Pawns are the most interesting pieces on a chess board. They are the most numerous, and also the least powerful, but they have the most potential in case they are promoted. They are all across the second row away from you when the game begins, and they can move one space forward each turn. However, the first time a pawn is moved, it can move forward two spaces. It captures by landing on an enemy piece, and the enemy piece must be one row farther ahead than the pawn, but also one column to the left or right If an enemy piece is in this position, the pawn may move to its space, and the enemy piece is removed from the game. In addition to this, if there is one row between a pawn of your own and the starting line of your opponent's pawns, and an enemy pawn one column to the left or right of your own moves forward one space, it could be captured by your pawn. Your opponent may try to avoid this by moving ahead two spaces. If this happens, you may put your pawn in the space the enemy pawn would be in if it had moved only one space, capturing your opponent's pawn. Pawns, like all other pieces except knights,cannot move if it would require moving over another piece. Another interesting ability of pawns is that when they reach the farthest row to the back, they may be transformed into any piece except a king. This must be done as soon as they reach the back row, if at all.
These pieces are known as either rooks or castles. They are place in the two corners closest to you at the beginning of the game. They may move as many spaces as possible in a direction moving along squares side by side, rather than diagonally, without having to jump over a piece. They also have another unique move known as castling, which is the only time multiple pieces may move in one turn. If neither the castle performing this move nor the king of the same color has yet moved,the king may move two spaces toward the castle and then the castle moves either two or three spaces, jumping over the king so that it is one space to the right of the king, if it was the left castle, or one space to the left of the king if it was the right castle.
Knights begin in the row closest to you, in the second squares from the corners. They have their own unique move, and are the only pieces that can jump over other pieces. When they move, they move three spaces in any direction except diagonally, and then move two spaces in a direction perpendicular to the first. They may jump over other pieces to do this, but cannot if it would mean ending on a piece of their own color. Knights, like all pieces (with the exception of en passant) capture enemy pieces by landing on them.
Bishops move similarly to rooks, but the difference is that bishops move diagonally as opposed to orthogonally. A trick fo avoiding capture by them is that because they are set up in the front row on the third spaces inward, each one must always be on a particular color square. If a bishop on a white square is threatening (threatening means that it is in a position to capture a piece next turn) you piece, moving the piece in question to a black square is a foolproof way to keep it safe, though only from that particular bishop. Centuries ago, the Church was considered as powerful as royalty, if not greater, so the bishops begin standing on either sideof the king and queen.
Queens are the most powerful pieces on the board. They begin in the row closest to you on whichever of the two squares between the bishops of the same color match the color of the said queen. Queens move as either a rook or a bishop, except for castling, and are very difficult to get away from. However, as they are the most powerful pieces, they should never be brought into play unless they are nessesary to win the game. In fact, keeping your queen safe rather than bringing her out early is considered the Golden Rule of chess, though it seems almost idiotic when you see the importance of the next piece on the list.
Kings are the least useful pieces, and yet they are the most important. They can move in any direction, like queens, but except when castling they can move only one space at a time. The entire game centers around the king. When the king is threatened, it is in Check. The king is not allowed be moved into Check, and this includes moving a different piece and exposing the king. When in Check, the king must immediately be moved out of Check, or a piece must be moved to protect him. If this is impossible to do in a single turn, the king is Checkmated, and the player whose king is Checkmated loses the game. When this occurs, the winning player may say Checkmate, Check and Mate, or Shah Mat, depending on their preference. This last means "The King is Dead," and comes from Persia, where chess originated.
A draw occors when neither side can win. If a king is not in Check, but no move can be made without putting the king in Check, this is a stalemate. If no piece is captured for fifty moves, and no pawn is moved for fifty moves, there is a draw. If no side has enough pieces to make a checkmate, there is a draw. Also, both players may agree to a draw at any point in the game.
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