One of the most fun and easy games to play, checkers is a fans’ favorite that’s been around since the 12th century. It goes by the name “Checkers” in the US, but it’s called draughts in other countries.  

The concept is super simple, and you can learn it quickly. How? We’ll teach you in this article. 

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Number of Players

The board consists of 64 squares of alternating black and white (or red) colors. You set up the board with the non-black (white or red) squares in the right bottom and left upper corners, meaning that each player should have a non-black square in the right corner closest to them.

Each player places their 12 discs on the 12 dark squares in front of them, forming 3 rows, 4 discs each. The player with black discs goes first. 

Game Setup

Your goal is to capture all your opponent’s discs or block them so that they can’t move them further on the board. You win a game when your opponent is unable to move any of their discs, either because you’ve trapped them or captured them.

Goal

Using a coin toss, determine who goes first. The player who goes first should be the one with the black checkers set.

You are allowed to move a single checker only diagonally in a forward direction. Since we’ve got all checkers placed on the black squares, any forward diagonal movement will be on black squares. 

If your piece is making a non-capturing move, you can only move it for one square.

To capture an opponent’s checker, it should be diagonally adjacent to your checker. You then leap over the opponent's checker, landing on the other side of the checker in a diagonal straight line. To do this, the square on the other side of your opponent’s disc (the one that you’ll leap into) must be empty. If there’s another disc there, you can’t capture it. 

The captured checker should be removed from the board. You can capture only one disc in a single jump. However, you can do multiple jumps in one turn to capture more than one disc.

In case you’re doing multiple captures in a single turn, you can shift the direction of your piece towards the left diagonal or the right one, all the while keeping the movement in a forward direction. 

If you can make a capture, then you have to do it. You can’t move other checkers randomly. In case there are possibilities for multiple captures, you can then choose the one you prefer. 

If all the squares adjacent to your checker are occupied, then you’re blocked. You can’t move.

When a disc reaches the furthest row from its starting point (that is, your opponent’s back row), it becomes king. You crown the king by putting one of the captured pieces (that have been removed from the board) on top of it so that it’s higher than the rest of the discs.

Some checker sets have a king’s crown at the back of the disc. If this is the case, when a disc is crowned, you just flip it instead of putting another one on top of it. 

Kings have the privilege of moving backward or forward, both diagonally. So while a regular disc moves only in a forward diagonal, a king can move in a forward or backward diagonal. The king can also combine jumps backward and forward on the same turn.  

Gameplay

Now that you know how to play checkers, let’s explore some strategies that’ll help you win a game. 

You should move your discs together so that they protect each other and, hopefully, block your opponent’s discs. If you move one disc forward on its own, then you’re making it vulnerable to the opponent's attacks.

Yet, if you move the ones around it with it so that they’re all adjacent, you’re then limiting your opponent’s opportunities in attacking you by narrowing the space they have to move in. When you do that, know that you’re on your way to win.

More importantly, if it happens and your opponent succeeds in capturing one of your discs in a crowd, they’ll be putting themselves in a place where their disc will be captured next. 

One of the common traps a checkers newbie might fall into is to base their playing strategy on being defensive only, where they try to keep their discs at the edges of the board to avoid being captured or blocked by the opponent. This doesn’t work. You have to try to attack to win. 

Don’t worry if some of your discs are captured or blocked. This is how the game works.

Another smart strategy you should follow is trying to keep the back row discs in their place for as long as possible. Because if there’s empty space in your back row and your opponent succeeds in reaching it, their disc will be crowned king, and it’ll be more difficult to be captured this way.

Besides, having a full back row means you’ll be able to capture whatever disc that makes it to your back row. It basically acts as a perfect line of defense. 

At some point, you’ll have to sacrifice some of your discs. A winner knows when and how to sacrifice. If you’re ahead in the game or you’re even with your opponent, and sacrificing a piece will give you a positional advantage, then definitely do it. Some of your pieces will be captured inevitably, so don’t be afraid of sacrificing them when necessary. 

The goal is to protect kings at all costs, though. Since they can move backward and forward, then they have priority over regular pieces. You should protect them.

How to Improve Your Checkers Game

“Offence is better than defense. Kings are the first priority. Having a full back row will get you that win.” These are the strategies you should follow to ace that checkers game and beat your friends! 

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How to Play Checkers

Number of Players

Game Setup

Goal

Gameplay

How to Improve Your Checkers Game

Conclusion