Checkers guide: rules, openings and how to beat the computer
Checkers looks simple (every piece moves the same way) but it runs deep: it took the world’s strongest program almost twenty years to solve the game. This guide sums up what matters most to start winning.
Play Checkers1. The rules that confuse people most
Almost every argument over a game of checkers comes from three rules. First: capturing is mandatory. If you can capture, you can’t make any other move; if there are several captures, you choose which.
Second: a chain of jumps is completed. If after capturing the same piece can carry on, it does. Third: under these rules men only capture forwards, and kings move one square at a time along any diagonal.
2. Shots: using the forced capture
A shot is a move that gives a piece away on purpose so that your opponent, forced to capture, leaves others exposed. The classic is the two-for-one: you offer a man, your opponent takes it and lands where you can jump two pieces.
Before every move, ask two questions: which forced capture am I giving my opponent with this move? And which forced capture can I give them next? The computer on Hard and Expert finds these shots, so that’s the first thing to watch.
3. The centre and the back row
Pieces in the centre control more squares and have more moves available; pieces on the edge have half the options and can get trapped.
Your back row is your defence against crowning. Keeping two well-chosen men there for much of the game makes your opponent fight hard for a king. Move them only once the board clears.
- Advance as a group: a lone man out front is easy to capture.
- Avoid leaving holes in your formation: holes are landing squares for your opponent.
4. When to trade pieces
With a material lead, one-for-one trades favour you: twelve against eleven becomes three against two, and there the difference is decisive. When behind, avoid trades and look for closed positions where your opponent can’t advance without giving pieces away.
A trade can also open the way to crowning, or get rid of an enemy man that’s blocking your advance.
5. King endings
In the ending, each king is worth almost two men. If you crown first, use the king to attack enemy men from behind, where they can’t defend by capturing backwards.
Mind the draw rule: if both sides make 40 moves without a capture or a man moving, the game is drawn. When ahead, push men or force trades instead of shuffling kings around.