Checkers Draughts
Checkers is a classic 2-players abstract game.
Pieces move diagonally, and the goal is to capture all your opponent's pieces by jumping over them.
Several variants are available, as game rules vary across countries.
Number of players: 2
Game duration: 13 mn
Complexity: 1 / 5
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Play Checkers and 1194 other games online.
No download necessary - play directly from your web browser.
With your friends and thousands of players from the whole world.
Free.
Rules summary
For tips on how to play checkers/draughts, see Tips_checkers
Objective of the Game
Checkers, also known as 'draughts', is a timeless abstract strategy game for two players dating back almost a thousand years. In the game you move your pieces until you've jumped over all pieces of your opponent and have removed them from the board. Players move one piece diagonally at a time in alternating play (starting with light). All references to squares refer to the dark squares only. The board is an 8 by 8 square of squares in alternating light or dark colours. Players should set up pieces on the 12 dark squares in the first three rows closest to them (the light spaces are completely ignored in the game), setting up three rows of 4 checkers.
Game variants
There is a lot of Checkers variants. Four of them are available on Board Game Arena :
- International Checkers (10x10 board, men can capture backwards, kings can fly, one must capture as many pieces as possible)
- Straight Checkers (8x8 board, men cannot capture backwards, kings can capture backwards but cannot fly, one must capture if possible but not necessarily as many pieces as possible)
- Brazilian Checkers (8x8 board, men can capture backwards, kings can fly, one must capture as many pieces as possible)
- Russian Checkers (8x8 board, men can capture backwards, kings can fly and go on capturing immediately after getting crowned, one must capture if possible but not necessarily as many pieces as possible).
Make sure to check the rules for the variant you are currently playing: the following detailed section applies only to Straight Checkers.
Straight Checkers
Moving & Capturing
Take turns moving a checker one space diagonally forward towards the opponent's side of the board on a square that contains no checkers of either player. You may 'jump' your opponents checkers by making a capturing move if your checker is located at most one space behind your opponent's checker (on your side). When capturing you jump over the checker moving two spaces in the same direction and then remove their piece from the game. Capturing multiple pieces using multiple jumps in the same turn is a key part of the game, when doing so you may change which direction they're moving diagonally, but they must still always move forward.
- If you have the opportunity to jump your opponent's checker, you must.
- You may continue capturing subsequent checkers until there are no more possible captures.
- If you have the opportunity to jump a choice of opponent's checkers, you may choose which but must capture one of them.
Kings
When one of your pieces reaches the end of the opponent's board that piece is upgraded to a king, these may move in either direction now.
- Kings may move forward or backward diagonally.
- Kings can still only move one diagonal space at a time unless capturing.
- Kings may move both forward and backward in the same turn when capturing.
Winning
Complete one of the following two objectives;
- Capture all of your opponent's pieces.
or
- Block all your opponent's pieces so they can't make any more moves.
Draws
A draw is declared if any of these conditions occur;
- The same situation repeats itself for the third time (not necessarily consecutive).
or
- 25 moves have been played without moving a man forward or making a capture.