Brazilian Checkers is a strategy game and a variant of the board game draughts. It is similar to International draughts, but with a game-board of only 8×8 squares and 12 pieces according to the rules of the World Checkers Federation (FMJD).
The goal of the game is to prevent the opponent from making any move by capturing all his pieces or by blocking them. In other cases, the game is considered a draw.
Brazilian Checkers rules
Moves
- The first move is made by the player playing white pieces.
- Players make moves one at a time, alternately with their own checkers.
- The movement is mandatory.
- The simple piece moves diagonally only forward to the dark unoccupied square of the next row.
- In a situation where the piece reaches the end line of the other side of the board, it becomes a king.
- The king moves diagonally in all directions to any empty square.
Captures
- If the piece is in the vicinity of the opponent’s diagonal, behind which there is an unoccupied square, then you can jump over this piece and land on this empty square. The piece that has been jumped over is removed from the game.
- Captures are made forwards or backwards.
- Captures are mandatory.
- In the situation where you have the choice between making multi-jumps over your opponent’s checkers, it is mandatory to choose the one that make you capture the maximum pieces.
- If a simple piece during a capture passes through the end line of the board and continues capturing, it does not turn into a king and still remains a simple piece.
- If the king has already taken a piece, and his has one other eligible piece to jump over or more, he must capture it or them.
Crowning
A simple piece is crowned if it moves to a square in the last row of the board. By crowning we mean placing an other piece on top of it to be marked end it is, then, called King. A king is free to move multiple squares diagonally in any direction and can capture an opponent piece even if it is some distance away from it. He can also choose which empty square to land on, but it mandatory that he captures all the eligible pieces possible.
Winning and draws
- A player loses when he can’t make any valid move. The player who win is the one who can capture all his opponent pieces or block them and prevent them to make any legal move.
- A game is a draw if no one of the players can force a win. The game is also a draw when one of the opponents make the same move and repeats it move for the third time (not necessarily consecutive).