Chess Pieces Moves - Learn About Chess Piece Moves Learn About Chess Piece Moves Learn the different chess piece moves so that you know how to move the pieces around a chess board. Here is a tutorial on chess piece moves. Show transcript Hide transcript Transcript: Learn About Chess Piece Moves Hi, my name is Zachery Powell -- I'm with About.com. Today I'm going to teach you how chess pieces move. Set Up Your Chess Board to Learn Chess Piece Moves You need a board and 16 pieces on one side and 16 on the other side, with one side being light and one side being dark. The right hand corner of each player should be the light color. The first thing you want to do is set up your king and queen. They go on the center in the back row. The queen will be on her color and the king will be on the opposite color. On the other side of the king and queen you have your two bishops and on the either side of your bishops you have your two knights. On the outside would be your two rooks, and all your pawns would take up your front row. The King and Queen's Chess Piece Moves The king is the most important piece; it is also the tallest piece.

The king has very limited movements. He can only move one space in any direction forward, backwards or diagonal. The king can capture any piece as long as it's in its moving range. The king can never move to a space that would allow him to be captured. The queen is the most powerful chess piece, and can move in any direction for any distance without jumping over any chess pieces. Learn the Chess Piece Moves for Bishops, Knights and Rooks There are two bishops, one on each color. The bishops can move diagonal for any distance without jumping over a piece. The knight is a very interesting piece. It can move forward and back, left or right two spaces and then left or right one space. It is the only one that can jump over other chess pieces. The rook, sometimes called the castle, can move forward, backwards, left and right, any distance without jumping over another piece. The Pawn's Chess Piece Moves Your pawn is the most basic piece; it can only move one space forward unless it's the pawn's opening move -- then it can move two spaces forward. Your pawn cannot move backwards, or cannot move side to side. It can move diagonal and can only move diagonal to take an opponent's piece.

The pawn cannot take your opponent's piece while using the forward movement. Check is when the king can be taken in the next move. When you are checked, you must either move the king out of danger or use another piece to block or take the threatening piece. When your king can no longer move out of danger, then you are now in checkmate. That's the end of the game. Thank you very much for watching. For more information, visit us at About.com. About videos are made available on an "as is" basis, subject to the Terms of Use . How to Set up a Chessboard (with Downloadable Rule Sheets) Setting Up a Chessboard 1 Set the board so that the bottom-right square is white. Both players will have a white square in the right corner on the edge of the board closest to them. The setup for each player looks identical from their perspective. You set up your pieces on the two horizontal rows ("ranks") closest to you. The major pieces go on the first rank. The pawns go on the second rank. Unlike in checkers, chess uses every single square on the board. 2 Place a rook, or castle, on each of your two corners.

Start with your rooks, which are tall pieces that move in straight lines either horizontally (along ranks) or vertically (along "files"). Place a rook on each of your two corners. On a novelty board, such as Civil War sets or movie-themed pieces, it may be impossible to tell what a piece is without knowing the icons (or rule-book symbols) which may be marked on the bottom of the pieces. The symbol for a rook is ♜. [1] 3 Place the knights next to the rooks. The knights, which look like horses, go just to the right and left of the rooks. Knights move three squares in an "L" shape, first two spaces in one direction, then one space in another, or first one space in one direction, then two in another. They move only along ranks and files, never diagonally. Knights can hop over pieces to make their moves, the only pieces allowed to do so. They are also the only pieces that do not move in straight lines. The symbol for a knight is♞. 4 Place the bishops to the inside of the knights. The tall, round-topped bishops start next to the knights. Bishops move only along diagonal lines.

The symbol for a bishop is♝. The left bishop will start on a black space (and always remain on black). The right bishop starts on a white space (and always remains on white). 5 Place the queen on the remaining, matching-color square. If you are the white side, your queen goes on the remaining white square in the middle of the first rank. If you are playing black, your queen goes on the remaining black square. The queen is one of the tallest pieces in the game and has a spiked crown. She can move horizontally, vertically, or diagonally any number of spaces, making her the most powerful piece on the board. The symbol for the queen is ♛. 6 Place the king on the last open square of the first rank. The king is usually the tallest piece on the board and appears to wear a rounded crown often topped with a cross. The king can move in any direction but only one space at a time. You use the rest of your pieces to protect your king. If you lose your king, you lose the game. The symbol for the king is ♚. 7 Place the pawns along the second rank.

After you've put your major pieces on the first rank, line up the lowly pawns like a protective wall on the second rank. Pawns move forward one space at a time, but they can make a variety of special moves, too. The symbol for pawns is ♟. Once both players place their pieces as shown above, they're ready to play. 8 Understanding Chess Rules 1 Win the game by forcing the opponent's king into "checkmate." This occurs when you can capture the king on your next move no matter what your opponent does. By contrast, your opponent's king is merely "in check" if you could capture him on your next move but the opponent has a means of escaping. A player must immediately move his/her king out of check if it's possible to do so. [2] You never actually capture a king. Once it's apparent that a king cannot avoid being captured on the next move, checkmate is immediately declared, and the game is over. You must say "check" when you make a move that puts the opponent's king in immediate danger. You may not place your own king in check. Such a move must be immediately rescinded.

