The Game of Chess

The game of Chess today is played by two people and is renowned the world over for complicated maneuvering and strategic planning. You can learn the basics of Chess and have a good time playing it, or you can learn Chess notation and find out how the great players of the world think.

The goal of Chess is to maneuver your pieces in an effort to remove your opponent's pieces and ultimately capture his or her King. That might sound easy enough, but don't forget your opponent has the same goal in mind, so while you're strategizing your win, you also have to strategize your defense. There are some hard and fast rules in Chess, but there is also an art to achieving the ultimate goal of “checkmate” (winning the game). The art is in the movement of your pieces and the way you strategize the win.

History of the Game

The history of Chess is a much-debated topic amongst historians, but the consensus is that it has its origins in Persia or India. The oldest ancestor of Chess is a 4,000-year-old game called Chaturanga—a game played with dice and playing pieces consisting of elephants, horses, chariots, and foot soldiers. The most recent ancestor of Chess, as we know it today, is a 2,000-year-old game called “Shatranj,” which was played by Persians and Arabs. The current game of Chess was designed by a champion player of his day (the 1840s) named Howard Staunton.

There are many arguments floating around today—with some very good evidence to back them up—that Chess did not originate in Persia or India, but rather in China. Still other researchers claim that Chess was invented by women of ancient times and that the game is actually one of fertility and procreation rather than battle and war.

We Are the Champions

The most famous living Chess player today is Garry Kasparov. He is currently the highest-rated Chess player in the world—otherwise known as the Grandmaster. Kasparov continues to play Chess with one of his latest opponents—the IBM computer chip known as “Deep Blue,” reportedly the fastest microcomputer chip in the world to date. Kasparov also spends his time educating people about the game. In addition to starting a Web site dedicated to Chess education, he opened a Chess academy in Israel in 1997—a nonprofit association dedicated to worldwide Chess education.

American-born Bobby Fischer is another world-famous Chess champion. He became Grandmaster in 1972—the first American ever to win the world championship. He is considered by many to be the greatest Chess player of all time due to his astronomical IQ. Fischer became a recluse for 20 years because the International Chess Federation for championship competition did not accept his desire to change the way Chess was played. He reappeared to play a match against previous rival Boris Spassky in 1992. He won 10 games to Spassky's five.

Piece by Piece

In a standard Chess set, you usually have white and black playing pieces. Some fancier sets have dark and light colored pieces in all different shapes and sizes, but it's usually easy enough to identify who is who and which side is “black” or “white.”

Here is a list of the different pieces and the moves they can make on the board:

The King: This piece is the most important piece and, ironically, one of the least powerful. The King can only move one square in any direction and usually doesn't journey too far into the board as a means of self-protection. But don't be fooled! The King is the key player in the game because when the King is captured, the game is over. The primary objective of Chess is to capture your opponent's King while keeping your own well-guarded.

When your King is trapped and cannot avoid capture, your opponent calls “checkmate” and the game is complete. If your King is threatened with capture, your opponent calls “check” and you have to figure out how to move out of that position. A King cannot move into a “check” position, but if your opponent says “check,” you must move out right away, and there are only three ways to accomplish this:

• Capture the piece that is threatening your King.
• Block the path between your opponent's threatening piece and your King. (Don't forget that Knights cannot be blocked.)
• Move the King away.

The Queen: Ah … the Queen, your most valuable player. She is the most powerful piece on the board with her ability to move forward, backward, and diagonally for as many squares as you want her to go—as long as her path is not blocked. Watch out though … if you lose this piece to your opponent, your offense and defense will be severely hindered.

The Rook: This is another very powerful piece due to its range of mobility. The Rook, often shaped like a castle, can move forward and backward along any row as long as no other piece is blocking its path. The Rook cannot, however, move diagonally.

The Bishop: This piece, like the Rook, is very powerful due to its range of motion. Unlike the Rook, the Bishop can move on a diagonal and can move as many spaces as needed, provided there is no other piece in its path.

The Knight: The value of the Knight usually applies to the early stages of the game. It is a powerful piece that moves in an L-shape on the board. The reason it is so powerful in the beginning of the game is because it can jump other pieces on a crowded board.

Pawns: These are the least powerful pieces due to their lack of mobility on the board. A Pawn can only move one square at a time (if its path is not blocked), except on the first play when it can move two squares forward. Pawns can only capture opposing pieces when moving on a diagonal, and even then this piece can only move one square at a time. If the Pawn manages to survive its way to the eighth row (because these pieces don't last on the board very long), it can promote itself to any other piece except the King. When a Pawn is promoted, it is then replaced by that piece, so it is possible to have more than one Queen, two Bishops, two Knights, or two Rooks on the board at the same time.

Setting Up

The first thing you need to do to play Chess is set up the board—that's half the battle as each piece has a specific place on the board. Make sure that in placing the board, the white corner squares are in the lower right-hand corner on both your and your opponent's sides.

The pieces should be placed on the board in the following way:

• First row closest to you from right to left—starting on the black corner square: Rook, Knight, Bishop, Queen, King, Bishop, Knight, Rook.

• On the second row place your Pawns. There should be eight Pawns on each square.

From Antiques to Computer Games

Chess sets can be purchased at any retail toy and game store. They also come in travel sizes for long trips, and there are countless computerized versions on the market today. Some of the computer games are extremely challenging and fun. Even today's Grandmaster, Garry Kasparov, has his name on one of the computerized versions of the game. You can also play interactive Chess matches with anonymous opponents on the Internet or watch matches between other online players. It's a hugely popular game—and its popularity seems to grow on a daily basis.

The price of Chess sets vary from as little as fifty cents for miniature plastic sets to priceless sets found only in museums. There are sets made of precious stones played by kings and queens, and then there are the hokey sets that depict cartoon characters like the Simpsons.

