Black Goes First? - Chess.com Chess.com I just watched this youtube video where Black goes first............................................ in GO. GO has been around for 4000 years. Why does White go first in chess? Did someone get it wrong a long time ago, and Black really should go first? This is but one example of what challenges my mind on a daily basis. Why is blue for boys and pink for girls? Why should we stop at red and go when it is green? Why should man have short hair and women long hair? Why do we lock things turning clockwise? These are all conventions. They have no sense at all, in spite of the fact that they do have some historic origins. That is the same with chess and go, someone someday decided that one coulor should start. The reason of the chosen coulor may not make any sense today. heinzie wrote: I guess because when chess was invented, you could not buy colour television sets yet Finally a reasonable explanation for why aren't the pieces pink and orange instead of black and white. Without colour television, how would people see the diference? These folks don't look very happy, especially the queen, but the color looks right.

Why does the rook look so stupid, so unimaginative? The chessmen were discovered in early 1831 in a sand bank at the head of Camas Uig on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. #6 Nov 15, 2010 I'm pretty sure that I read that black was considereda lucky color, so white got the first move? Nov 15, 2010 Firefalcon wrote: I'm pretty sure that I read that black was considereda lucky color, so white got the first move? There is Black jack. We really need to sort this thing out and get to the bottom of it all. Black gets to go first in GO! Musikamole , Probably the queen looks sad because in the Middle Ages' chess it was indeed a useless sad piece. Only in the end of the XV century the queen was given the good move ability it has now. Indeed Firefalcon is correct based on this: In medieval times black was thought to be a lucky color. The white player was allowed to go first since the black player already had the advantage of the lucky color.

#10 Nov 15, 2010 If this "lucky colour advantage" is really the reason, than I couldn't be more acurate when I said some posts ago: "The reason of the chosen coulor may not make any sense today" Musikamole , Probably the queen looks sad because in the Middle Ages' chess it was indeed a useless sad piece. Only in the end of the XV century the queen was given the good move ability it has now. Yes. I remember now. Queen once moving two squares with jump, diagonally or straight. Didn't a real queen have something to do with this chess piece having more power? I read it somewhere, but forget. #12 Nov 15, 2010 White moving first is a convention which became a rule. It didn't really catch on until the mid-19th Century. I believe London 1851 (where Anderssen's triumph established him as the world's top player, before there was a "Championship") was the first event to include this as part of the official rules (it is more remembered for its other important new rule - time limits with clocks).

Until then - and even after, in much of the world - players in matches just alternated the first move of each game between White and Black, the same player keeping each color for the whole match. You can see this in early chess books and publications. Probably publishing had something to do with it, too, as diagrams were beginning to appear in newspapers and books. Usually game scores were collected with just the names of the players, like Boden vs Barton, since it didn't matter what the color was. But publishers like standards, so positions quickly were presented with White from the bottom and listed as moving first - even if the first player had actually played the Black pieces in the live game. At the least, this conditioned the public for the convention and rule that White moves first. Conventions like this just simplify things by setting a common standard. Ever noticed that pieces are referred to as White and Black but squares are generally labeled light or dark? There is no real reason for that, other to avoid possible confusion in discussing a position. Nov 15, 2010 Estragon wrote: Conventions like this just simplify things by setting a common standard. Ever noticed that pieces are referred to as White and Black but squares are generally labeled light or dark?

There is no real reason for that, other to avoid possible confusion in discussing a position. Well, there is the reason that the pieces are generally an approximation to black and white, but the squares are not. There does not appear to be much agreement or restriction on board color, from FIDE or other organisations. [I recall hearing that one of the conditions Fischer placed on playing a match in 1972 was that the board have green and yellow squares, to which Spassky graciously agreed.] I just watched this youtube video where Black goes first............................................ in GO. GO has been around for 4000 years. Why does White go first in chess? Did someone get it wrong a long time ago, and Black really should go first? This is but one example of what challenges my mind on a daily basis. I have this Mexican friend who says it's obviously because white people always start the war. Then again, 1.e4 doesn't really threaten anything. If you find a move like that provoking and that you need to take action, then war was already in your mindset, I guess.

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! Why does White move first in chess? | Welcome to the official website of Alina l'Ami September 16, 2011 Why does White move first in chess?

