Laser Chess Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Includes
• How to Play
• Token Guide
• Steps to Play
• Movement Rules
• Winning the Game
• Battery Replacement
• Board Setups

Includes

Game Tokens (26 total):

• Laser x2
• King x2
• Switch x4
• Deflector x14
• Defender x4
• Game Grid (board) x1

How to Play

OBJECT: Be the first player to strike your opponent's King with a Laser.

SETUP: The first time you play, pull the tab from the bottom of each Laser piece to activate the batteries.

Note: Each laser requires two standard model AG13/LR44 button cell batteries. See Battery Replacement below for instructions on replacing batteries.

1. Determine which player will use the gray/red tokens and which player will use the blue/white tokens.
2. Select a board setup (see Board Setups below) and set up the board as shown. If you are new to the game, begin with the ACE configuration. As you become familiar with the game you can advance to CURIOSITY, GRAIL, MERCURY and SOPHIE. Once you've mastered play, use your creativity to invent your own starting positions!

Token Guide

Laser: Each player has one Laser that remains in the corner of the game Grid throughout the game. Press the button on top at the end of each turn to activate the laser. The Laser is not a playing token and cannot be eliminated from play.

Deflector: The mirrored side of the Deflector reflects the laser 90 degrees. A Deflector is eliminated from play when any of its non-mirrored surfaces are hit by the laser.

Defender: The front side of a Defender blocks the laser and the Defender will remain in play if hit from the front. However, a Defender can be eliminated from play if the laser strikes either of its sides or its back.

Switch: Both sides of the Switch reflect the laser 90 degrees. The Switch can also swap places with an adjacent Deflector or Defender. A Switch can never be eliminated from play.

King: The game ends when the laser strikes a King.

Steps to Play

1. The blue/white player goes first. Players take turns with each player moving only their own tokens. All playing tokens, including Kings, can be moved.

2. On a turn a player must first take one of the following actions: a. Move any one token one space in any direction (including diagonally) following the Movement Rules below. b. Rotate a token 90 degrees in either direction without moving spaces. c. Rotate his or her own Laser to point in the direction of either the first column or the first row. Rotation of the Laser must always be done before it is fired.

3. To complete a turn, a player activates the laser by the button on top of his or her own Laser. Tokens are then removed from the board based on where the beam lands. Refer to the Token Guide above for a description of when to eliminate pieces from play.

   If the laser beam lands on a player's own token, the token is still eliminated from play according to the descriptions in the Token Guide.

4. Red/gray tokens can never move into spaces with white helix patterns and blue/white tokens can never move into squares containing red helix patterns. (Located along the edges of the board.)

IMPORTANT: The Laser is fired only one time at the end of a player's turn and the turn is over whether or not the laser hits a token. A Laser cannot be fired as a "test" mid-turn while a player is still deciding on a move to make. Once a move is made the move cannot be taken back and the Laser must be fired.

Movement Rules

1. A token may only be moved OR rotated in one turn, not both.
2. A token may only be rotated 90 degrees at a time.
3. SPECIAL MOVE – This move is made only by a Switch token. The Switch may swap places with an adjacent Deflector or Defender of either color. Neither token rotates during the swap. A Switch cannot swap places with a King or another Switch piece.

Winning the Game

When either laser beam lands on a King token, that King is removed and the game is over. If you are the player whose King remains – YOU WIN!

If you accidentally hit your own King—your opponent wins the game.

NOTE: If at any time during play an identical board arrangement appears for a third time in the same game (i.e. the same tokens of the same colors occupy the same squares in the same orientations), the player making the next move can declare a stalemate.

Battery Replacement

WARNING: use of controls or adjustments or performance of procedures other than those specified herein may result in hazardous radiation exposure.

Class 1 laser complies with IEC/EN 60825-1:2014

2 Devices: 2x AG13/LR44, 1.5V

IMPORTANT BATTERY INFORMATION: WARNING

• Non-rechargeable batteries must not be recharged!
• Rechargeable batteries may only be charged under adult supervision.
• Rechargeable batteries must be removed from the toy before being charged.
• Different types of batteries or new and used batteries are not to be mixed!
• Insert the batteries in the correct "+" and "-" positions.
• Remove the batteries when they are empty or if the unit is not going to be used for a long period of time.
• The supply terminals must not to be short-circuited.
• We recommend the use of alkaline batteries.
• Only use batteries of the same or similar type.
• Always replace all the batteries at the same time, not just singly.

WARNING: Contains button battery / button batteries. Swallowing or insertion into a part of the body can lead to severe internal chemical burns. Used batteries must be disposed of immediately. Keep new and used batteries away from children. If you suspect that your child has swallowed or inserted batteries into a part of their body, consult a doctor immediately.

Dispose of any items marked with this symbol as follows: Do not put any of the game's electronic components in your household waste, but take them to the appropriate collection point at your local waste disposal site. Please contact your council for further details.

Board Setups

The manual gives five named preset starting configurations: ACE, CURIOSITY, GRAIL, MERCURY, and SOPHIE. It presents each as a full-color photograph of the assembled physical board rather than a schematic grid with coordinates. ACE is the recommended configuration for new players; CURIOSITY, GRAIL, MERCURY, and SOPHIE are progressively suggested as players become more familiar with the game. Once you've mastered play, you're encouraged to invent your own starting positions.

In every configuration shown, each side's tokens occupy roughly the back three rows on that player's side of the Grid, mirrored between the gray/red and blue/white players. Each player's Laser sits fixed in a corner of the Grid on the diagonal from its owner's back row, each King is placed among the back-row pieces near the center, and Deflectors, Defenders, and Switches fill out the remaining starting tokens for that setup. Because the printed diagrams are angled product photography rather than flat schematic grids, exact per-square coordinates could not be reliably read off them for this transcription — refer to the diagrams in the official manual (or the ThinkFun product page) for the precise square-by-square placement of each configuration.