KarHow to play Chess
Chess is a contest to checkmate the opposing king. Karciak supports the usual special moves: castling, en passant and a choice of promotion piece. Practise against a bot or choose a ranked duel for the separate chess ELO.
Start a game
- White starts; the players alternate turns.
- Select one of your pieces, then a highlighted legal destination.
- Respond to check by protecting the king.
- Promote a pawn reaching the final rank.
- Deliver checkmate to win, or reach one of the game’s draw conditions.
The army and legal moves
Each side starts with a king, queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights and eight pawns. Pieces have their standard movement patterns. The game rejects a move that leaves your own king attacked.
Check means the king is attacked and must be protected. Checkmate means it is attacked and there is no legal response. Capturing the king is not a separate finishing move: checkmate ends the game.
Castling, en passant and promotion
- Castle by selecting the king and a destination two squares toward the rook. The king and rook must not have moved, the intervening squares must be clear, and the king cannot be in check, cross an attacked square or finish on one.
- En passant is available immediately after an opposing pawn advances two squares alongside your pawn. Capture it as though it had advanced one square; the opportunity expires after the next move.
- A pawn reaching the final rank can become a queen, rook, bishop or knight. Choose the piece in the promotion control.
Draws
Stalemate is a draw: the player to move has no legal move but their king is not in check. It differs from checkmate, where the king is attacked.
The implementation also handles insufficient material to mate, threefold repetition, and 50 moves by each side without a capture or pawn move. Do not assume that a large material advantage guarantees a win if you allow stalemate.
Example: use the king to castle
When castling is legal on the kingside, choose the king and its square two files toward the rook. The rook moves automatically. Trying to drag the rook first is not the castling command.
Before simplifying to a winning ending, check the opposing king’s legal moves. A move that traps it without giving check may produce stalemate instead of the checkmate you intended.
A practical plan
In the opening, develop pieces, contest the centre and secure the king. In the middlegame, look for loose pieces, forks, pins and open files. In endings, activate useful pieces and help a passed pawn reach promotion.
Bot games let you practise without changing the ranked result. Only the ranked mode changes the chess rating; do not treat every friendly table as an ELO match.
Strategy and useful habits
- Before moving, check threats against both kings.
- Develop pieces rather than repeatedly moving one without a purpose.
- Look for forcing checks and captures, then verify the reply.
- Choose promotion according to the position rather than automatically in every case.
Common mistakes
- Confusing stalemate with checkmate.
- Trying to castle through check.
- Waiting a move before an en passant capture.
- Leaving a piece undefended while focusing only on an attack.
Questions and answers
Can I choose my promotion piece?
Yes: queen, rook, bishop or knight.
How do I castle?
Select the king, then its legal destination two squares toward the rook.
Do games with friends always change ELO?
No. Choose ranked play for a result that changes the separate chess ELO.