Rules of Italian Draughts

Italian Draughts is a variant of draughts or checkers that is popular mainly in Italy and North Africa. It is a board game for two players, which is characterized by its strategic complexity and the need to think several moves in advance.

Game board and pieces

The game takes place on a board of 64 squares, divided into 32 white and 32 black. The board is placed in a way that the square located in the right corner of both sides is black.

There is a total of 24 pieces: 12 white and 12 black. Each player starts with their pieces lined up in the three rows closest to their position.

Movements and captures

In Italian Draughts, the pieces move diagonally and can capture by jumping over an opposing piece and landing on an empty square located directly behind that piece.

Let's have a look at the rules of this game:

• The player with the white pieces moves first. Then the other player moves.
• In Italian Draughts, capture is mandatory. You can capture up to a maximum of 3 pieces in a row.
• If normal pieces ("men") reach the last row of the board, they become "kings". To differentiate them from the rest, another piece of the same colour is usually placed on top of it or, if this is not possible, a piece of another colour is placed below the new king. Kings can move diagonally both forwards and backwards, and can only be captured by other kings.
• If a player is faced with the possibility of choosing which captures to make, the first and main rule to follow is to capture the most pieces.
• If a player can capture an equal number of pieces with a men and a king, they must choose the king.
• If a player can capture the same number of pieces with a king, and there are one or more options that include kings, they must choose to capture as many kings as possible.
• If a player with a king can capture an equal number of pieces (each series including a king), they must capture the series where the king appears first.

Victory and draw

The player who captures all the opponent's pieces wins. The game will end in a draw if neither player can capture the opponent's pieces.

Don't wait any longer and join the fun with Italian Draughts right now!