Chess
Chess is a two-player strategy board game played on an 8x8 grid. Players control an army of 16 pieces each, with the goal of checkmating the opponent's king.
Players
Pieces and Movement
King
•
Moves one square in any direction (horizontally, vertically, or diagonally)
•
Cannot move into a square attacked by an opponent's piece
Queen
•
Moves any number of squares in any direction (horizontally, vertically, or diagonally)
•
Cannot jump over other pieces
Rook
•
Moves any number of squares horizontally or vertically
•
Cannot jump over other pieces
Bishop
•
Moves any number of squares diagonally
•
Cannot jump over other pieces
•
Each player has 2 bishops
Knight
•
Moves in an L-shape: two squares in one direction and one square perpendicular (or vice versa)
•
The only piece that can jump over other pieces
•
Each player has 2 knights
Pawn
•
Moves forward one square (toward the opponent's side)
•
On its first move, may move forward two squares
•
Captures diagonally forward one square
Special Moves
Castling
The king and a rook move simultaneously. The king moves two squares toward the rook, and the rook moves to the square the king crossed. Conditions:
•
Neither the king nor the rook has previously moved
•
No pieces between the king and rook
•
The king does not pass through or land on an attacked square
En Passant
A pawn may capture an opponent's pawn that has just advanced two squares from its starting position, as if the opponent's pawn had only moved one square. This capture must be made immediately on the next turn.
Promotion
When a pawn reaches the last rank (the opponent's back row), it must be promoted to a queen, rook, bishop, or knight.
Check and Checkmate
•
Check: The king is under direct attack by an opponent's piece. The player must resolve the check on their next move by moving the king, blocking the attack, or capturing the attacking piece.
•
Checkmate: The king is in check and there is no legal move to escape. The game is over and the checkmating player wins.
Draw
•
Stalemate: The player whose turn it is has no legal moves and their king is not in check. The game is a draw.
Setup
White pieces are placed on rows 1-2, black pieces on rows 7-8:
•
Row 1/8 (back rank): Rook, Knight, Bishop, Queen, King, Bishop, Knight, Rook
•
Row 2/7 (front rank): 8 Pawns