Checkers FAQ

Capture all of your opponent's pieces, or leave them with no legal move. You win when your opponent has no pieces left or every piece they have is blocked, sometimes after a run of forced captures leaves them stuck. If neither player can force a win, the game is a draw.

An ordinary piece, called a man, moves one square diagonally forward onto an empty dark square. It never moves backward, and it only moves more than one square when it captures. A king moves one square diagonally forward or backward, still only on the dark squares.

The player with the dark pieces, usually called Black, moves first. That is the standard rule in American checkers, and it's how games start on PlayFaceToFace.

No. Every move happens on the dark squares. The light squares play no part in American checkers.

No. A man can't move backward and can't capture backward. Moving backward is something only kings can do.

If an opponent's piece is diagonally next to yours and the square directly beyond it is empty, you jump over it, land on that empty square and the jumped piece is removed. If your piece can jump again from where it lands, it keeps going in the same turn. Captures are compulsory whenever one is available.

No. If you have a capture, you must take it. If more than one capture is available you choose which one to make, but you must finish every jump in the sequence you chose.

A man can't. A king can capture in all four diagonal directions. Some other versions, such as International and Russian draughts, let men capture backward, but American checkers does not.

Each jumped piece comes off the board, and no piece can be jumped twice in one turn. Tournament rules lift all the captured pieces once the whole move is finished. On PlayFaceToFace each piece disappears as it is jumped. In ordinary positions this makes no difference to which jumps are possible.

You pick the capture you prefer. American checkers does not make you take the sequence that captures the most pieces; that rule belongs to International draughts and some other versions. Once you start a capture with a piece, you must complete every jump available in that sequence.

No. A jump needs an opponent's piece with an empty square behind it. No standard version of checkers lets you jump your own pieces.

A king is a man that has reached the far row, your opponent's back rank. It is crowned there and gains the right to move and capture backward as well as forward, which makes it far more flexible than a man.

No. In American checkers a king moves one square at a time, just like a man. It gains directions, not range. Flying kings that slide along a whole diagonal belong to versions such as International and Brazilian draughts.

It can be crowned, but crowning ends the move. A man that lands on the far row during a multi-jump becomes a king there and stops, even if as a king it could jump again. It can use its new powers from the next turn. This is the standard rule for American checkers, and it is how PlayFaceToFace plays.

Yes, with correct technique. Keep your kings central, close off the lone king's diagonals, push it toward the edge or a corner, then trap it or force it into a capture. Two coordinated kings win against one.

In checkers a player who can't move loses, so a blocked position is a win for the other side. A drawn game comes about when neither player can force a win, when the same position keeps repeating, when a long run of moves passes with no progress, or when both players agree. Some online platforms declare a draw automatically after a set number of moves without a capture or a crowning.

Yes. A game is drawn when neither side can gain an advantage, when a position repeats three times, after a long series of moves with no progress, or by agreement. Competitive checkers uses formal draw rules; casual games often just agree a draw.

Yes. In 2007 Jonathan Schaeffer's team at the University of Alberta proved, with their program Chinook, that perfect play from both sides leads to a draw. Their paper called it the most challenging popular game solved up to then. That doesn't change much at the table, because no human can memorise or calculate perfect play.

Because captures are compulsory, you can place your pieces so your opponent has to capture onto a losing square, open up a multi-jump for you, break their own defensive structure or give up control of a diagonal. This is one of the central ideas of strong checkers.

Control the centre, leave your back rank alone early on, develop both wings evenly and keep your men connected. Simple openings that strengthen your formation beat early charges for a king.

An edge piece has fewer moves, fewer squares to defend and more exposure to traps. Edge pieces aren't weak in themselves, but move them carefully and with a reason.

Very. They win material, break up formations, change who has the initiative and cut off your opponent's counterplay. Beginners often miss them, and a missed multi-jump can decide a game.

Skill. There are no dice and no hidden cards, so the result comes from planning, recognising traps, managing your formation, tactical accuracy and endgame knowledge. Results can feel random to beginners, but they become far more predictable as players improve.

Yes. The main ones are American checkers or English draughts (the version on PlayFaceToFace), International draughts on a 10x10 board with flying kings, Russian draughts where men can capture backward, Brazilian draughts which uses the international rules on an 8x8 board, Turkish draughts where pieces move straight instead of diagonally, and Canadian checkers on a 12x12 board. Each one plays quite differently.

On PlayFaceToFace you can open a private room and play friends with optional video chat, or practise against the AI. The game enforces the rules for you, including forced captures, so it's a good place to learn, drill tactics or just play a casual game.