Society for the Prevention of Checkmate

Pawn Moves

Pawns move forward - they can NEVER move backward. If it is the pawn's first move, it can be moved either 1 OR 2 squares forward (see diagram 1), whichever the player wishes to do. If the pawn has already been moved, however, it is limited to 1 square forward only.

Diagram 1

Knight Moves

The Knight is the ONLY chess piece that can jump over other pieces. It moves in an 'L' shape. It is moved by counting 2 squares up, down, left or right, then counting 1 square up, down, left or right (see Diagram 2).

Diagram 2

Bishop Moves

The Bishop can move any number of squares, either forward or backward, on a diagonal line (see Diagram 3).

Diagram 3

Rook Moves

The Rook can move any number of squares, either forward or backward, on a horizontal or vertical line (see Diagram 4).

Diagram 4

Queen Moves

The Queen can move any number of squares, either forward or backward, on a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal line (see Diagram 5). It combines the moves of the Rook and the Bishop.

Diagram 5

King Moves

The King can move one square, either forward or backward, on a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal line (see Diagram 6). It combines the moves of the Rook and the Bishop in a limited fashion. However, the King can NEVER move onto a square that is guarded by an enemy piece - this would be an illegal move.

Diagram 6

Board and Piece Setup

The board is placed so that there is a dark square at each players lower left corner. If the board has letters and numbers around the outside edges, square 'a1' goes to White's left. The pieces are placed as shown in Diagram 7. An easy way to remember where to place the King and Queen is this: Queen's go on their own color square - White Queen on white, and Black Queen on black.

Diagram 7

Castling

The purpose of castling is to move the King to a safer place while simultaneously developing a Rook. Castling can be done on the king's side of the board or the Queen's side. To castle King-side, move the King TWO squares toward the King's side of the board (diagram 8). To castle Queen-side, move the King TWO squares toward the Queen's side of the board (diagram 9). Then move the appropriate Rook to the square between the King's starting square and ending square.

There are some restrictions to castling, however:

• The path between the King and the Rook must be clear of all pieces.
• The King must not have been moved previously.
• The Rook involved in castling must not have been moved previously.
• The King may not castle to get out of check.
• The King may not castle if he will land on a square that will put him in check (diagram 10).
• The King may not castle if he will pass through a square that would have put him in check (diagram 11).

Diagram 8		Diagram 9
Diagram 10		Diagram 11

En Passant Capture

'En passant' is a French term meaning 'in passing'. It refers to a special method of capture that is utilized only by a pawn and only under certain circumstances.

First, the pawn being captured must utilize it's option for the 2-square first-move (see Diagram 12 and Diagram 13). A pawn that moves forward only one square cannot be captured en passant.

Diagram 12		Diagram 13

Second, the capture is made by pretending the first pawn only moved one square (see Diagram 14), and the normal diagonal capture was made (see Diagram 15).

Diagram 14		Diagram 15

Note: If a pawn is going to utilize the en passant capture, it MUST do so immediately on the move following the original 2-square first-move, or the opportunity for that particular en passant capture is lost.

Pawn Promotion

When a pawn reaches the rank/row furthest from its starting point, it can be promoted. For White pawns, this promotion rank is the 8th rank (a8-h8), and for Black pawns it is the 1st rank (a1-h1).

The pawn can be promoted to ANY piece (except a King) of the player's choosing. Most of the time a Queen is chosen, but occasionally other pieces are chosen.

Check

When the King is directly threatened by an enemy piece, the King is said to be in check (see Diagram 16). When a player's King is in check the player MUST get the King out of check on his next move or the game is over. In this example the Black King could move to a7 or b8 to get out of check.

Diagram 16

Checkmate

When the King is in check and there is no way to get him out of check, then he is checkmated and the game is over (see Diagram 17). In this example, the King can't capture the Queen because the Queen is guarded by the Bishop; also, the King has no squares to which he can safely move.

Diagram 17

Stalemate

When it is a player's turn to move but he has NO legal moves available, the players are in stalemate and the game is over (see Diagram 18). In this example it is Black's turn to move, and he has no legal moves available to him. His pawn can't move because White's Bishop is blocking it's path, and his King has no safe squares to which he can move.

Often a player who is losing in the endgame will try to maneuver into a stalemate to avoid losing outright, since stalemated games are scored as a draw.

Diagram 18

Resigning

At any point in the game either player may resign. This is scored as a loss for the resigning player and a win for the other player. All that is required is for the player to say "I resign.", but it is a common occurrence for the resigning player to tip over his King (especially in the movies!).

Draw

In most instances a Draw is scored with half a point for each player.

There are 5 ways to Draw a game:

1. Agreed draw
2. Insufficient force to checkmate
3. Fifty-move rule
4. 3-Fold repetition of moves/position
5. Perpetual check

1. Agreed Draw: At any time during the game, either player may offer a draw, and all the other player has to do is agree.

2. Insufficient Force to Checkmate: This occurs when neither side has enough pieces to force a checkmate - for example, both players have only a King.

3. Fifty-Move Rule: When both sides have played 50 consecutive moves without a pawn being moved or a capture being made, either side can call a draw.

4. 3-Fold Repetition of Moves/Position: When the EXACT same position has been reached 3 times in a game a draw can be called. This can happen on consecutive moves (ex: moves 15, 16, 17) or widely separated moves (ex: 10, 33, 59). Perpetual Check is an example of 3-Fold Repetition.

5. Perpetual Check: When a player can keep forcing check on the other player, move after move without letup, a draw can be called (see Diagram 19). In the example, all Black has to do is keep moving his Rook between a2 and b2 to force a draw. This rule is especially beneficial to a player in a losing position, and something to be guarded against by the player who is winning.

Diagram 19