Chess is a game of pure strategy: no dice, no luck — just two players and 32 pieces. Here is everything you need to play your first game.
The board and setup
The board has 64 squares in an 8 × 8 grid. Place it so that each player has a light square in the bottom-right corner. Each side has 16 pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights and eight pawns.
- Rooks go in the corners, knights next to them, then bishops.
- The queen goes on the square of her own colour: the white queen on a light square, the black queen on a dark square.
- The king takes the remaining square beside the queen.
- The eight pawns fill the row in front.
White always moves first, and the players then take turns, one move at a time.
How the pieces move
- King: one square in any direction.
- Queen: any number of squares in a straight line — horizontally, vertically or diagonally.
- Rook: any number of squares horizontally or vertically.
- Bishop: any number of squares diagonally, always staying on its own colour.
- Knight: in an L shape — two squares in one direction and one to the side. It is the only piece that can jump over others.
- Pawn: one square straight forward, or two squares on its first move. Pawns capture one square diagonally forward.
A piece captures by moving onto a square occupied by an opponent's piece, which is then removed from the board.
Check, checkmate and stalemate
When a king is attacked, it is in check, and the player must get out of check immediately — by moving the king, blocking the attack or capturing the attacking piece. If there is no way to escape, it is checkmate and the game is over. If a player is not in check but has no legal move, the game is a draw by stalemate.
Three special moves
- Castling: the king moves two squares towards a rook, and that rook jumps to the square on the king's other side. It is only allowed if neither piece has moved, the squares between them are empty, and the king is not in check and does not pass through or land on an attacked square.
- En passant: if a pawn moves two squares and lands beside an opponent's pawn, that pawn may capture it as if it had moved only one square — but only on the very next move.
- Promotion: a pawn that reaches the far side of the board becomes a queen, rook, bishop or knight — usually a queen.
Other ways to draw
A game can also end in a draw if the players agree, if the same position occurs three times, if neither side has enough pieces left to checkmate, or after 50 moves by each player without a capture or a pawn move.
Tips for your first games
- Control the centre of the board with your pawns and pieces.
- Bring out your knights and bishops early.
- Castle to keep your king safe.
- Before every move, check what your opponent is threatening.
Prefer a printable version? Download our chess rules (PDF). Looking for a board to learn on? Explore our handmade chess sets and 2-in-1 chess and backgammon sets.