[3] 2 Capture the opponent's pieces to remove them from the game. If one of your pieces makes a move that ends on a square already occupied by an opponent's piece, you "capture" that piece and remove it from the game. Your piece then takes the captured piece's place on that square. You cannot capture your own pieces or occupy any square with more than one piece. In other words, you cannot move a piece through or to a square already occupied by one of your pieces -- with the exception of your knights. They may move over any other piece (but may not end a move on a square already occupied by one of your pieces. With the exception of the pawn, you can capture pieces only with a "normal" move. For example, rooks can capture only with vertical or horizontal moves. You cannot move over a piece to capture another one. If your piece "hits" another piece during its movement, it stops, captures the piece, and stays on that square. The knight is the only exception to this, as it takes a piece only when it ends a move by landing on that piece's square. 3 Begin with white. White always makes the first move, and the players alternate after that.

For players of equal ability, there is a slight advantage to going first. Each turn consists of one player moving one piece. [4] A player must move a piece every turn. They cannot skip a turn simply because they don't know where to move. The only exception to the "move one piece" rule is called "castling," which allows a player to move two pieces at once in a specific pattern to protect the king. See below for more on castling. [5] 4 Watch out for stalemate. A game can end in a tie (a "draw"). Stalemate occurs when neither king is in check and the next player to move has no legal move available. If you are in an advantageous position, you would want to avoid stalemate. (The opposite is true if you are in a weak position and would love to force a tie.) Stalemate typically may occur when there are only a few pieces left such as pawns blocked by other pawns, and kings that can't move without putting themselves in check. Remember that you can never put yourself in check. Thus, if it's your turn to move and your only available move would put your king in check, the game is over, and a stalemate is declared.

[6] In some tournaments this means you lose, although most players call this a draw. Stalemate does not occur if either king is currently in check. Part 3 Moving the Pieces 1 Move pawns one space forward. That is usually all they can do, so they're not very useful. However, in certain circumstances they become quite effective: If your pawn gets all the way to the eighth rank (your opponent's first rank), you can "promote" it to any piece you want, typically a queen or knight. That means that a pawn that has advanced very far along its file becomes quite powerful. [7] In its very first move, a pawn may (but does not have to) move two spaces forward instead of one. A pawn can capture a piece which is diagonally one square in front of it. It cannot capture an otherwise adjacent piece. En passant or "capture in passing" can occur when the opponent moves their pawn two spaces ahead to avoid moving into your pawn's capture position (forward-diagonally adjacent). If this happens, only on your very next turn you can move your pawn diagonally into the space they skipped and take that pawn anyway.

[8] 2 Move rooks an unlimited number of spaces vertically or horizontally. Rooks move in straight lines forward, backward, or sideways. They can cross as many vacant squares as they want but must stop if they come to another piece (or, of course, the edge of the board). If an enemy piece is in the way, the rook must stop before the piece or capture it. If it's a "teammate," it must stop before it comes to that square. [9] 3 Move knights in an "L"shape. Knights have the most distinctive movement in the game: they "hop" three times, first two spaces in one direction and then one space in a perpendicular direction, or first one space in any direction and then two spaces perpendicularly. Knights move only along ranks and files, never diagonally. [10] Knights are the only pieces allowed to hop over other pieces of either color. They capture a piece only by finishing their move on a square occupied by an enemy piece. (They cannot finish on a square already occupied by a piece of their own color.) 4 Move bishops any number of spaces diagonally.

Bishops can move in four directions: diagonally right or left (either forward or backward). This means a bishop always stays on the same color squares. For example, if it begins on a white square, there is no way for a bishop ever to get onto a black square. Bishops cannot hop over pieces. If there is a piece in the way, the bishop must stop or (if it's an opponent) capture it. [11] 5 Move the queen in a straight line any direction any number of spaces. She can move forward, backward, sideways, and diagonally as many vacant spaces as she wants. This makes her your most powerful piece. A queen cannot move in the knight's L-shaped pattern. A queen cannot skip over pieces. She must complete her move either by stopping before coming to another piece or by capturing that piece. 6 Move the king in any direction one space at a time. Kings can move one space forward, backward, sideways, or diagonally. The only exception is called castling, whereby a king and one of the rooks switch positions to help defend the king. In order to castle: Neither the king nor the rook can have moved at any point in the game thus far.

There can be no pieces in between the rook and the king. The king cannot be in check at the time of castling, nor can the king in castling move through or to a square in which he would be in check. In one turn, move the king two spaces towards the rook, then slide the rook into the square the king skipped over. They will now be on opposite sides and right next to each other. [12] Chess Help If this question (or a similar one) is answered twice in this section, please click here to let us know. Video Tips Learn chess notation . Chess notation allows you to write down in a kind of "shorthand" both your own and your opponent's moves, allowing you to study and re-create your game later. Learn chess tactics . Chess is an amazingly complex game. It has very few rules, but those rules have given birth to whole books full of tactics and strategy. Read as many as you can to become a better chess player. Know the values of chess pieces . Chess pieces are assigned values as a matter of convenience for players trying to evaluate opportunities to give up a player in exchange for an opponent's player. Learn how to open in chess .