Have you ever asked yourself why is White the one to make the first move on the board? I never seriously thought about it before, not until today. I don't even know what strange connections or associations took place in my head to come up with this question. Rules are rules and we don't really bother to wonder why they are there in the first place. But just like when you cannot remember a word, a name, and you are struggling with it the whole day long to bring it into memory, so this question gave me no peace until I started to look out for the answer. And it's pretty interesting! The FIDE Laws of Chess are clear on who is moving first: BASIC RULES OF PLAY Article 1: The nature and objectives of the game of chess 1.1 The game of chess is played between two opponents who move their pieces alternately on a square board called a ‘chessboard’. The player with the white pieces commences the game. But it wasn't always like that. As late as the mid-to-late 19th century, the practice of White moving first had not yet become standard: it was either white or black that could start the game!

In annotations of some of the old games you'll see "adjustments" saying the players have been inverted (black<->white) to comply with today's requirements (especially computer programs that don't accept black beginnings.

The most known game is the "immortal game", played between Adolf Anderssen and Lionel Kieseritzky: &amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;your web browser and/or your host do not support iframes as required to display the chessboard&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;gt; Yes, I know, it looks like white had the first move but...that's not true and you can check for yourself in the original book: The Chess

 Player , written by Bernard Horwitz and Joseph Kling, published by R.Hastings in London, 1852.

You'll see that Black was the one to start the game: I had absolutely no idea that I was looking at a mirrored game in my database! Chess historian Robert John McCrary writes that the earliest rule he has found requiring that White move first is Rule 9 given on page 126 of the New York, 1880 tournament book, which specified, "In each round the players shall have the first move alternately; in the first game it shall be determined by lot. The one having the move, in every case, is to play with the white pieces." Prior to that, it had gradually become conventional, over a number of years, to have White move first in published analysis, and by about 1862 to have White move first in all published games. But it was evident that players could in many cases choose Black when they had the first move, even if the published game-score indicated that White had moved first. In 1889 Wilhelm Steinitz, the first World Champion, wrote that "In all international and public Chess matches and tournaments ... it is the rule for the first player to have the white men".

Emanuel Lasker, the second World Champion, stated unequivocally in Lasker's Manual of Chess (first published in 1927) that "White makes the first move". But we are still left with the same annoying question: WHY?! We know now more or less when, but why does white move first? Historically, chess has gone through a long metamorphosis, with the origins of white moving first being still unknown. There are a couple of opinions though, most of them circling around the same idea: racial politics on the first move. Some argue that there are serious racial overtones in the game of chess : Psychiatrist Dr. Frances Cress-Welsing has used chess as a metaphor to describe racism within the context of her social "color-confrontation theory." While Dr. Welsing's theories have been long debated, there are some interesting truisms in her explanations. Another opinion, which has no credible sources, would be: "In medieval times black was thought to be a lucky colour.

The white player was allowed to go first since the black player already had the advantage of the lucky colour." As funny as it sounds, I cannot possibly think of black as being lucky...I could argue here the cats, the witches, all coming from the medieval times. Only ancient Chinese regarded black as the king of colors and honored black longer than any other color. But to draw a conclusion out of this, I think it's premature. So where lies the truth? No one probably knows. Its just something you follow. Like Math. You just follow the rules... Teach Kids to Play Chess - ChessKid.com Learn to Play 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 for more than 500 years! The Goal of Chess You and your opponent are each in charge of an army. Your goal: to catch the other army's king (before they catch yours)! When you have him attacked and he can no longer escape, it's called "checkmate," and you win!

You each start with a trusty army of 16: the King, Queen, two Rooks, two Bishops, two Knights, and eight Pawns. 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, so it's only fair to take turns playing white and black. On each turn you get to move one of your pieces (except for one special move). Then it's your opponent's turn. And back and forth, you take turns until one of the kings is cornered... or your whole army is tired out! How the Chess Pieces Move Each of the 6 different kinds of pieces has its own shape for moving.

Most pieces cannot move through other pieces-- only the knight can jump over anyone who gets in his way! Also no piece can ever move onto a square with one of their own pieces. However, they can be moved to take the place of an opponent's piece: that's how you capture the enemies! The King The king is the most important piece, since losing him means the end of the game. But he is also one of the weakest. So very often he needs his friends to protect him. The king can move one square in any direction - up, down, to the sides, and diagonally. The king may never move himself onto a square where he could be captured (no losing on purpose). If your opponent ever moves their king onto a square where you can take it, don't grab the king and laugh "hahahaha, I win!" Instead, you should explain why they can't move there. Then your opponent can put the king back where it was, and choose a different move. Click on the ">" button in the diagram below to see how the king can move around the board.

