Russian checkers rules
Russian draughts is played on an 8×8 board, only on the dark squares. Each player has twelve pieces. You win by capturing all enemy pieces or leaving them without a legal move.
Starting position
White's twelve pieces fill the dark squares on the first three rows, and Black's twelve fill the last three rows. White moves first.
How ordinary pieces move
An ordinary piece (a man) moves one square diagonally forward onto an empty dark square. It never moves backward without capturing.
Compulsory capture
If you can capture, you must. A man captures by jumping over an adjacent enemy piece to the empty square directly behind it, in any of the four diagonal directions, including backward. You may choose which capture to make; it does not have to be the one that takes the most pieces.
Multiple jumps
If after a jump the same piece can jump again, it must continue until no more captures are possible. Captured pieces are removed only after the whole move, and no piece can be jumped twice in one move.
Kings
A man that reaches the far row becomes a king. If it reaches that row during a capture and can keep capturing as a king, it continues immediately. A king moves any number of free squares along a diagonal.
How kings capture
A king may jump over an enemy piece at any distance along a diagonal and land on any free square behind it. If a landing square allows another capture, the king must choose such a square and continue.
Winning and drawing
- You win when the opponent has no pieces left or cannot make a legal move.
- A draw occurs if the same position occurs three times.
- A draw occurs if 15 moves by each side pass with only kings moving and no capture.
- A draw occurs if three or more kings cannot win against a lone king within 15 moves.