The opening phase of a game lays the groundwork for the rest of the game. Slip up here and you're likely to pay for it later. Openings are fun to study. An experienced opponent will be aware of many opening patterns. Things You'll Need Your Move Chess & Games: A Quick Summary of the Rules of Chess A Quick Summary of the Rules of Chess (How do I use this chess set, anyway?) So you now have your chess set and you're ready to go. One Problem: You don't know the rules yet! Never fear, we have included the basics of the gameplay below. No Purchase Necessary, of course. Now you'll know what to do with those chess serts that have been collecting dust in the closet. The Rules of Chess Chess is one of the oldest and most popular board games in the world. Most Believe the origins of chess begin in either India or Asia many thousands of years ago. While chess sets have sometimes become fanciful pieces of artwork and decoration bringing elegance to most any home, chess endures first and foremost as a classic game of skill and strategy, with nearly limitless combinations and possibilities. Chess is surprisingly easy to learn, yet can take a lifetime of hard work to master!

Part 1: The Chess Pieces The King The King is the most important chess piece on the chessboard. If he is checkmated (see objectives, below) the game is over! The King can move one space in any direction (see the diagram). He can never move in to "check" (where he is threatened by another piece). This means the king can never be in the space adjacent to the opposing King. The king can also castle. "Castling" is described in the special moves section below. The Queen The Queen is often considered the most powerful chess piece on the chessboard. She is placed next to the king, on her own color. The game is not over when she is lost, but if your opponent has a Queen and you do not, you may find yourself at a considerable disadvantage! Like the King, the Queen can move in any direction. However, she is not limited to just one space - she can move any number of spaces in any direction, as long as she is not obstructed by another chess piece (see the diagram) Of course, if that obstruction is an opposing chess piece, she is free to capture it!

The Bishop There are two Bishops for each player on the chessboard, situated next to Queen and the King, respectively. These chess pieces move along the diagonals of the chessboard. You can see that this means that the Bishop is bound to the color square it starts on. One Bishop starts on a white square, and one starts on a black square. They can move any number of spaces on the diagonals as long as they are not obstructed by another chess piece(see the diagram). Of course, if that obstruction is an opposing chess piece, they are free to capture it! The Knight There are two Knights for each player on the chessboard, situated between the Bishop and the Rook. These chess pieces have the unique trait of being able to 'leap' over other chess pieces. They move in an "L" shape (see the diagram). If they land on an opposing chess piece, it is captured. The Rook (sometimes known as The Castle) There are two Rooks for each player on the chessboard, situated on the corners, next to the Knight.

These chess pieces move up and down the rank and file of the chessboard, and can move any number of spaces as long as they are not obstructed by another chess piece (see the diagram). If the obstructing chess piece belong to their opponent, they are free to capture it. The Pawn Each player has eight Pawns, providing the first line of defense for their King. The Pawn has several unique attributes. In their first move, each pawn has the option to move forward one space or two spaces. After this move, they can only move one space forward. However, they are also the only chess piece that captures in a method different from how they move. To capture, the Pawn moves diagonally one space (see the diagram). The Pawn can never move backwards. The Pawn also has a special move called "En Passant", which you can read about in special moves section below. If the Pawn reaches the opposite side of the chessboard, it has the unique ability to promote to another chess piece. The pawn can become a Queen, Bishop, Rook, or Knight. There are no restrictions to how many pieces of a given type you can have via promotion.

Part 2: The Chess Board and how to set up your Chess Set A chessboard consists of 64 squares in a checkerboard pattern. There are light colored squares (referred to as white) and dark colored squares (referred to as black). There are 8 rows and columns, referred to as the "rank" and "file", respectively. The bottom right corner should be a white square. Setting up chess sets is fairly straightforward. The chess pieces are set up in an identical manner for both players. The Rooks are at the corners, the Knights are next, and then the Bishops. the middle two pieces are the King and the Queen. Remember, the Queen goes on her color. The entire second rank for each player is occupied by their Pawns. Part 3: The Objective of Chess The objective in chess is to checkmate your opponents King, and there are three potential ways the game can end: First, you can checkmate your opponent. This means that the King is in check (under potential attack from an opposing chess piece) and the player can not make any legal move to remove the King from check. At this point, the game is over and the checkmated player loses.

The amount of material on the chessboard is of no concern. Second, you and your opponent can reach a stalemate - the opponents King is not currently in check, but would be force to move in to check with their next move. Because you can never put your own King in check, you would have no legal moves to make. A stalemate does not mean the attacking player has won. Instead, it is a draw - neither player is victorious. In timed games, each player has a specific amount of time to make their moves. Once their time runs out, they lose, regardless of the material on the board. That means that you could have only your King legt and deftly avoid mate attempts from an opponent with most of their chess pieces still on the chess board and still win the game if your opponent were to run out of time. Part 4: Special Moves Castling Castling is a special move in chess that involves the King and the Rook. This is the only situation in which you would move two of your own chess pieces in the same move. The King and the Rook move towards each other and swap places. To do this, move your King not one, but two spaces towards the Rook you are castling with.