Check and Checkmate When another piece threatens to capture the king, it is called 'check.' When there is no way for the king to escape check, it is called 'checkmate.' As stated before, that is how you win. There are only three ways a king can get out of check: move out of the way, 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. The Queen The queen is the most powerful piece. Like the king, she can move in any one straight direction - forward, backward, sideways, or diagonally - but unlike him, she's very speedy. In fact, she can move as far as you like as long as she does not move through any other pieces. And, like with all pieces, if the queen captures an opponent's piece, that's the square she stops on. 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 moves much like the queen: as far as it wants along straight lines, but only forward, backward, and to the sides (not diagonally). The Bishop The bishop is the "other half" of the queen. It moves as far as it wants, but only diagonally. You start with one bishop on a light square and one bishop on a dark square, and you will notice, only moving on diagonals, each one is stuck on the color it starts on. Bishops work well together because each covers the squares the other one can't. 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. People often say knights "hop" because of that special ability. Check out these knight hops: The Pawn Half of your starting team is pawns, so it's very important to understand how to use these little guys, even though they are not very strong. Pawns are unusual because they move in one way, but capture in a different way.

When they move, they just go forward, but when they capture they go diagonally. Pawns can only move forward one square at a time, except for their very first move where they can move forward two squares or one. Pawns can only capture one square diagonally in front of them. They can never move or capture backwards. Because they move and capture differently, the pawn is the only piece that can get blocked by enemy pieces: if there is another piece directly in front of a pawn he cannot move past or capture that piece. Promotion Now pawns may be small and weak, moving slowly and having trouble fighting against the faster guys on the board. But pawns still have big dreams! They want to be the hero who rules the chessboard and brings you victory. And pawns have one more special ability that can help make their dreams come true. If a pawn reaches the other side of the board it can become any other chess piece (called promotion), except a pawn or king. [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, because she is the most powerful piece.

Only pawns may be promoted; no other piece can do this! En Passant The last rule about pawns is called "en passant", which is French, meaning "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 running past the other pawn's ability to capture it), that other pawn has the option of capturing the first pawn as if it only moved one space. This special move must be done on the very next move 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, the only time you can move two pieces in one move. This combination move allows you to do two important things all in one turn: 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 to the other side of his king.

(See the example below.) In order to castle, however, 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 kingside. Castling to the other side, through where the queen sat, is called castling queenside. Regardless of which side, the king always moves exactly two squares when castling. 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). Draw by exhaustion!

A player declares a draw if the same exact position is repeated three times (though not necessarily three times in a row) Fifty moves in a row have been played by each player, without anyone moving a pawn or capturing a piece. This means no progress is being made! If you've made it this far, you are ready to play! After this come extra rules for tournaments, variants, and some first advice for how to play chess well. Chess960 Chess960 (also called Fischer Random) is a chess variant that follows all of the normal rules of chess, except that the starting position of the pieces is randomly chosen at the start of each game. There are two rules for placing the pieces: the bishops must be on opposite colors, and there must be one rook on each side of the king. The black and white pieces are in a mirrored position. There are exactly 960 possible starting scenarios that follow these rules (thus the name "960").

The only odd rule is with castling: the rules are mostly the same (king and rook cannot have moved and cannot castle through check or in check), with the additional rule that the squares between where the king and castled rook will end up must be vacant from all pieces except the king and rook. And instead of moving exactly 2 steps towards your rook, you always castle so that it looks like in normal chess: King goes to g1 when you castle "kingside" and to c1 when you castle "queenside." 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. (of course you can't "touch" a piece online, so this is a tournament rule which does not matter on our website). 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 what they are doing, 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. That's because when they first started having chess tournaments in the 1800s, some guys would just sit there and not move if they were in a losing position. This perfect strategy kept them from ever losing... and the tournament from ever finishing! Then they invented the chess clock, and it became normal at most tournaments. 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 stop their clock from running and 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). Click here to watch two players quickly playing a timed game of chess!

