Quick Chess
Quick Chess Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Objective
Attack. Capture. Check!
Light color pieces move first: players take turns moving. Only one piece may be moved on each turn. The Knight is the only piece that can jump over other pieces. All other pieces move only along squares that are unobstructed by other pieces.
You win by trapping your opponent's King so he cannot escape. The more of your opponent's pieces you capture, the easier it will be.
Two pieces may never share the same square. When one of your pieces lands on a square already occupied by your opponent's piece, you displace it with your own piece -- you have CAPTURED your opponent's piece!
If any opponent's piece, except the King, is in position where you can capture it on your next move, that piece is under ATTACK. A King under attack is in CHECK!
Setting Up
The board is set up with the Dark pieces at the top and the Light pieces at the bottom.
End Game: Checkmate or Draw
You must get your King immediately out of check in one of the following ways:
- Move to a square which is NOT under attack.
- CAPTURE the piece that is checking him.
- Place one of your own pieces to BLOCK the check.
If you cannot do any of these things, then your King is CHECKMATED and you lose the game!
Sometimes, neither player has enough pieces left to checkmate each other. If, after many moves it appears that neither player can win, you can both agree on the game being a DRAW, or tie.
Piece Movement
Robok the Rook
Fast! Forward. Backward. Right or left. In a straight line -- a path of alternating color squares. As near as the first square or as far as the square at the edge of the board, if unobstructed. Never diagonally. Changing direction only at the start of a new move.
The Rook can move horizontally or vertically to any square indicated by dots & arrows.
Test your skills with Robok's Challenge:
"Flip the board over. Pick me up and start from the square marked "ROOK". Cross me over every square on the board without crossing the same square twice. Do it in 9 moves."
Bubba the Bishop
Swiftly! The Bishop moves diagonally in a STRAIGHT line as far as the edge of the board on each move, and may stop on ANY SQUARE along the way, if unobstructed.
A diagonal path travels from the corner of one square onto the corner of the next diagonally adjacent square of the same color. The Bishop ALWAYS stays on the same color squares and only changes direction on a new move.
The Bishop can move to any square indicated by dots & arrows.
Test your skills with Bubba's Challenge:
"Flip the board over. Pick me up and start from the square marked "BISHOP". Move me to the other 3 edges of the board (not corners), then return. Do it in 5 moves."
Queen Inja
The Queen is the most powerful piece! On any single move, she may choose the path of a Rook or a Bishop.
That is, she moves either in a straight or diagonal path, but never from one to the other on the SAME move.
The Queen can move to any square indicated by dots & arrows. She moves in one direction at a time.
Test your skills with Queen Inja's Challenge:
"Flip the board over. Pick me up and see if you can find the best square to put me on. Hint: The best place to be is on the square that gives me the most choices to move to."
Nifty the Knight
The Knight jumps! Why? The Knight rides a horse! The Knight has a fixed number of steps per move (3 squares) and may only capture another piece on its third step.
The Knight always jumps in the shape of an "L" by jumping two squares forwards or backwards or sideways, then one square to the right or left. The Knight always ends each move resting on a square whose color is different from the square the Knight started on.
The Knight can move to any square indicated by a circle.
Test your skills with Nifty's Challenge:
"Flip the board over. Pick me up and start from the square marked "KNIGHT". Move me to the other 3 corners, then return. Do it in 10 moves."
King Chestarr
The old and wise King moves slowly. For any single move the King may move in any direction that the Queen may move, but each move is limited to one square.
The King's 8 possible moves are indicated by circles.
Test your skills with King Chestarr's Challenge:
"Flip the board over. Pick me up and start from the square marked "KING". Move me to my opponent's 2 corners, then return. Do it in 14 moves."
Peppi the Pawn
Never backwards. Never sideways. Only forward. And only one square at a time. But, if another piece, whether yours or your opponent's, blocks a Pawn's path, it's stuck! It cannot move as long as another piece is on the square directly in front of it.
Pawns don't capture as they normally move. They're sneaky! Pawns only can capture diagonally on the two forward diagonally adjoining squares.
The 3 left Pawns can capture each other, or they may pass each other without a capture. The 2 right Pawns are deadlocked (can't move). The bottom Pawn can advance one square per move.
The Pawn's baseline is marked on the diagram.
Test your pawn skills: Play "Rescue the Queen". See instruction booklet.
Rescues and Promotions
A Pawn may RESCUE a captured piece by making it to a square on the enemy's baseline. The rescued piece will take the Pawn's place on the square on that. If there is no piece to rescue, the Pawn gets PROMOTED to a Prince or Princess whose power is equal to a Queen.
Transcription note: the sheet's wording for the rescue is reproduced as printed in the photograph; the separate instruction booklet, which would fully specify rescues and promotions, was not available.
Answers to Challenges
- Rook: Do not cross the same square twice. Can you find 5 more ways?
- Bishop: Can you find another way?
- Knight: Can you find 8 more ways?
- King: Can you find 10 more ways?
- Queen: The Queen can move to 17 other squares from this spot. She can also move in 8 different directions.
Do You Already Play Chess?
If so, follow these simple directions:
No castling. And pawns may NOT advance two squares on the first move. Promotions permitted (see Rescues and Promotions). Rules may be altered, if conforming to all US Chess Federation guidelines and if both players agree.