to alter it a little.

With the 2-D Face Vertical object still picked, click on the M box to open the Materials Lab. Chances are the object has been set to the default material which is a grey.

Click on the A column next to the Diffuse color picker (top of the choices in the Surface section) to open the Texture dialog box (on the right). When the Texture dialog box is open, SHIFT-Click on the triangle to the far right and the Textures Library will open.

Choose BASIC from the list of libraries and pick the CheckBlue material. This will assign a blue checkerboard (or chessboard) to the chessboard for us. Click on the checkmark to choose the texture.

Now, all we have to do is change the color of the blue checks to red.

Click on the second button from the left of the Texture dialog box to open the Deep Texture Editor.

The Deep texture Editor will show you the colors for the checkerboard texture.

In the Component 1 window, click on the BLUE dot and you'll get the color picker. Pick a red color that you like and the checker color will become red. Of course, you could use any color you like. I chose red for its dramatic effect. Click on the check mark to set your color change.

You should be now back in the Materials Lab, and all that's left to do is assign the material with the right dimensions and setting.

In the Materials Lab, look at the little top box on the right with the title: "Check Blue". The bottom of that box tells you what "space" the material is aligned to. It may say "World Space" or even "Parametric" (the Bryce 5 defaults). We want to change that.

Click on the button next to the word(s) and you'll get a pop-up menu of choices. Scroll down to "Object Space" and select it. This aligns the material to the object.

Note: You MUST be in Object Space for our dimensions to work out correctly!

Click on the first top button (far left) of the Texture (now labeled CheckBlue) dialog box to open the Edit Texture dialog box.

In the size area (top X-Y-Z coordinates at the top) set the coordinates to 55%

You don't have to close the Edit Texture box if you don't want to, but you do need to set the following parameters for the material:

Diffusion = 52.5

Ambiance = 0

Specularity = 13.5

Metallicity = 0

Bump Height = 0

Transparency = 0

Reflection = 10.1

Refraction = 100

Note that you can set the reflection to a higher level, but it will increase the rendering time.

Okay! The Chessboard Surface is ready to go, now on to the Chessboard Frame!

Step 2: Make the Chessboard Frame

The chessboard frame is made from a CUBE object so it has some depth, which will come in handy when we apply the Magic Mirror technique.

Select the CREATE Palette and pick the Cube.

When the Cube appears, click on the SOLO button to see only that object. In the working window, click on it and then on the Attributes Box (A box) and enter the following data:

Position: X =-45.66, Y =-3.26, Z = -55.61
Rotation: X =0, Y = 0, Z = 0
Size: X =312.07, Y = 6.06, Z = 312.07
Name = chessboardbase
Boolean = Neutral
Click the Check Mark to close the Attributes Box.

Click on the M box to open the Materials Lab.

Pick a Simple and Fast material from the Materials dialog box. I chose the Maple Wood material because it has some lightness to it and it looks nice against the black background. You can choose whatever material appeals to you, of course. Feel free to try several!

Look at the little top box on the right. The bottom of that box tells you what "space" the material is aligned to. It may say "World Space" or even "Parametric" (the Bryce 5 defaults). We want to change that.

Click on the button next to the word(s) and you'll get a pop-up menu of choices. Scroll down to "Object Space" and select it. This aligns the material to the object rather than to the Bryce 5 world. Try several settings to see the results you get, it's the best way to learn how this feature works!

Now all we have to do (assuming you are going along with my Maple Wood suggestion) is set the materials data and we're done. Set the following in the Materials Lab:

Diffusion = 100

Ambiance = 19.6

Everything else is set to 0 (zero) except refraction which is 100.

Note that you can give the frame some shine by increasing the Reflection value, but that will add to the rendering time.

Now our scene is complete and ready for lighting. It should look something like this: (Note, I adjusted the lighting for clarity)