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 below 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 Check out our list of recommended books for beginners . There are also many resources on ChessKid.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! Rules of Chess Rules of Chess Rules of Chess Rules of Chess Here are the rules of chess, in our own words (as you'll be able to tell). Please keep in mind these are not the official chess rules. These chess rules are intended to help our visitors and customers new to the chess game, get the chessboard setup correctly along with enough instruction and knowledge of the chess rules to have a legitimate and enjoyable game. We hope you find them useful. Object of the Chess Game It's rather simple, there are two players with one player having 16 black or dark color chess pieces and the other player having 16 white or light color chess pieces. The chess players move on a square chessboard made up of 64 individual squares consisting of 32 dark squares and 32 light squares. Each chess piece has a defined starting point or square with the dark chess pieces aligned on one side of the board and the light pieces on the other. There are 6 different types of chess pieces, each with it's own unique method to move on the chessboard.

The chess pieces are used to both attack and defend from attack, against the other players chessmen. Each player has one chess piece called the king. The ultimate objective of the game is to capture the opponents king. Having said this, the king will never actually be captured. When either sides king is trapped to where it cannot move without being taken, it's called "checkmate" or the shortened version "mate". At this point, the game is over. The object of playing chess is really quite simple, but mastering this game of chess is a totally different story. Chess Board Setup Now that you have a basic concept for the object of the chess game, the next step is to get the the chessboard and chess pieces setup according to the rules of playing chess. Lets start with the chess pieces. The 16 chess pieces are made up of 1 King, 1 queen, 2 bishops, 2 knights, 2 rooks, and 8 pawns. From the following diagram, you can identify the pieces and the general character of their shape and appearance and also the location or square the chess pieces start from according to the chess rules. Now the chessboard.

The correct orientation, as per the chess rules, is with a black square on your left side as facing the chess board. One of the more common mistakes in setting up the chess board is reversing the king and queen chess pieces. Remember, as per the chess rules, the queen is always on her own color while the king is always on the opposite color. How the Chess Pieces Move Now that you have the chessboard setup with each piece sitting on its correct square, you need to know the chess rules of how each chess piece moves. The following are diagrams and instructions for the move of each chess piece. Chess piece - King Having a king is mandatory even though he's pretty much worthless and really nothing more than a mere figure-head. But that's the rule of chess, like it or not, you have to have a king. The king is always the tallest piece on the chessboard and the king chess piece will usually have a cross-like object on top. By the rules of chess, his moves are pretty limited, he can only move one square at a time but he can move forward, backward, left, right and diagonally. Not to offer any particular strategy, but keep him safe and well protected!

Chess piece - Queen Unlike the king, the queen is no figure-head. She's the most powerful chess piece you have on the chessboard. The queen usually looks like a queen in the sense that she'll have a crown, sometimes with nice sharp points. According to the rules of playing chess, she can move vertically, horizontally, and diagonally just as many squares she wants (without jumping other chess pieces). So you'll want to be careful and not give her up too carelessly or without a steep price to your opponent. Chess piece -Bishop The bishop, well, I guess you could say the top of the chess piece looks sort of like a bishop hat. Most bishops also have a cut near the top resembling that of a mouth. There are two bishops, always one on a light square and one on a dark square. Chess rules say that bishops move just like the queen except they can't move forward, backward, left or right. Diagonally only just as many spaces as desired without jumping another chess piece. Because bishops move diagonally, they will always remain on their original square color as per the rules of chess.

So if in the middle of a chess game you notice either your opponent or your bishops are on the same color square - something's gone very wrong. Chess piece - Knight The knight is the most unique chess piece you have! Not only does it usually resemble a horse, it is the only chess piece that can jump over another chess piece or pieces according to chess rules. The knight's move is rather different. Think of the move as "L" shaped - two squares either forward, backward, left, or right and then left or right one square. This special feature, being able to jump, can make the knight a very useful chess piece early in the game. Chess piece - Rook The rook is also called the castle by some and it actually looks like a castle or at least a castle tower. The rook, as per chess rules, moves just like the queen except it can't move diagonally. Just forward, backward, left, and right but as many spaces as desired without jumping other chess pieces. Chess piece - Pawn The poor little pawns are put out in front right in harms way while the other guys are hiding back behind.

As per the rules of playing chess, they're expected to advance out in front and take the brunt of an oncoming attack or serve as a shield. It seems rather unfair considering they're pretty defenseless. These chess piece are allowed to only move one square at at time by the rules of chess. However, in thier first move, they can move two squares if they want. They can only move straight forward - no retreating for these soldiers according of the chess rules. And they can only capture one of the enemy by approaching diagonally. But, according t the chess rules, if one of these brave little soldiers can make it to the other side, they are rewarded with a promotion - to a queen! Some promotion that is! Chess Board Notation Those that take chess pretty seriously, actually keep track of all their moves and record entire games. In order to record moves, someone came up with the smart idea of labeling the columns with letters and the rows with numbers, thus each square is uniquely identified. As you can see, white has a tremendous advantage because he or she doesn't have to look at upside-down numbers and read the alphabet backwards. One of the more important reasons to be the white or light chess players side.

