Chess

Chess is a strategy board game in which two players compete against each other. It is also known as Western chess or international chess to distinguish it from similar games like xiangqi and shogi.

Chess is considered a creative treatment technique, which enables analysis and response to obstacles when they arise in a game.

According to researchers, the game tests players' memory, math, visual-spatial, and critical thinking capabilities. All of these delays the onset of dementia and lessen cognitive decline as you age.

Chess Game's Origins

Who Is the Inventor of Chess?

Chess has a long history, spanning decades and perhaps centuries! But who created the game that we all enjoy? What was the origin of this well-known mental practice that tens of millions of people participate in?

  • Chess is well-known around the world and is played by many people, yet its origins and roots are unclear and hotly debated.
     
  • Starting with controversy over where it came from and ending with when chess began, there is a range of legends, anecdotes, and simple guesses.
     
  • Most people may agree, however, that the established game was not formed by a single person because it is simply too complicated, with all its rules and principles, for a single simple human mind to have devised.
     
  • The game of chess was in a constant state of change until Wilhelm Steinitz became the first acknowledged World Chess Champion in 1886.
     
  • When we think of modern chess, we might have trouble recognizing it: from a game driven by intuitive decision-making to a battle between chess machines.

So, in this article, we'll look at the various origins of the game of chess and teach you the basics of chess history.

  • Chess grew in popularity over the world, and in the mid-nineteenth century, chess sets were standardized. Chess sets were not uniform before the 1850s.
     
  • Jaques of London introduced Nathaniel Cooke's new style of pieces in 1849. The best player of his generation, Howard Staunton, preferred the same pieces.
     
  • A new type of piece, the Staunton pattern, immediately gained popularity and was used in tournaments and clubs all over the world. In tournament chess sets, the Staunton pieces, and modest variations are still extensively employed.

A Famous Legend in Chess History

  • Many children may even find a historical fable about the repressive Indian emperor Shahram and a brilliant guy in his nation in their math books.
     
  • The wise man wanted to persuade Shahram of the importance of each citizen of his realm. As a result, he created a game to represent the kingdom, which contained the king, queen, rooks, bishops, knights, and pawns, all of whom were important.
     
  • The monarch appreciated the game and saw parallels between it and real life. As a result, he ordered that everyone in his realm play chess! The wise man was offered all the gold and silver he had.
     
  • He then took the king to a chessboard and instructed him to place one grain of wheat on the first square, two on the second, and so on until the chessboard was filled. The monarch was upset at first, but he then told his staff to carry out the man's request. The servants frantically stated that such a large quantity of wheat did not exist!
     
  • The king realized the wise man had taught him something new. Like the pawns in chess, you should never neglect the small things in life!
     
  • One of the most well-known chess-related legends is this one. There are, without a doubt, many more desired by Shahram, but he declined.

Chess Throughout History

Who Invented Chess: A Quick Overview

  • H. J. R. Murray was working on getting closer to the foundations of the game of chess one day. To share his insights with the rest of the world, he decided to write "A History of Chess" in 1913.
     
  • Murray assumes in his book that chess originated in northern India, traveled to Persia, and then expanded over the Asian continent.
     
  • In the Eastern World, such as India and Persia, chess became an element of the nobility's courtly upbringing. The games utilize phrases like "Shh!"– and "Shh Mt!. These words are extremely like the modern terms "check" and "checkmate."

How To Play Chess Board Game?

Let us see how to play chess below.

Let us see how to play chess below.

  1. Set Up Your Chess Board: This is all about how to place the chess piece and the chess pieces before you start off a game.
  • Each player is assigned the white (or light) color square in the bottom right corner of the chessboard.
     
  • The pawns are arranged in the second row (or rank).
     
  • The bishops, who always move to their corresponding color (white queen on the white, black queen on black), the rooks go to the corners, followed by the knights next to them, and finally, the king moves to the last square.
  1. Work Out How to Get the Pieces to Move: The six distinct types of pieces move in six different ways. Except for the knight, pieces are unable to go over other pieces and are never permitted to move onto a square occupied by one of their own. They can, however, be moved to occupy the position of a captured enemy piece.

Here’s a gist of how the different pieces move:

  • King: The king can only move one square in any direction - up, down, to the sides, and diagonally.
     
  • Queen: She can move in any one straight direction - forward, backward, sideways, or diagonally - as far as possible as long as she does not move through any of her own pieces.
     
  • Rook: Can move as far as it wants, but only forward, backward, and to the sides.
     
  • Bishop: Can move as far as it wants, but only diagonally and only in the same color.
     
