How to Play Checkers

In nearly all modern iterations of checkers, the rules for starting a game are the same: The darker color moves first [source: Hasbro]. Figuring out which player gets which pieces is a different story. There is no set rule here, so you'll have to flip a coin or take turns going first.

Once you've decided who moves first, it's time to figure out how to move. There are two types of moves, but at the beginning of a game, you'll have only one option: to move one space diagonally forward. This is called a non-capturing move. If you aren't able to capture any pieces, you can move any of your pieces one square forward. Each player is allowed to move one piece per move.

The other type of move is called a capturing move. These are diagonal "hops" that take place when your piece is diagonal from your opponent's piece. Since the object of the game is to capture all your opponent's pieces, this is a vital step. You can jump over your opponent's pieces only if a blank square is open diagonally on the other side of it. You can jump as many of your opponent's pieces in one turn as the board allows. Once you've jumped a piece that piece is removed from the board.

If you're in position to make one of these capturing moves, you have to make it; however, if you have multiple capturing moves available to you, you may choose which one you'd like to pursue.

Eventually, at least one of your pieces should make it to the other side of the board. This means it will be crowned a king by having one of your previously captured pieces placed on top of it. Now you can move this piece diagonally forward or backward to capture pieces or block your opponent.

As we mentioned earlier, the directions, objects and rules are fairly straightforward, but like the best games, checkers has a deep strategy that has kept people playing for centuries. We'll look at some of these strategies in the next section.

Checkers is far more advanced than people might realize when they first start out. There are numerous strategies and play styles to consider.

When studying checkers strategy, you'll first need to understand checkers notation. Notation is used to mark spots on the board, and it's used in shorthand to record classic games. If you're playing the darker color, the notation starts by numbering off the dark squares across the bottom from right to left and moving up the board in that pattern. So, your first square would be a "1" in the bottom right corner. If you're playing white, the notation starts with "1" at the top left, moving across to the right and then down the board, like reading lines in an English-language book.

A move is recorded by first listing the origin square and then the landing square. So, the first move of a game might be something like 12-16, which would be taking the dark piece that is farthest left in the third to bottom row and moving it one spot diagonally forward and to the right. Jumps are typically marked with an "x," so taking the same piece from the first example and jumping an opponent piece would result in 12x19.

Blocking in checkers is an important strategy in winning. It's useful both to frustrate the opponent and to delay any plans he starts to lay down. Blocking requires moving your pieces to locations on the board that prevent your opponent from jumping. The trick is in figuring out your opponent's plans — not an easy feat by any means. Checkers is all about planning ahead, though, so it's a useful skill to learn.

As with any strategy, planning your potential moves in advance may be the best way to win a game. If you can predict what your opponent may be up to, you can learn to block or set traps for them. Traps can include things such as exploiting the forced capture rule, in which you sacrifice one of your own pieces to get to more of your opponent's, or a side route strategy, in which you block the chance for your opponent to jump you by hugging the side of the board.

Here are some other tips, courtesy of Hasbro:

The earliest recognizable version of checkers dates back to an Egyptian game called alquerque, which uses a five-square by five-square board and has similar jumping moves. Archaeologists trace it back all the way to 600 B.C.E. The game has since traveled across the globe in different iterations, from the French version known as fierges to the English version known as draughts [source: International Draughts Federation. It has even made an appearance in Greek literature, mentioned by Homer in the epic "The Odyssey" when some haughty suitors are caught "playing draughts in front of the house." Famous players include Cicero, Napoleon and Edgar Allan Poe.

The size of the board has changed over the course of history but has settled on two different variations: the 100-square (10x10) board used in many European countries and the 64-square (8x8) board used in American checkers. Checkers/draughts is played all over the world but is particularly popular in Russia, France, Brazil and Turkey, with different countries and regions having slightly different rules. For instance, in international draughts you can jump your pieces forward and backward but in American checkers, you can only jump forward (unless the piece is a king).

On the surface, checkers may appear to be a simple game. It has no diversity in its parts, with just two colors and a seemingly simple premise: Remove your opponent's pieces from the board by jumping over them before he can remove yours. However, it is a game that combines strategy, forethought, mathematics and a bajillion different combinations of moves.