Castling Castling can be a very effective strategy in the defense of your king and providing a safe-haven for him. The act of "castling" involves two chess pieces, the rook and king and there are two different ways to castle. Rather than trying to describe the two methods (which might get confusing), we'll rely on the diagrams below to guide you through the correct moves. Now, there are special rules of chess and conditions that must exist in order to castle. The special conditions are: Neither of the chess pieces involved, your king or rook that is being castled, have been moved during the chess game. There are no other chess pieces between the king and the rook involved in the castling. Your king is not in check and neither your king or rook can be taken by your opponent's next move after castling. You can castle with either of the rooks as long as these special conditions are met. The moves involved in castling with the Queen side rook are different than castling with king side rook. This is quite natural given that there 2 spaces between the king and rook on the king side and respectively 3 spaces on the queen side.

Below are diagrams showing both methods of castling: King Side Castling (white) Promotion Let's Play Now that you have the chess board all setup, you know how each chess piece moves along with the special chess rules, lets get the game underway. White always moves first and most players prefer to be white because you can achieve a slight advantage by moving first. So what we recommend is you have a best out of three "rock-scissors-paper" to determine who keeps to be white. Or, if you prefer, you can cast lots by putting a different color pawn in each hand and then letting your friend choose one. From this point on, it's real easy, white makes the first move and then you just take turns moving chess pieces and trying to checkmate your opponent's king while taking as many chess pieces as you can along the way. But before that first move, there's a few more rules that we better go over. Don't Let Go (until you're sure)! This is a very important chess rule, when you move your chess piece and let go, you're beyond the point of no return. The move is final.

Now, if you move it to a square and keep your finger on top while pondering the genius or folly of the move, it's okay to backtrack and decide on a different move. So be certain about your move before you let go! Check You know what checkmate or mate is, but we haven't yet explained the baby brother of checkmate called check. When a king has been attacked and can be taken on the next move but can escape, it is called check. Just like when you announced you were going to castle, it's also considered good manners to tell your opponent he's in check "CHECK". Standing up for the announcement is optional. The Ending You know about checkmate, which ends the game, but there are three other possible endings to a game. One possibility is a stalemate or draw, meaning that with the given pieces left on the board, neither player can win. For example, a king against a king. There are no winning possibilities for either side in this situation. Another possible outcome is for one player to resign. A game can become so one-sided (both remaining pieces and position) that the advantage is too great for the other player to overcome.

When this happens, the disadvantaged player can simply call "uncle" and give it up. But don't give up too easy, mistakes can always be made. The third possibility is a draw, even though a checkmate is possible. Connect With Us Chess Rules Chess Rules 3.3. Game Draw 3.1. The Rules of Chess Chess is played on a square board of eight rows (called ranks and denoted with numbers 1 to 8) and eight columns (called files and denoted with letters a to h) of squares. The colors of the sixty-four squares alternate between light and dark, and are referred to as "light squares" and "dark squares". The chessboard is placed so that each player has a white square in the near right hand corner, and the pieces are set out as shown in the diagram, with each queen on a square that matches its color. Each player begins the game with sixteen pieces: each player's pieces comprise one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights and eight pawns. One player, referred to as White, controls the white pieces and the other player, Black, controls the black pieces; White is always the first player to move.

The colors are chosen either by a friendly agreement, by a game of chance or by a tournament director. The players alternate moving one piece at a time (with the exception of castling, when two pieces are moved at the same time). Pieces are moved to either an unoccupied square, or one occupied by an opponent's piece, capturing it and removing it from play. With one exception (en passant), all pieces capture opponent's pieces by moving to the square that the opponent's piece occupies. The queen can move any number of vacant squares diagonally, horizontally, or vertically. 3.1.5. Knight The knight can jump over occupied squares and moves two spaces horizontally and one space vertically or vice versa, making an "L" shape. A knight in the middle of the board has eight squares to which it can move. Note that every time a knight moves, it changes square color. 3.1.6. Pawns Pawns have the most complex rules of movement: A pawn can move forward one square, if that square is unoccupied. If it has not moved yet, the pawn has the option of moving two squares forward, if both squares in front of the pawn are unoccupied. A pawn cannot move backward.

