Chess Rules Every Player Should Know

If you’re reading this, you likely know how the pieces move and which side to put the queen on, and other chess rules. However, you may not know how en passant works, have heard of the 50 move draw, or know why a player might suddenly say J’doube! 

In this article, we’re covering the middle ground: not every nuance and detail of the Chess Federation handbook, and not the absolute basics, but important rules that every chess player should know.

Credit: Tima Miroshnichenko - Pexels

Key Chess Rules

These are some rules for people who have played chess before, but may not be familiar with all of the key rules of the game, or are looking for a refresher. 

This won’t cover how the pieces move, how to set up the board, or other real fundamentals of how to play. If you are a true beginner, start with Chess Rules Beginners Need to Know.

Castling 

After learning the movement of each individual piece, the next step is the special moves. The most important and common is castling. It is the only one that moves two pieces at once. 

When you castle, you move your king 2 squares to one side of the board or the other, and the rook jumps over it towards the center. There are two different ways to castle, long and short. 

Short, or Kingside, Castling is the most common. For White, the king moves to g1, and for Black it moves to g8, while the rook moves to f1 or f8. The king is safe and sound behind the pawns, and the rook protects the vulnerable f2 or f7 squares.

Short Castling with White and Black 

Long, or Queenside, Castling is less common. For White, the king moves to c1, and for Black, it moves to c8 with the rook alongside it on d2 or d8. The king is behind some pawns, but one is unprotected on a2, and it is still accessible via the diagonal. However, the rook moves right into the center and often onto an open file, making it a more aggressive piece.

Long Castling with White and Black

Important Castling Rules

Castling has its own rules that it’s important to remember.

• No piece can be between the king and the rook.
• Your king cannot pass through check when you castle.
• Your king cannot be in check when you castle.
• You cannot castle after moving your king.
• You cannot castle after moving the rook you intend to castle with. 

Pawn Promotion

The secret weapon of the pawn: when they reach the end of the board, they can transform into anything they like. This happens instantly: the new piece replaces the pawn on the move it reaches the end of the board, and delivers any check that the new piece would.

 As the queen is the most powerful piece, it is naturally the most common choice, but it isn’t always the right call. In these rare cases, players may underpromote to deliver checks, avoid stalemate, or create a tactical combination.

Pawn promotion is incredibly important in the endgame, and there are a few nuances to the rule that everyone should know. 

Check, Checkmate, and Illegal Moves

The king is in check when it is threatened by another piece. In other words, it is on a square that is attacked by the possible moves of a piece. If the king is in check and has no way to escape, we have checkmate. 

These are basic rules, but they relate to one that beginners sometimes overlook. Illegal moves include moving pieces in any way that contradicts their potential movement. For example, jumping the bishop over a piece or moving the king two squares. It is also illegal to move the king into check; in other words, into the threat or “sight” created by another piece. This may seem obvious, but under time pressure, it is easy to make an illegal move by accident.

If you make an illegal move, you may correct it, and your opponent may receive extra time. Generally, if an illegal move is noticed later in the game, the rules state that you should revert to the original position

Resignation Rules

One way to end a chess game is through resignation. A player may resign at any time. You can do this verbally or through the recognized gestures of offering your hand or laying down your king. These are more ambiguous, so in tournaments it's best to be clear. 

It's important to remember that you are under no obligation to resign, and even in completely lost positions, chess games can quickly turn on their head. Also, for beginners, playing the game to the end will teach you more about chess. 

Draw by Repetition, Agreement, and Insufficient Material

There are many ways to draw a game of chess, but these three are the most common. 

Agreement: If both players agree to a draw, the game is over. You may offer a draw verbally, and a handshake often signals the acceptance of a draw. Be careful, though, because offering a handshake straight away is often considered a resignation. Also, avoid offering draws too regularly, as this is seen as bad chess etiquette because it can distract your opponent. 

Repetition: If the exact same position is reached three times in a game of chess, either player can claim a draw. On online platforms, a draw happens automatically. Draws by repetition often happen when both players can only make one more move that doesn’t drastically damage their chances of winning.

Insufficient material: If there are not enough pieces on the board for one player to checkmate the other, the game ends in a draw. This could be two kings; two kings and a knight; two kings and a bishop; two kings and a bishop each; or two kings and a knight each. 

Stalemate

Another way to draw a chess game is via stalemate. This happens when the player whose turn it is has no legal moves, but they are not checkmated. This often happens in endgames, when the king is pinned down, and the attacking player forgets that the king needs to either be in check or have an escape square.

A dreaded position for White. In a completely winning position, they have stalemated their opponent

En Passant

En passant is a move that often leaves beginners at a loss. You’ve learned how the pawn moves, and now suddenly it has a secret weapon. While not the most common move in chess, forgetting about en passant can quickly leave you in a lost position. 

The move is possible when one player has a pawn on the 4th or 5th rank, and the other player moves a pawn 2 squares from its starting position past the central pawn. In this position, the first player can capture the pawn in passing.

How en passant works

Importantly, en passant can only be played on the next move after the other player moves their pawn two squares. 

Touch-Move

While not often enforced in casual games, watch out for the touch-rule sticklers. In tournaments, not following this rule could lead to a very bad situation. Simply, it states that if you intentionally touch a piece with a legal move, you must move that piece. 

If you are training for competitive chess, it is a good idea to get used to touching a piece only when you are ready to move it.

Time Rules

If you are playing with a time control, this adds ways to win or lose the game. Namely, via timeout. If a player runs out of time or flags, they lose the game. Playing with clocks online and over the board is very common, so winning via time is important to consider. 

Important Lesser-Known Rules

If you play chess regularly, most of the above rules quickly become familiar out of necessity. However, some rules may only become familiar if you participate in tournaments, research chess, or play for a longer period. 

Let’s take a look at a few lesser-known, but important, chess rules. 

50-Move Draw

Personally, I didn’t learn about this way to draw a game for the first couple of years playing chess. It is designed to end games that are effectively, if not technically, stalemated.

It states that if, after 50 moves, no pawn moves or captures are made, either player can claim the game is a draw. This often occurs in simplified endgames where the position is almost equal or very difficult to win, but the players do not agree to a draw. For example, a bishop and a rook vs a rook. Technically, the bishop and rook can win, but it is very difficult, and for most players, the game could go on indefinitely.

One-Hand Rule

This is another rule that casual players would be unlikely to enforce, but is important for tournaments. It states that you must use only one hand to move your pieces and to change the chess clock. This prevents players from moving the pieces with one hand while the other hand hovers over the chess clock. 

If you use a chess clock to play, it is advisable to get used to doing it this way.

Chess clocks are common even in casual games

Adjusting Pieces

Sometimes in a game, you may want to adjust your pieces, but what about the touch move rule? A qualifying rule allows you to touch your pieces as long as you announce it first. Traditionally, this is done by announcing J’doube or “I adjust” in French. However, today you can usually announce it in your own language. 

Recording Moves 

In classical chess tournaments, players must record their moves on a score sheet, and there are many rules relating to this. The basics are that you record your move on your own time, after you have made the move. In shorter time controls and online tournaments, recording the moves is not required. 

One lesser-known rule about score sheets is that even in classical chess, you can stop recording your moves if you have less than 5 minutes on the clock.