Then place the Rook on the opposite side of the King (shown in the diagram to the right). This can be done on either the King side or Queen side, however there are several prerequisites: The king and rook may not have moved, there must not be any obstructing pieces between them, and the King must not move through check in order to complete the move. En Passant This special move involves the Pawn. As mentioned earlier, this chess piece has the unique ability to move two spaces for its first move on the chessboard. Some may use this as an opportunity to avoid capture from an approaching pawn by passing the opposing chess piece with that double move. If this is done, the other player may make an "en passant", or "in passing" capture. Although the pawn has passed the capture square of the opposing side, that player can move his or her chess piece diagonally, as it does in capture, to the square that the other player had skipped. The pawn that made the double move has been considered captured in passing, and is removed from the chessboard. Chess - Carolus Chess Chess Playing Chess Chess became the most popular board game among the social elite of the European Middle Ages.

Since that time, Chess has retained a special rank among the board games of the world. It is considered a game for intellectuals and strategy purists. Chess terms have penetrated many different languages. In English, terms like "checkmate", "stalemate" and "being rooked" have become part of the lexicon. This is an indication of the overall popularity of the game, which is played by grandchildren and grandmasters alike. There are many versions of Chess, which has been adapted to local tastes in virtually every part of the world. The game was created in Southwest Asia over two thousand years ago. From this central point in the world, Chess dispersed throughout Eurasia. The History of Chess It is hard to determine exactly when and where chess was invented. Because it is considered such an intelligent game, many nations have claimed to have invented it. There is enough contradictory evidence for it to remain an open debate. Most scholars believe the game originated in India. The early names for Chess in several countries show a Sanskrit etymology. These countries where chess was played early on, places such as Persia, Arabia and Greece, likely borrowed the game from Indians.

The Indian version of Chess is named Chaturanga, and dates at least to the 6th century A.D. Early versions of the game include playing pieces associated with the horse, the elephant and the camel. India was the only place all three animals were widespread. Others point to a game played in ancient China as early as the 2nd century B.C. This game, called Xiangqi, is quite similar to early chess in several different ways. In the western languages, Xiangqi is referred to as Chinese Chess. The game probably influenced the early designers of chess, though the debate as to where the first true game that can be called chess was invented can be left to Indian and Chinese relations. The game appears to have come to Persia by way of India. The Persians taught the game to the Arabs in the 7th and 8th centuries A.D., after the Muslim takeover of Persia. The Arabs spread knowledge of the game throughout the Middle East and the North African coast, as far away as Spain. It was through interaction with Muslims that Chess spread to Europe, first through the Greek civilization now known to historians as the Byzantine Empire.

After western Europeans invaded the Middle East during the Crusades, Chess became the game of choice for European soldiers and rulers. By the Late Middle Ages, Chess was the most popular board game in Europe. It was considered a necessary primer in strategy for warriors on the continent. Never mind what Chess may have taught potentials commanders about the sacrifice of pawns on the battlefield. What we know as modern Chess was formulated in 15th century Italy. Like many other products of the Italian Renaissance, this form of Chess spread quickly throughout the remainder of Europe. Chess writers often refer to the modern game as "Mad Queen Chess", because the Queen is such a powerful and overarching element of the game. Earlier versions limited the Queen's power. Since this game achieved official status in Europe, it has remained the standard for international chess competitions to this day. Though there are many variations worldwide, tournament chess and its many grandmasters use the standardized version. Today, there are many chess clubs and federations in the world. Governing bodies issue world rankings and declare world champions. To be the reigning world champion of Chess is to hold the most prestigious title in board games. Only a handful of players have held the title in the past fifty years.

The Game Board A chess board is 8 squares wide and 8 squares long. The board is therefore 64 spaces alternating between white and black squares. The playing pieces occupy one square apiece throughout the game. Pieces can be used to remove one another from the game through occupying the same space on the board. If a player is able to land one of his or her pieces on a square occupied by an opponent, then the opponent's playing piece is removed from the board. The Pieces Each player begins with 16 different playing pieces. The pieces consist of six different ranks: 8 pawns, 2 rooks, 2 knights, 2 bishops, 1 queen and 1 king. Each rank has unique movement abilities, which make them more or less valuable than the other pieces. The playing pieces are placed in the same squares at the start of each game. Both sides have the same starting positions. The pieces are arranged around the King and Queen, as if to protect them. The King is the most important piece on the chess board. He can move in any direction, though he can move only one square at a time. If a player's King is captured, that player loses the game.

The Queen is the second most important piece on the board. Like the King, she can move in any direction. Unlike the King, the Queen can move an unlimited number of space in any one direction. Her movement is stopped only when she encounters another piece on the board. She cannot jump other pieces. If the player chooses, the Queen can move any number of spaces between her position and the square in her maximum possible range. The Bishops sit as bookends for the King and Queen. The Bishop can move diagonally in any direction. Like the Queen, it can move any number of spaces diagonally, at least until it encounters another playing piece. This makes the Bishop a dangerous playing piece, though more limited in its range of movement than the Queen. The Knights begin to the outside of each Bishop. The knight has the most unique movement in the game. It is the only piece which can jump over allies and opponents alike. It moves in an l-shaped pattern. It moves two spaces in one direction, then one space in another. For example, the Knight can move forward two spaces, then either to its left or right one space to finish the movement. Or the knight can move one space forward, then two spaces either left or right.