When such an initial two square advance is made that puts that pawn horizontally adjacent to an opponent's pawn, the opponent's pawn can capture that pawn "en passant" as if it moved forward only one square rather than two, but only on the immediately subsequent move. Pawns are the only pieces that capture differently than they move. They can capture an enemy piece on either of the two spaces adjacent to the space in front of them (i.e., the two squares diagonally in front of them), but cannot move to these spaces if they are vacant. If a pawn advances all the way to its eighth rank, it is then promoted (converted) to a queen, rook, bishop, or knight of the same color. In practice, the pawn is almost always promoted to a queen. 3.1.7. Remaining movement rules With the exception of the knight, pieces cannot jump over each other. One's own pieces ("friendly pieces") cannot be passed if they are in the line of movement, and a friendly piece can never replace another friendly piece. Enemy pieces cannot be passed, but they can be "captured". When a piece is captured (or taken), the attacking piece replaces the enemy piece on its square (en passant being the only exception).

The captured piece is thus removed from the game and may not be returned to play for the remainder of the game. The king cannot be captured, only put in check. If a player is unable to get the king out of check, checkmate results, with the loss of the game. Chess games do not have to end in checkmate — either player may resign if the situation looks hopeless. Games also may end in a draw (tie). A draw can occur in several situations, including draw by agreement, stalemate, threefold repetition of a position, the fifty move rule, or a draw by impossibility of checkmate (usually because of insufficient material to checkmate). 3.2. Timed Games Games can be played with a time-limit by setting a move time when creating a new game. In timed games each player has a certain amount of time available for deciding which moves to make, and the time remaining for each player decreases only when it is their turn to move. 3.3. Game Draw A game that ends without victory for either player. Most drawn games are draws by agreement based upon the rules. The other ways that a game can end in a draw are stalemate, three-fold repetition, the fifty-move rule, and insufficient material.

A position is said to be a draw (or a drawn position) if either player can, through correct play, eventually force the game into a position where the game must end in a draw, regardless of the moves made by the other player. The United States Chess Federation - Learn to Play Chess The United States Chess Federation II. Piece Movements Part 1 - The King and the Rook III. Check and three ways to get out of check IV. Piece Movements Part 2 - The Bishop and the Queen V. Piece Movements Part 3 - The Pawn and the Knight VI. Special Moves- Castling, Pawn Promotion, and En Passant VII. Scoring and Drawing VIII. Tournament Rules I. Setting up the pieces Chess is played on an 8x8 board. White moves first. When you set up the board, remember the following things: a. "White is right!" Make sure the right corner of the board is on a White square. Many movies, T.V shows, and even art exhibits with chess sets get this wrong. b. Queen on her color! If you are White the queen should be on a White square. If you are Black, the queen should be on a Black square.

The letters on the bottom (a-h) of the board correspond to files. The numbers on the side of the board refer to ranks (1-8). Each square has a name. The red square is called e5. Question 1: What is the green square called? Using these names to record your chess moves is called "Algebraic Chess Notation" Strong players invariably do this, so that they can learn from their games. II. Piece movements Part I- The Rook and The King 1. The Rook: Let's start with the moststraightforward piece. The rook can move horizontally and vertically as many squares as it wants. The rook can move to any of the starred squares. The rook captures in the same way that it moves. If it's White's turn, he can take any of the three rooks. If it's Black's move, Black can use any of her rooks to take the White rook. The king has little mobility. But the king's value is unquantifiable, because it entrapment ends the game. It moves one square in every direction. The White king can move to any of the three starred score in the corner.

The Black king can move to any of the eight starred squares. The king captures in the same way it moves, but unlike any other piece, the king cannot be captured. III. Check and three ways to get out of check Check is the heart and soul of the game, so let's go over it now- and then we can review it with each new piece we learn to move! When a piece threatens the king with capture (attacks), the king is in check. The White rook checks the Black king. A checked king must escape check in one of three ways. Here, the Black king can get out of check by moving to any of the starred squares. Fleeing is the first way to get out of check. Question: Why can't he move to e6 or e4? The White king can simply capture the Black rook to get out of check. Question: How many squares can the White king flee to? Is it better to capture or flee here? Blocking is the third way to get out of check. Think of this as the king throwing one of his bodyguards in front of himself, to shield himself from injury. The Black rook on h5 can block the check by moving to e5.

