Notes on western chess.
Chess is believed to originate in the 7th century in India. The rules of modern western chess were modified and adopted around 1200 and grew into a sport during the 19th century.
Goal
The goal of the game is to checkmate the opponent's king. This happens when the king is put into check and cannot get out.
Three ways to get out of check:
- move out of the way
- block the check with another piece
- capture the piece threatening the king
Setup
Chess is a game played between two opponents on opposite sides of a board containing 64 squares of alternating colors. Each player has 16 pieces: 1 king, 1 queen, 2 rooks, 2 bishops, 2 knights, and 8 pawns.
Players are allowed to move one piece per turn. White always begins.
| a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | 8 | ♜ | ♞ | ♝ | ♛ | ♚ | ♝ | ♞ | ♜ | 7 | ♟ | ♟ | ♟ | ♟ | ♟ | ♟ | ♟ | ♟ | 6 | | | | | | | | | 5 | | | | | | | | | 4 | | | | | | | | | 3 | | | | | | | | | 2 | ♙ | ♙ | ♙ | ♙ | ♙ | ♙ | ♙ | ♙ | 1 | ♖ | ♘ | ♗ | ♕ | ♔ | ♗ | ♘ | ♖ |
Figures
King | König | 1 | Can move 1 field in any direction |
Queen | Dame | 9 | Can move multiple fields in any direction |
Rook | Turm | 5 | Can move multiple fields in a straight line |
Bishop | Läufer | 3 | Can move multiple fields diagonally |
Knight | Springer | 3 | Can move in an L-Shape in any direction |
Pawn | Bauer | 1 | Can move forward two fields from start position, otherwise only one field at a time. Captures diagonally. |
Special Rules
Pawn Promotion
A pawn may be promoted to a knight, bishop rook or queen when it reaches the other side of the board. The figure it is promoted to does not have to be captured.
En Passant
If a pawn opens with two steps forward, jumping over a field that is attacked by the opponents pawn, the opponent can capture the pawn in the next round by moving to the skipped field.
Castling
The king is moved either two fields left or right and the rook jumps over the king from the side the king moved towards. Only possible when:
- it is the king's first move
- it is the rook's first move
- there are no pieces between the two
- the king is not in check or passing through check
incoming(1) | games