It can move in any direction in this way, on a pivot from its starting point. The Rooks occupy the corners of the board, next to the Knights. A rook can move either forwards or sideways. It can move an unlimited number of spaces, so long as it does not run into another playing piece. The eight Pawns occupy the entire row in front of the other eight pieces. Pawns are the least powerful piece on the board. A pawn can only move directly forward, and can only move one space at a time. There are two exceptions to this rule. One, pawns can move two spaces forward for their first move. Two, pawns can move one space diagonally, if it allows them to capture an opponent's piece. Pawns cannot move directly forward to capture an opponent's piece. Another Ability of Pawns If a pawn is able to reach the opponent's side of the board, the pawn can no longer move. Instead, that pawn can be swapped for any playing piece which has already been removed from play. Therefore, if a player has lost a Queen, then the pawn can be removed from the chess board and replaced with the queen. This piece is placed on the square where the pawn was sitting.

This piece can be moved on the next turn, as if it was any other piece. Strategy The point of chess is to capture the opponent's king. Of course, there are many theories and stratagems for doing this. Volume after volume has been written about chess strategy. Advanced strategy is difficult to explain without diagrams and generally takes more space than we have here. The basic strategy of chess is to attrit another player's side, eventually taking several . This might be done by luring an opponent into a trap and taking a key piece. It might be done by sacrificing a less important playing piece of one's own in exchange for an opponent's important piece. A common strategy is to sacrifice pawn in an attempt to force the opponent to commit a more important playing piece. The idea is to use misdirection to possibly hide which piece will move in to capture the exposed piece. Some players maintain a solid defense, hoping to force an impatient opponent to make a key mistake. Other players prefer to play an aggressive game, sending their pieces deep into enemy territory, forcing the opponent into uncomfortable or unfamiliar moves. Either of these styles can find success. Often a chess match is determined by this contrast in styles.

Many matches have a key moment, where one side or another make a key mistake or a particularly advantageous move. Winning the Game In the end, players seek to remove some combination of an opponent's queen, bishops and rooks, which are the most dangerous pieces on the board. If an advantage can be gained in this way, a player can begin to close in on the opponent's king. Seldom is the king placed in check early in a game, unless there is a complete mismatch in the level of opponents. Placing the King in Check When a King is in danger of being captured, then the King is in "check". This danger must be direct, so that a move must be made to take the king out of danger. This can be done by moving the king, moving one of your pieces to protect your king, or eliminating the piece that is menacing the king. There can be more than one pieces holding a king in check. Checkmate When a king is in check and there are no possible moves that will take the king out of danger, then a player has achieved checkmate. The playing holding the other king in checkmate is the winner of the match. Typically, it requires several pieces working in conjunction to achieve a checkmate.

Stalemate A stalemate is a draw in the game of chess. In a stalemate situation, typically one player has had the better of the play, but cannot finish of the opponent. There are several conditions in which the stalemate rule applies. One, if the same position occurs three times at any point in the game. A position is simply when every piece on the board in is the exact same position. Two, if fifty moves in a row occur without even one piece being captured. Three, if the king is not in check, but there are no other possible (legal) moves to be made. Variations of Chess Chess has been played through correspondence for generations. With the invention of the internet, chess is now played via email. Suicide chess is chess played backwards. A player seeks to have his or her pieces taken and the winner is the one who eventually loses a king. If a player can capture an opponent's piece, then that player must. Bughouse chess is played by teams, as if two games were being played at once. When a player at one of the tables captures a piece, that player hands it to their teammate, who then uses it in their game. Bullet chess is played with a timer.

Each player has three minutes in which to make moves in the game. If, at any time, the timer runs out on one player, that player loses. Bullet chess is also called lightning chess. Blitz chess has the same rules as bullet chess, though it has a longer timer. Usually, the timer is set to fifteen minutes apiece. Though bullet and blitz chess seem to be shown in movies and television a great deal, they are not considered legitimate versions of chess by most serious players. Of all games, chess is considered the most serious intellectual challenge. It is the favorite of generals and scholars alike. It has been said that the game is an art form. Others consider it a strategy war game, while others consider chess an intellectual or mathematical exercise. The King Chess Piece The King Chess Piece Submitted by chessgamepieces on February 13, 2009 – 6:45 pm The goal of a game of chess is to capture the king chess piece. The king is the most important piece but is not the most powerful. A king chess piece is the center of the game in all regards but is certainly not the most powerful. He can only move one space in any direction during a turn.

When the opponent has an opportunity to take the king on the next turn but the king also has an opportunity to escape then the king is "Checked". When the opponent is certain to take the king on the next turn and the king does not have an opportunity to escape then the king is "checkmated". This piece can also be used in a special move called castling in which the rook and the king switch places under specific circumstances. The king is not only the center of game play but is also the center of chess set design in many cases. A tournament regulation chess set requires that the king chess piece meet certain size specification and that it be a specific proportion to the chessboard. Make sure that the king can also be clearly distinguishable from the queen if you want a tournament regulation set. It's best for the king to have a height between 3 ¾ - 4 inches. This is not only a preferred height but also falls within tournament regulation. The base of the king should be 40-50% of the height for tournament regulation. All the other pieces in the set should be in proportion to the king. The size of the chessboard squares are then often determined by the size of the king.