The king is never allowed to put himself in check. Two kings cannot touch. In other words, they can't be on adjacent squares. Diagram 1 (left) is NOT ALLOWED because kings move one square in each direction, and therefore would be putting themselves in check if standing right next to each other. You will never see this position in a real game of chess. In Diagram 2, the Black king may not move to g5, g6 or g7, because he would be putting himself in check. IV. Piece Movements Part II. The Bishop and The Queen The bishop moves diagonally as many squares as it wants. Bishops remain on the same color all game. Explaining his divorce, World Champion Boris Spassky said, "We were like bishops of opposite colors." An apt analogy: Bishops of the opposite color live on the same board but never, ever have contact. The bishop on e4 can never have a rendezvous with the one on e5. The queen is the most powerful piece on the board. She moves like the rook and bishop combined: diagonally, horizontally and laterally as many squares as she wants. Like the rook and bishop, she captures in the same way that she moves.

The queen can move to any of the starred squares. The queen can capture any of the Black pieces with her next move. Let's review check with the bishop and queen. The Black bishop is checking the White king. White can use any of the three methods to get out of check: Fleeing with the king, to f8, d8, e7 or f7. Blocking with the White bishop, by moving to d7. Using the queen to capture the bishop on c6. Let's say White is hungry and goes for the third choice. Now we have this position: Black can only flee here. His three choices are to flee to g7, g5 or h5. Checkmate- Checkmate is when a king has no way to escape from a check. (There are no squares to flee to, no way to block or capture the checking piece.) Checkmate is the goal of chess and ends the game. Many chess lovers are drawn to the game by checkmate- it's a clear competitive purpose and to many, aesthetically pleasing. The Black king cannot capture the White queen, because the White bishop backs her up. The king cannot flee nor block.

The Black king cannot escape from the rook check and move to g5,g3 or g4, because the White king is covering all thosesquares. Question: What do checkmated kings in diagram 1 +2have in common? V. Piece Movements Part 3 The Pawn and the Knight The pawn is the weakest piece on the board, but don't underestimate their importance. Philidor, the 18th century French chess champion, called pawns the "soul of chess." Learning the pawn's move is tricky. The pawn is the only piece on the board that does not move backward. A decision to barge ahead with a pawn is final, which is why such precision is required with pawns. On their first move, the pawns can move forward one or two squares. Think of the two square push as the pawn's morning cup! After each pawn has moved, it can only move one square forward at a time. Either e3 or e4, the morning coffee jump is allowed! Tip: Most top players serve their pawns morning coffee. Once the pawn has already moved, it cannot move two squares.

The e4 pawn may move to the green square e5 but it cannot have another cup of coffee and move to e6, nor can it move backwards, to e3. The pawn captures diagonally only. The pawn is the only piece that does not capture in the same way that it moves. In Diagram 1, the pawn on e5 can capture the knight on f6. The pawn cannot capture the pawn on e6. Diagram 2 shows the position after the pawn captures the knight. Now Black can take the f6 pawn with his g7 pawn. The knight is the trickiest piece to learn. Newcomers to chess often find the knight so hard to remember that they keep the knights in the back row. Such a scorned knight feels sad and depressed. Don't let it happen to yours, because knights are the most special piece in chess. Author-philosophy-grandmaster Jonathan Rowson writes: "They are the curvy pieces that bring a circular aspect to an essentially linear game." The knight moves two squares one way, and then one square the other, in the shape of an L. The knight captures in the same way as it moves. The Black knight can go to any of the starred squares.

The White knight can capture any of the three Black pawns. Notice that knights always switch the color of square they rest on- they're on a constant rotation between day and night shifts.Knights are the only piece that can jump over other pieces. However, they do not capture any pieces that they jump over. At the start of a chess game, the knights can jump out immediately over his own pawns, like in the diagram above. All the other pieces must wait for the pawns to free up space for them to move along diagonals, files and ranks. The knight in Diagram 1 can jump over the rook and bishop to capture the pawn on d5. The only piece the knight takes in the process is the d5 pawn (Diagram 2), which was on its destination square. Part VI: Special Moves- Castling, Pawn Promotion and En Passant. Castling is a special move using one rook and the king. Castling is the only time in chess in which you can move two pieces at once. There are two varieties, queenside and kingside. . In this diagram, both White and Black can castle to reach the position below. White castled kingside and Black castled queenside.

