Chess Rules: The Ultimate Guide for Beginners

Chess is a popular board game that has been played for centuries. It is a game of strategy and skill that requires careful planning, critical thinking, and precise execution. In this article, we will cover everything you need to know about chess rules, from the basics to more advanced techniques, and provide you with tips to improve your gameplay.

Introduction to Chess

Chess is a board game played between two players on a checkered board with 64 squares. The game is played with 16 pieces, each player having one king, one queen, two rooks, two knights, two bishops, and eight pawns. The objective of the game is to checkmate your opponent’s king by putting it under attack, with no possibility of escape.

Setting up the Board and Pieces

The chessboard should be placed between the two players in such a way that each player has a white square in the bottom right corner. The pieces are set up in a specific pattern on the board, with the rooks in the corners, the knights next to the rooks, the bishops next to the knights, the queen on her own color, and the king on the remaining square of the same color as the queen.

How to Play Chess

The player with the white pieces goes first, and each player takes turns moving one piece per turn. The game continues until one player checkmates their opponent’s king or until a drawn game is declared.

Movement of Chess Pieces

Each chess piece moves in a specific way, and understanding how each piece moves is essential to playing the game effectively. The king moves one square in any direction, the queen can move any number of squares diagonally, horizontally, or vertically, the rook moves any number of squares horizontally or vertically, the bishop moves any number of squares diagonally, and the knight moves in an L shape, two squares in one direction and then one square perpendicular to it.

Capturing Opponent’s Pieces

If a player moves a piece onto a square occupied by their opponent’s piece, the opponent’s piece is captured and removed from the board.

Castling

Castling is a special move that allows the king to move two squares towards a rook on the player’s first rank, and then the rook moves to the square next to the king. This move is used to bring the king to safety and activate the rook.

En Passant

En passant is a special capture that can occur when a pawn moves two squares on its initial move, and lands next to an opponent’s pawn. The opponent’s pawn can capture the moving pawn as if it had only moved one square.

Promotion

If a pawn reaches the opposite end of the board, it can be promoted to any other piece, except for a king.

Check and Checkmate

When a player puts their opponent’s king under attack, the king is said to be in check. If the king cannot escape from attack on the next turn, it is checkmate, and the game is over.