The base of the king should be around 75% the size of a square. Square sizes of around 2 ¼ inches can work well for kings in the preferred size range. The king can come in many different mediums and styles especially when considering them chess sets. In some sets it may not be immediately clear which piece is the king and which is the queen. Chess Rule Sheet - wikiHow Chess Rule Sheet One space in any direction (forward, backward, sideways, or diagonally) The King can never move himself into check (where he can be captured). Queen As far as she can go in any direction (forward, backward, sideways, or diagonally) The Queen may not skip over or past her own piece. Rook As far as it can go forward, backward, or sideways The Rook cannot travel diagonally. Bishop As far as it can go diagonally The Bishop always stays on the same color on which it started. Knight Two squares in one direction (forward, backward, or sideways) and one more square at a 90 degree angle The Knight makes the shape of an "L" when it moves. It does not move diagonally. It can also jump over other pieces.

Pawn Only moves forward one space, but captures one space diagonally On their very first move, Pawns can move two spaces. Special Rules Promotion: If a Pawn reaches the opposite side of the board, it can be promoted to any piece (even one that has not yet been captured). En Passant: If a Pawn's first move of two spaces lands it directly next to an opponent's Pawn, the opponent has the option of capturing the Pawn as it passes. If it chooses to capture, the opposing Pawn advances diagonally as it would have if the first Pawn had initially moved only one space. If the opponent chooses not to capture on the turn immediately after the two-square jump, s/he cannot capture afterward, even if the pawn hasn't moved forward Castling: This can be done on the Rook's and the King's first move only. If no other pieces are in between them or could potentially move between them, the King is moved two spaces closer to the Rook. The Rook is then placed on the opposite side of the King. The King cannot be in check or pass through check when performing this move. Was any part of this sample helpful to you?

Chess piece - definition of chess piece by The Free Dictionary Chess piece - definition of chess piece by The Free Dictionary Also found in: Thesaurus , Wikipedia . ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend: Noun 1.

chess piece - any of 16 white and 16 black pieces used in playing the game of chess chessman bishop - (chess) a piece that can be moved diagonally over unoccupied squares of the same color rook , castle - (chess) the piece that can move any number of unoccupied squares in a direction parallel to the sides of the chessboard king - (chess) the weakest but the most important piece knight , horse - a chessman shaped to resemble the head of a horse; can move two squares horizontally and one vertically (or vice versa) man , piece - game equipment consisting of an object used in playing certain board games; "he taught me to set up the men on the chess board"; "he sacrificed a piece to get a strategic advantage" pawn - (chess) the least powerful piece; moves only forward and captures only to the side; it can be promoted to a more powerful piece if it reaches the 8th rank queen - (chess) the most powerful piece chess set - checkerboard and a set of 32 pieces used to play chess Translations Steam Workshop :: Chessboard This item has been added to your Subscriptions .

Some games will require you to relaunch them before the item will be downloaded. Description +_+READ DESC FOR INSTRUCTIONS+_+ Pawn: at first, can move 2 spaces forward but after, can only move 1 space at a time and MUST GO FORWARD! But if any opponent piece is at a diagonal point from your pawn, attack. Knight: can move in an L shape in any direction where there isn't any of your own peices. Queen: can go ANYWHERE, and is the most powerful, and can move along any number along rank, file and King: same as the queen, but can only go ONE SPACE in any direction. Rook: can goin any direction thats vertically, and horizontal. Bishop: can ONLY move anywhere DIAGONALLY. white starts first, and to win is to capture opponents king. and thats basically it. PLEASE!!! this took me an hour to make, can i get 10 likes???? :) < > Chess (Concept) - Giant Bomb When the king is in check and has no escape, the game is over. Promotion Upon reaching the 8th rank of the chess board (ie.

the top of the board, the opponent's side), a pawn may be promoted and replaced by any other piece of the player's choosing except a king. This is typically the queen, due to its power, but may also be a rook or other piece. There is no restriction on how many similar promoted pieces may exist, including multiple queens to a theoretical maximum of 9. Castling A method for protecting the King. If neither the king and a rook have moved, and there is no obstructing piece, they may hop over each other and effectively switch places. Splitting the difference in the left (queenside) or right (kingside) half of the board. En Passant The rule that a pawn may move two squares from its starting location, is countered by the ability of an approaching pawn to capture it as though it had only moved one square. History Chess is believed to have originated in northwest India during the Gupta Empire , where its early form in the 6th century was known as chaturaṅga (four divisions [of the military] – infantry, cavalry, elephants, and chariotry, represented by the pieces that would evolve into the modern pawn, knight, bishop, and rook, respectively).