Remember that the King always moves two squares when castling. Many players forget this and move the king an extra square (to b8) when castling queenside. TIP: Top players castle nearly every game. It makes the king safer, and also gets the powerful rook out of the corner. Is Castling allowed? You can only castle, if all of the following are true #1- Your king has not moved yet #2- The rook you want to castle with has not moved yet #3- There are no pieces between the rook and the king #4- You are not being checked. (You can't castle out of check!) #5- The process of castling will not put or land the king in check. Rule 5 is the trickiest: Even masters have asked questions about whether or not a king is moving through check while castling. Even if White has met the conditions of the first four rules, he cannot castle in the positive above, because on his way to g1, the bishop on b5 would check the king. Black on the other hand, is free to castle. The bishop on g3 hits b8, but the Black king does not have to go through this square to castle.

Special move #2- Pawn Promotion Pawns cannot move backwards, so you might wonder what happens when they reach the last rank. They turn into any piece that you want, except the king. 99% of the time, players choose the most powerful piece on the board, the queen. For this reason, "queening" is just as popular a phrase as "promoting." In Diagram 1, both players can promote to make a queen in Diagram 2. White can promote by playing d8=Q. The Black pawn on e2 can capture the knight on f1, or advance to e1, in both cases making a queen. You can promote to a queen even if you already have a queen. Some high-end chess sets even come with an extra queen. Special Move #3- En Passant En passant is French for "in passing". This rule can only be used in a very specific situation. If a pawn has reached the fifth rank as in diagram 1, (or the fourth rank for Black) and a neighbor enemy pawn takes a morning coffee jump (in diagram 2), the White pawn can capture the zealous enemy pawn (diagram 3) as if it had only moved one square.

Part VII.- Scoring and Drawing. What's a chess point? In competitive chess every game is worth one point. Checkmate is one way to win the whole point, but you can also win if your opponent resigns or runs out of time. Draws A game can also end in a draw. Nobody wins or loses, and each player gets 1/2 a point. There are many paths that end in a draw. 1. Agreement- both players agree that the game is likely to be a draw. 2. Insufficient mating material. 5. Both players run out of time 6. 50 Move rule Let's look at examples of each. Draw #1- Agreement Each side has a rook and a king. This is a perfect example of what's known in competitive chess circles as a "dead draw". If both players are confident that their opponents will not give up their rook, they'll agree and shake hands immediately. Draw #2-Insufficient Mating Material- A knight and a king or a bishop and a king are unable to checkmate a lone enemy king. Even after hours of play, the knight in Diagram 1 or the bishop in Diagram 2 will never mate the Black king.

In either position, Black can claim a draw by insufficient mating material. Queens and rooks however, can mate a lone king. If there is a pawn on the board, you cannot claim insufficient mating material because that pawn can transform into a queen or a rook. Draw #3- Stalemate is a very important rule. If an opponent cannot move any of his pieces, including the king, the position is a stalemate and is scored as a draw. Both positions are stalemate because Black has no legal moves. Notice that in Diagram 2 Black has several pawns, but it's still stalemate because he cannot move any of them. Who do you think is happy in each position? These positions are not stalemate: In Diagram 1, Black can move the pawn on a5. In Diagram 2, Black can move the king to h7. Draw #4- Repetition of Position- When a chess position is repeated three times, either player can claim a draw by repetition. The most common way to achieve three-move repetition is via perpetual check, as in the example below. In Diagram 2, The White queen lands on g6, delivering check to the g8 king.

The Black king escapes to the only possible square-h8, and the White queen checks again on h6. The king moves back to g8, and White checks again on g6 forcing Black to return to h8. After three times, either player may claim a three-move repetition. Draw #5- Double Time Forfeit If both players run out of time, it's a draw. If both players have run out of time, but there's checkmate on the board, the checkmater wins the game. Position takes precedence over the clock. Draw #6- 50 Move Rule- If no pawns or pieces have been traded for more than 50 moves, a game is determined to be a draw. This rule requires that the player who makes the claim write down his moves. For instance, in this position: White has two knights, and has been hopping around for hours, unable to checkmate you. If you'd been recording the moves, you can claim a draw after 50 moves. Chess Notation: When you become a member of the USCF, you'll see that a lot of thrilling chess games and stories are filled with chess notation.

You also are required to take notation in most official chess tournaments, so it's great to get a firm handle on it as you start to play. Impress your friends by telling them that you're learning an ancient language called Aracaissaic. The pieces are abbreviated to the following letters: King- K

Question: In a game of chess, which colour is moved first?
Answer: White