How the pieces move

The pieces

Each side starts with 16 pieces: a king, a queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights and eight pawns.

• The rook moves in straight lines along files and ranks.
• The bishop moves diagonally and always stays on the same colour.
• The queen combines the rook and the bishop.
• The king moves one square in any direction.
• The knight moves in an L shape and can jump over other pieces.
• The pawn moves forward one square (two on its first move) and captures diagonally.

Remember

The goal of the game is to checkmate the opponent's king.