International Draughts

International Draughts

The competitive standard for tournament play worldwide. Evolved independently from Alquerque in the Netherlands around 1550, expanding to a 10x10 board with flying kings and strict capture priority rules. Historically called “Polish Draughts” (a misnomer from Dutch convention, not Polish origin). Governed by the World Draughts Federation (FMJD).

Setup

Board: 10×10 checkered board. Only the 50 dark squares are used. Orient the board so the long diagonal runs from each player’s lower-left to upper-right.

Pieces: 20 men per player. Place all 20 on the dark squares of your four nearest rows. The two central rows remain empty.

First move: White moves first.

Rules

• Men movement: Men move diagonally forward only, one square at a time, to an unoccupied dark square.
• Men capture: Men capture by jumping diagonally over an adjacent opponent piece to the vacant square beyond. Men can capture both forwards and backwards (unlike English Draughts).
• Mandatory capture: If any capture is available, it must be taken, even if disadvantageous.
• Majority rule: When multiple capture sequences are available, the player must choose the piece and path that captures the maximum number of pieces. If tied, the player may freely choose.
• Delayed removal: Captured pieces remain on the board until the entire multi-jump sequence is complete, then all are removed simultaneously. A jumped piece cannot be jumped again in the same sequence, but it still physically occupies its square during the turn.
• No re-jumping: A piece cannot jump over the same opponent piece twice in one sequence.

King Promotion

When a man ends its turn on the opponent’s back row, it is promoted to a King (flying king).

• Flying kings: Kings move any number of unoccupied squares diagonally in any direction.
• King capture: Kings capture by jumping over a single opponent piece that is any number of empty squares away along a diagonal, landing on any open square beyond the captured piece along the same line.
• No mid-sequence promotion: If a man passes through the opponent’s back row during a multi-jump sequence (without stopping there), it is NOT promoted. Promotion only occurs when the piece ends its turn on the back row.

Winning

A player wins when their opponent has no legal move available: all pieces captured or all pieces blocked.

Draws

The game is a draw when:

• Both players agree.
• The same position occurs three times with the same player to move.
• 25 consecutive king moves pass with no capture and no man movement.
• Neither player can force a win.

Strategy

The 10x10 board rewards long-range planning. Flying kings dominate the endgame, so preventing your opponent’s promotion while securing your own is critical. The majority capture rule creates combination opportunities: sacrifice pieces to force your opponent into a capture sequence that leaves them exposed.

Attribution

Traditional variant. Public domain. Rules standardised by the World Draughts Federation (FMJD). Source: FMJD Official Rules, Wikipedia (CC-BY-SA).