According to both Chess historians Gerhard Josten and Isaak Linder "the early beginnings" of chess can be traced back to the Kushan Empire based around what are today Pakistan and Afghanistan . The earliest evidence of chess is found in the neighboring Sassanid Persia around 600, where the game came to be known by the name chatrang. Chatrang is evoked in three epic romances written in Pahlavi (Middle Persian). Chatrang was taken up by the Islamic world after the Muslim conquest of Persia (633–644), where it was then named shatranj , with the pieces largely retaining their Persian names. In Spanish "shatranj" was rendered as ajedrez ("al-shatranj"), in Portuguese as xadrez, and in Greek as ζατρίκιον (zatrikion, which comes directly from the Persian chatrang), but in the rest of Europe it was replaced by versions of the Persian shāh (" king "), which was familiar as an exclamation and became the English words "check" and "chess".

Murray theorized that Muslim traders came to European seaports with ornamental chess kings as curios before they brought the game of chess. The game reached Western Europe and Russia by at least three routes, the earliest being in the 9th century. By the year 1000, it had spread throughout Europe. Introduced into the Iberian Peninsula by the Muslim Moors in the 10th century, it was described in a famous 13th-century manuscript covering shatranj, backgammon , and dice , named the Libro de los juegos. Indian chess (chaturanga) arrived in East Asia slightly before the arrival of Persian chess (shatranj) in Europe. In China , some time by the 8th or 9th century, Indian chess had evolved into xiangqi , or Chinese chess. From there, it evolved into janggi in Korea and shogi in Japan within the next several centuries. Video Games Chess was very important to the foundation of video games. The first example of what could today be called a computer game was based on chess. Alan Turing , a British mathematician, developed a theoretical computer chess program as an example of machine intelligence.

In 1947, Turing wrote the theory for a program to play chess. His colleague Dietrich Prinz wrote the first limited program of chess for Manchester University 's Ferranti Mark I in November 1951. The program was only capable of computing "mate-in-two" problems and was not powerful enough to play a full game. Input and output were offline, with no "video" involved, but it was a precursor to what would later be known as video games. Chess was also the foundation for wargaming, which in turn laid the foundations for the strategy and RPG genres in video games. Atari founder Nolan Bushnell was also an avid chess player, before he discovered Go . Streaming In recent years, a number of people have started watching online broadcasts of chess, from live video feeds and replays of world chess championships to chess grandmasters streaming their pickup tournament games on sites such as Chess.com or lichess.org. Thousands watch these broadcasts regularly, spurring a large amount of interest in chess and fueling its online game presence. It finding a home among these video game sites, such as Twitch, has added a valuable component to the chess community.

How to Play Chess: Rules and Basics - Chess.com Chess.com Forums Learn to Play Chess It's never too late to learn how to play chess - the most popular game in the world! If you are totally new to the game or even want to learn all of the rules and strategies, read on! Getting Better at Chess History of Chess The origins of chess are not exactly clear, though most believe it evolved from earlier chess-like games played in India almost two thousand years ago.The game of chess we know today has been around since the 15th century where it became popular in Europe. The Goal of Chess 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. The goal of the game is to checkmate the other king. Checkmate happens when the king is in a position to be captured (in check) and cannot escape from capture. Starting a Game At the beginning of the game the chessboard is laid out so that each player has the white (or light) color square in the bottom right-hand side.

The chess pieces are then arranged the same way each time. The second row (or rank) is filled with pawns. The rooks go in the corners, then the knights next to them, followed by the bishops, and finally the queen, who always goes on her own matching color (white queen on white, black queen on black), and the king on the remaining square. The player with the white pieces always moves first. Therefore, players generally decide who will get to be white by chance or luck such as flipping a coin or having one player guess the color of the hidden pawn in the other player's hand. White then makes a move, followed by black, then white again, then black and so on until the end of the game. How the Pieces Move Each of the 6 different kinds of pieces moves differently. Pieces cannot move through other pieces (though the knight can jump over other pieces), and can never move onto a square with one of their own pieces. However, they can be moved to take the place of an opponent's piece which is then captured.

Pieces are generally moved into positions where they can capture other pieces (by landing on their square and then replacing them), defend their own pieces in case of capture, or control important squares in the game. The King The king is the most important piece, but is one of the weakest. The king can only move one square in any direction - up, down, to the sides, and diagonally. Click on the '>' button in the diagram below to see how the king can move around the board. The king may never move himself into check (where he could be captured). The Queen The queen is the most powerful piece. She can move in any one straight direction - forward, backward, sideways, or diagonally - as far as possible as long as she does not move through any of her own pieces. And, like with all pieces, if the queen captures an opponent's piece her move is over. Click through the diagram below to see how the queens move. Notice how the white queen captures the black queen and then the black king is forced to move. The Rook The rook may move as far as it wants, but only forward, backward, and to the sides. The rooks are particularly powerful pieces when they are protecting each other and working together!

The Bishop The bishop may move as far as it wants, but only diagonally. Each bishop starts on one color (light or dark) and must always stay on that color. Bishops work well together because they cover up each other’s weaknesses. The Knight Knights move in a very different way from the other pieces – going two squares in one direction, and then one more move at a 90 degree angle, just like the shape of an “L”. Knights are also the only pieces that can move over other pieces. The Pawn Pawns are unusual because they move and capture in different ways: they move forward, but capture diagonally. Pawns can only move forward one square at a time, except for their very first move where they can move forward two squares. Pawns can only capture one square diagonally in front of them. They can never move or capture backwards. If there is another piece directly in front of a pawn he cannot move past or capture that piece. Promotion Pawns have another special ability and that is that if a pawn reaches the other side of the board it can become any other chess piece (called promotion). A pawn may be promoted to any piece.

