The Chess Board Set Up

We are going to cover the chessboard setup but first, let us understand more about this amazing board game.

The board game chess is played by two people is known and played worldwide, requires an understanding of strategy, and requires expertise in opening moves, a middle game, and end game.

The beauty of this board game is it can be played by all ages and different skill levels; you can enjoy the game as a way of relaxing and enjoying the companionship of another chess player.

Or it can be a blood sport that involves tournament play and serious competition.

There are hard and fast rules but the bottom line is each chess player is trying to achieve the same goal and that is checkmate.

Each chess player maneuvers their chess pieces around the board trying to eliminate their opponent’s chessmen and hopefully capture his or her King.

Before we get ahead of ourselves we must first learn how to place the 16 chess pieces (16 for each player or 32 total) on the board of 64 different squares.

Once we understand how the chessboard is set up then it is time for the game to begin!

Use the diagram below with the letters by each chess piece to understand the placement on the chessboard.

The white chess pieces are a mirror image of the black chess pieces.

For additional help if you are more of a visual person you can view the chess setup video below, if an image is worth a thousand words then a video is worth even more.

Rooks - Place the rooks, which resemble small towers, in the four corner squares of the chessboard. (See a and h in the diagram)

Knights - Place the knights, which resemble a horse head, next to the rooks of the same color. (See b and g in the diagram)

Bishops – The bishops are placed next to the knights of the same color. (See c and f in the diagram)

Queen – The queen is usually the second-tallest piece in a chess set. Place the queen in the center square of its color. The white queen is placed on the lighter center square while the black queen is placed on the darker center square. (See d in the diagram)

King - The king is usually the tallest piece in a chess set and typically has a cross on its head. Each king should be placed next to the queen of the same color. (See e in the diagram)

Pawns - The pawns are the shortest and most numerous chess pieces in a chess set; there are eight pawns of each color. Place the pawns in each square in the row in front of the other pieces of the same color. (See i in diagram occupy the front row)

The chessboard is comprised of 64 squares, half of them are white, the other half black. Each chess player has 6 different chess pieces: 8 pawns, 2 rooks, 2 knights, 2 bishops, a queen, and the king.

The Rook - The movement of the rook is the easiest to learn of all pieces – rooks can go forward, backward, to the left or to the right that is all.

The Knight – The Knight moves in an L-shape over the squares. This means this chess piece first moves two squares in one direction (to the left, to the right, back- or forwards) and then one square into a horizontal or vertical direction.

The Bishop - If there are no other chess pieces in its way, the bishop can move in any direction diagonally, as many squares as desired.

The Queen – The queen can move in any direction and any number of squares. The one thing the queen can’t do is jump over other chess pieces.

The King - He can move just one square in any direction, but only if he isn’t placed in check by doing so. Besides, this square mustn’t be occupied by any other of your pieces (only one piece can ever occupy a square).

Another move that is unique only for the king is called castling is the definition below.

The Pawn - On their first move, the pawn can move one or two squares forward. On all other moves, a pawn can only go one square straight forward.

Castling defined by Wikipedia - Castling is a move in the game of chess involving a player's king and either of the player's original rooks. It is the only move in chess in which a player moves two pieces in the same move, and it is the only move aside from the knight's move where a piece can be said to "jump over" another.

Castling consists of moving the king two squares towards a rook on the player's first rank, then moving the rook to the square over which the king crossed.

Castling may only be done if the king has never moved, the rook involved has never moved, the squares between the king and the rook involved are unoccupied, the king is not in check, and the king does not cross over or end on a square attacked by an enemy piece.

The game room is very quiet you are having a stare-down match with a chessboard that consists of 64 squares, 32 on the chessboard are your color and the other 32 are your opponent's color.

You have 16 chess pieces on the chessboard and across from you the opposing Army has 16 as well, this is a battle to checkmate.

The Chess Players

Chess is a game that is very much like a battle that can be over in a heartbeat or go on for several hours depending on the skill set of the chess players involved. It has been played by nobles and commoners for centuries.

This amazing board game has stood the test of time and is showing no signs of slowing down and with the modern age of online chess maybe even more popular.

The Chess Strategy

There are numerous opening chess moves, strategies and everyone has their favorite, but none guarantee victory if you are facing a worthy chess opponent.

There is no age limit; chess is a game that can be enjoyed by young and old alike just visit a chess tournament.

When it comes to strategy in chess the moves that you have to master are the opening moves, the middle game, and the end game.

Master those and you could be the next Grandmaster of chess.

Oh, btw good luck with that goal!

The beauty of the chess piece

The chess sets themselves can be a work of art and can fit handsomely in a home office, game room, or study.

There are countless themes, styles, and different materials that the chessmen and boards are constructed from.

It is your move.