  • Knight: Goes two squares in one direction, and then one more at a 90-degree angle, just like the shape of an “L”.
     
  • Pawn: They move forward but capture an opponent’s piece diagonally.
  1. Become Familiar with the Special Rules: There are a few special rules in chess that may not seem logical at first. They were created to make the game more fun and interesting.
  • Promoting:  Pawns can transform into any other chess piece save the king if they cross over to the other side of the board.
     
  • En Passant: A pawn can choose to capture the first pawn as it passes by if it makes its initial move by moving out two squares and landing next to an opponent's piece.
     
  • Castling: With this move, you can perform two important tasks at once: move your king to safety and bring your rook out of the corner and into play.
     
  • The king is closer to the side of the board when you castle in one side. This is referred as "kingside." "Queenside" means castling in the area where the queen sits on the other side. The king always moves two squares while casting, regardless of which side.
  1. Figure Out Who is the First to Act: The first move is the player with the white pieces. Due of this, players typically choose who gets to be white by chance or luck, such as by tossing a coin or asking one player to guess the colour of the concealed piece in the other player's hand.
     
  2. Look at the Winning Guidelines: There are several ways to end a game of chess:

Checkmate: This happens when the king is put into check and cannot get out of check.

How to get out of check:

  • Move the king
  • Obstruct the check with another piece.
  • Capture the piece posing a threat to the king.

Draw: This can sometimes happen in chess. Here’s why:

The game reaches a deadlock when one player has the opportunity to move but his king is not in check and he can’t move

  • The game might end with a draw if both players agree.
  • The number of pieces on the board is insufficient to make checkmate.
  • If the same identical position is repeated three times, the player claims a draw.
  • There have been 50 moves in a row where neither player has moved a pawn or taken a piece.

Resignation: This can happen if one or both players resign from a game for whatever reason.

Forfeit on time: This is when both players run out of time.

  1. Look at the Fundamental Strategies: There are 4 simple strategies to playing chess. Here they are:
  1. Protect Your King: Get your king to the board's corner so that he is secure. Do not delay castling. Typically, you should castle as soon as you can.
  2. Protect Your Pieces: DO NOT SACRIFICE PIECES FOR NO REASON!!

Here is how much each piece is worth

  • Pawn =1
  • A knight = 3
  • A bishop = 3
  • A rook = 5
  • A queen = 9
  • The king = infinitely value
  1. Control the center: Try to use your pieces and pawns to dominate the board's centre. Controlling the centre will give you more space to maneuver and make it difficult for your opponent to find squares for their pieces.
     
  2. Use All Your Pieces: Your pieces aren’t helping in any way by staying in their starting positions. So move them in a way that they help engineer your win in the end. Play the long game!
  1. Playing Lots of Games: The key to success is to practice as much as possible. So play as many games as possible and improve your chess game-playing skills.

Now that you have the gist of how to play chess, let us understand the chess rules.

Chess Rules:

  • The king can move only one square at a time as long as there is no piece blocking his path.
     
  • The Queen can move any number of squares diagonally or straight.
     
  • Rook can move in a straight line as long as it's horizontal or vertical.
     
  • Bishop can only move diagonally, but it can move any number of squares.
     
  • The Knight can move can jump over any piece as long as it moves in an “L” formation.
     
  • The Castling move is when the King moves two squares toward the direction of the Rook, and the Rook jumps over the King and lands on the square next to it.

Exceptions: 

  1. The King is in a check position.
     
  2. There is a piece between the Rook and King.
     
  3. The Square through which the King travels is occupied.
     
  4. King is in check after castling.
     
  5. King or the Rook has previously been moved in the game.
  • Check is when the King piece is cornered by the opponent's piece. 

How to get out of check:

  1. Move the King.
  2. Capture the piece causing the ‘Check’.
  3. Block the check with another piece.
  • Checkmate is when the piece is in a check position and cannot escape.

Few More Chess Game Rules

The players alternate moving one piece at a time, with White moving first.

It's vital to get up and move around. The position is known as a "Stalemate," and the game ends in a tie when a player's turn is to move and he is not under check but has no valid moves.

Each piece moves distinctively. A piece may be moved to a new location or captured and replaced on its square by an opponent's piece, en passant being the only exception. 

Except for the knight, no piece may move over or through any other piece.

When a monarch is threatened with capture, it is called a check but can defend himself or flee.

Chess Tips & Tricks

Have a look at the chess tips and tricks listed below.

LEARN MOVES

Each chess piece can move only a certain way. Check out the How to Play Chess section to learn more about the moves.