[NOTE: A common misconception is that pawns may only be exchanged for a piece that has been captured. That is NOT true.] A pawn is usually promoted to a queen. Only pawns may be promoted. En Passant The last rule about pawns is called “en passant,” which is French for “in passing”. If a pawn moves out two squares on its first move, and by doing so lands to the side of an opponent’s pawn (effectively jumping past the other pawn’s ability to capture it), that other pawn has the option of capturing the first pawn as it passes by. This special move must be done immediately after the first pawn has moved past, otherwise the option to capture it is no longer available. Click through the example below to better understand this odd, but important rule. Castling One other special rule is called castling. This move allows you to do two important things all in one move: get your king to safety (hopefully), and get your rook out of the corner and into the game. On a player’s turn he may move his king two squares over to one side and then move the rook from that side’s corner to right next to the king on the opposite side.

(See the example below.) However, in order to castle, the following conditions must be met: it must be that king’s very first move it must be that rook’s very first move there cannot be any pieces between the king and rook to move the king may not be in check or pass through check Notice that when you castle one direction the king is closer to the side of the board. That is called castling kingside. Castling to the other side, through where the queen sat, is called castling queenside. Regardless of which side, the king always moves only two squares when castling. Check & Checkmate As stated before, the purpose of the game is to checkmate the opponent’s king. This happens when the king is put into check and cannot get out of check. There are only three ways a king can get out of check: move out of the way (though he cannot castle!), block the check with another piece, or capture the piece threatening the king. If a king cannot escape checkmate then the game is over. Customarily the king is not captured or removed from the board, the game is simply declared over. Draws Occasionally chess games do not end with a winner, but with a draw.

There are 5 reasons why a chess game may end in a draw: The position reaches a stalemate where it is one player’s turn to move, but his king is NOT in check and yet he does not have another legal move The players may simply agree to a draw and stop playing There are not enough pieces on the board to force a checkmate (example: a king and a bishop vs.a king) A player declares a draw if the same exact position is repeated three times (though not necessarily three times in a row) Fifty consecutive moves have been played where neither player has moved a pawn or captured a piece Chess 960 Chess960 follows all the rules of standard chess, except for the starting position of pieces on the back rank, which are placed randomly in one of 960 possible positions. Castling is done just like in standard chess, with the King and Rook landing on their normal castled squares (g1 and f1, or c1 and d1). 960 plays just like standard chess, but with more variety in the opening. Some Tournament Rules Many tournaments follow a set of common, similar rules.

These rules do not necessarily apply to play at home or online Touch-move If a player touches one of their own pieces they must move that piece as long as it is a legal move. If a player touches an opponent’s piece, they must capture that piece. A player who wishes to touch a piece only to adjust it on the board must first announce the intention, usually by saying “adjust”. Introduction to Clocks and Timers Most tournaments use timers to regulate the time spent on each game, not on each move. Each player gets the same amount of time to use for their entire game and can decide how to spend that time. Once a player makes a move they then touch a button or hit a lever to start the opponent’s clock. If a player runs out of time and the opponent calls the time, then the player who ran out of time loses the game (unless the opponent does not have enough pieces to checkmate, in which case it is a draw). Basic Strategy There are four simple things that every chess player should know: #1 Protect your king Get your king to the corner of the board where he is usually safer. Don’t put off castling. You should usually castle as quickly as possible.

Remember, it doesn’t matter how close you are to checkmating your opponent if your own king is checkmated first! #2 Don’t give pieces away Don’t carelessly lose your pieces! Each piece is valuable and you can’t win a game without pieces to checkmate. There is an easy system that most players use to keep track of the relative value of each chess piece: A pawn is worth 1 A knight is worth 3 A bishop is worth 3 A rook is worth 5 A queen is worth 9 The king is infinitely valuable At the end of the game these points don’t mean anything – it is simply a system you can use to make decisions while playing, helping you know when to capture, exchange, or make other moves. #3 Control the center You should try and control the center of the board with your pieces and pawns. If you control the center, you will have more room to move your pieces and will make it harder for your opponent to find good squares for his pieces. In the example above white makes good moves to control the center while black plays bad moves. #4 Use all of your pieces In the example above white got all of his pieces in the game!

Your pieces don’t do any good when they are sitting back on the first row. Try and develop all of your pieces so that you have more to use when you attack the king. Using one or two pieces to attack will not work against any decent opponent. Getting Better at Chess Knowing the rules and basic strategies is only the beginning - there is so much to learn in chess that you can never learn it all in a lifetime! To improve you need to do three things: #1 – Play Just keep playing! Play as much as possible. You should learn from each game – those you win and those you lose. #2 – Study If you really want to improve quickly then pick up a recommended chess book. There are many resources on Chess.com to help you study and improve. #3 - Have fun Don’t get discouraged if you don’t win all of your games right away. Everyone loses – even world champions. As long as you continue to have fun and learn from the games you lose then you can enjoy chess forever!

Question: Which piece on a chessboard can move only one space in any direction?
Answer: King