Basic Moves and Rules

The rules of Chess are very strict and there isn't really any room for change, but there are ways you can lighten them up a little so they work better for you at home. There are the hard-line Chess players who will stick to tournament rules, so just be aware of whom you're playing with and how you both want to use the rules. You don't want to get into any arguments when the game is underway, so be clear with each other before the match begins.

For example, in professional tournaments, if you touch a piece that can be legally moved, you must move it. This rule is often ignored in casual games or home matches. When I played Chess, we usually used the rule that you can touch the piece, but you cannot move it and return it to its old position. If you move the piece, the play must be carried through. Be clear on these kinds of rules before the game begins. We don't want anyone getting riled up at the beginning of the game. That should come later, when your King is in check!

You may never move a piece into a square already occupied by another one of your pieces. However, you may move into your opponent's square by capturing one of his pieces.

Most plays begin by moving the Pawns. The Pawns advance upon each other in an effort to capture each other and make way for the advancement of other key pieces to make their moves.

These Chess moves will take some time getting to know.

Tournament Moves: Playing with the Pros

Here are some basic moves to get you started:

Castling: This is an important move because it affords the King the necessary protection and places the Rook in a position to do some serious battling. Castling is usually done early in the game and savvy players will do their best to prevent their opponent from castling their own King. This play is usually the first battle you'll experience in a game of Chess between two knowledgeable opponents. Castling occurs when you move your King two squares from one of your Rooks and then move that Rook to the opposite side of the King. You cannot use this maneuver if your King or your Rook has already made a first move. That is why this play is usually made near the beginning of the game. The King cannot castle out of or into check and there can be no other piece between the Rook and the King when castling.

En passant: The play en passant, which is French for “in passing,” allows a player to capture an opponent's Pawn en passant. This is usually done to prevent a player from using the “two squares first” rule for Pawns. You don't want your opponent's pawns to pass you without a chance to capture. The play is made when your Pawn (the one that was passed) removes your opponent's Pawn (the one that moved two squares) from the board. This maneuver is optional and is useful if there's a reason you don't want your opponent's Pawn to move ahead of your own.

Check and Checkmate

If your King is trapped so it cannot move in any direction without capture, your opponent declares “checkmate” and you've lost the game. A King can never move into “check”—meaning it can never move onto a square where it can be captured by an opponent's piece. If a King is not in check, and no other move is possible, then the game is called a “stalemate” or a tie.

In casual games, it is common for one player to call “check” or “checkmate.” In fact, I remember playing Chess games where if you didn't call it, the game is declared a tie. But in tournament conditions, it is considered rude and illegal to speak aloud, let alone call out when your opponent's King is in jeopardy. Tournaments are usually played in a roomful of people, and if a player speaks aloud (especially to utter such a threatening word to the ears of other Chess players) he may be penalized by the Tournament Director. Calling “check” or “checkmate” is rude in the Chess world because it assumes that the other player isn't paying enough attention to notice that his or her King is in danger. The correct etiquette is to let your opponent discover the danger on his or her own.

If the player in check doesn't realize the danger and then proceeds to make an illegal move (for example, not moving the King out of danger), the opponent should point out that an illegal move was made and the player in check will usually realize what's happening.

The Tournament Director (TD) acts as a kind of referee. At home, when disputes arise, a third party can be called in to moderate. If you do call in a third party, make sure that person knows how to play the game.

Stalemate

Stalemates do not happen that often in Chess matches, but there are a few exceptions. Most matches will be played until the King is taken, but even the pros have been known to confront this rarity.

Here are a few examples of a game being declared a stalemate (or tie):

• If a King is not in check and no other move is possible
• If 50 moves are made without the advance of a Pawn
• If the same position (recurring plays) occurs three times

Let's Get Going

Now that you know the basic rules (and even some of the etiquette) of the game, you're ready for your first match. Find a worthy opponent (or maybe someone in the learning stages like you) and start making your moves. You will figure out strategies as the game moves along. All you need to know are the basic moves of the pieces, and you can get started.

If you're playing at home, you may want to go over the standard rules with your opponent just so that you're both clear on whether this is a casual or tournament-style game. It's probably best to play casually unless you have a third party on hand who can act as the TD. After the first move is made, each player must alternate turns. No turn can ever be skipped or passed.

Chess Notation

If you decide you like the game enough and want to try and get really good at it, you should study up on game playing tactics. There are many of them. To do the necessary studying, you will have to know a little bit about Chess notation.

When studying the games, you will notice that all the plays are described in a coded language. One of the most popular forms of Chess notation is the Algebraic System. This system identifies each square on the chessboard by number and letter. Each column or file is labeled with a letter (ranging a to h from left to right) and each row is labeled with a number (going from one to eight up the rows when the white corner is on your bottom right). So you identify the players on the board according to where they sit in the grid. For example, at the start of the game, once the board is all set up, your Rooks sit on a1 and h1 accordingly. You will need to know this system if you want to study previous matches or follow matches played on the Internet. There are so many interactive Chess matches on the Web, and if you follow these games closely, you will eventually learn more about tactics. Notation can get very complicated, but here are some basic examples that will be helpful to you as you study:

Basic symbols in notation:

• K King
• Q Queen
• R Rook
• B Bishop
• N Knight
• + check
• ++ checkmate
• x capture (This symbol is often omitted when recording the capture of Pawns. For example, cxd5 means the Pawn on c4 captured the piece on d5. Sometimes this is shortened to cxd or even to just cd.)

Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Family Games © 2002 by BookEnds, LLC. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

To order this book visit the Idiot's Guide web site or call 1-800-253-6476.