OPEN WITH A PAWN

The pawn in front of the king or queen can be moved two squares forward. This makes it easier for your queen and bishops to enter the game. If pawns are in the way, they move at an angle and cannot play.

GET THE KNIGHTS AND BISHOPS INTO ATTACK POSITION

You should get your knights and bishops to the middle of the board before moving your queen, rooks, or king.

WATCH YOUR 6!

When it’s your turn, always think to yourself and stay one step ahead of your opponent. Every move has a purpose. So stay alert and you could find out what your opponent's next move will be.

DO NOT WASTE TIME

Don’t think this one needs explaining!

START CASTLING EARLY

You might be able to get an advantage in the game and attack their king when you castle early. This is the only move in which more than one piece may be moved in a turn.

ATTACK DURING THE MIDDLEGAME

Always keep an eye out for opportunities to capture your opponent's pieces during the middlegame. Take any piece that is not being protected by your opponent.

DO NOT SACRIFICE PIECES

As mentioned before, do not be reckless with your pieces since every piece has its own value.

DON’T BE RECKLESS AND PLAY FAST

Patience is the key to success during a chess game.

Chess Rankings

A chess ranking system is a means of determining a player's power based on their performance in the game of chess against other players. They are also used by FIDE, the United States Chess Federation (USCF or US Chess), the International Correspondence Chess Federation, and the English Chess Federation. Although the majority of the systems are used to recalculate ratings after a tournament or match, several are also used to recalculate ratings after individual games. Popular online chess sites use check rankings as well.

In almost all chess ranking systems, a higher number indicates a more strong player. When players outperform expectations, their ratings climb, and when they underperform expectations, they fall. The extent to which the transition has taken place.

  • Senior master - 2400 and up.
  • National master-2200–2399.
  • Expert-2000–2199.
  • Class A1800–1999.
  • Class B1600–1799.
  • Class C1400–1599.
  • Class D1200–1399.
  • Class E1000–1199.
  • Class F800–999.
  • Class G600–799.
  • Class H400–599.
  • Class I200–399.
  • Class J100–1.

Poker Vs Chess

Unlike chess, poker contains secret information about the opponent's hole card. According to game theorists, chess is a game of perfect information, whereas poker is a game of imperfect information. In Chess, there is no such thing as a give-away when making a move because both poker players have all of the information. Poker game is exciting because players are given indications during the game and must use their mental abilities to overcome their opponents. You can play chess online with friends, and you can also play poker online with friends.

Playing Online Chess Vs Online Chess Game

Online Chess

Offline Chess

Playing online chess is fun and usually incorporates all the rules of chess.

Offline chess is fun, and it is easier to plot out moves and read your opponent.

Online Chess can be played from any device connected to the internet.

For offline chess, you have to lug around your chess set or play with someone who owns a set.

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Chess Game FAQs

1.) Why chess is bad for you?

Chess is not bad for you, but players might have to over-exercise their brains during tough chess competitions.

2.) Is chess a dying game?

No. Chess is an evergreen game. The game has been around in India since the time of Kings and royalty. Its strategy and engaging gameplay are why it will always be around for a long time.

3.) Is it healthy to play chess?

Yes. Chess is a good game to play because it exercises your cognitive abilities, analytical skills, problem-solving, decision-making, critical thinking, planning, etc. So technically it is good for your cognitive health.

4.) Does chess make you smarter?

Yes. Chess improves your memory, mathematics, and cognitive skills. It helps you hone your mental skills and improves cognitive health.

5.) What is the rule of chess game?

The rule of the chess game is ensuring your king piece’s safety and checkmating your opponent.

6.) What is the best first move in chess?

The King’s Indian attack is one of the best first moves in chess. You can check out the details of this move above. White controls the centre when constructing pieces and can castle after moving their light-squared bishop to f2 during the first few moves.

7.) What are the 3 special rules in chess?

Castling, Promotion, and En Passant are 3 special moves in Chess that can be used by players. Castling allows two pieces, the king and the rook, to move together. Promotion is when a pawn is promoted to a rank of the players choosing, but only if it manages to reach the other end of the chess board. En Passant is when a pawn that has moved 2 spaces/squares can be captured as though it only moved one square.

8.) What is the goal of chess?

The goal is to trap or capture your opponent's king by using all the chess pieces at your disposal. The move that ends a chess game is usually referred to as a ‘Check’ or ‘Checkmate’.

9.) Who invented chess?

No one really knows. The game has been around for so long that it is part of the legend, and this legend states that Grand Vizier Sissa Ben Dahir, gave the game as a gift to King Shirham of India.