Customary Straight Checkers Rules
The following is a complete presentation of the Customary Checkers Rules as played by ordinary people in the United States of America. This is the version of the game that is usually passed generationally down family lines in rural areas of the country. The monopolization of so-called 'professional checkers' by such organizations as the American Checkers Federation (ACF) has contributed to an environment in which these traditional family rules are derided and denounced as somehow improper. Proponents of the Customary Rules should be comforted by the fact that the mere existence of an organization devoted to the standardization of one set of rules does not make a competing set any less correct. The only forum in which the so-called 'Official Checkers Rules' has any enforceable validity is in games played under the auspices of the ACF.
It is interesting to note which battles the proponents of the 'so-called' official rules choose to fight. The only difference in the Customary Rules is that the player is not required to make a jump. This rule leaves the framework of the game intact, yet to hear the 'Official Rules' zealots speak, it's as if Customary Rules users are challenging the foundation of the game itself. This reaction is terribly amusing considering that the International, Canadian, and Russian rules allow kings to capture opposing men at any distance along a diagonal line by jumping and allow men to jump forward or backward.
In the face of assault by these rules zealots, Customary Rules proponents should educate people as to the existence of the Customary Rules. If you meet someone who feels more comfortable playing by the so-called 'Official Rules', gently suggest that you alternate rules over several games. Your opponent may discover that they prefer the Customary Rules, or you may decide that you prefer the greater ability to control your opponent that the 'Official Rules' afford. Above all, have fun and try not to let 'Official Rules' zealots ruin your game.
The Customary Rules
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Customary Straight Checkers, also known as English draughts, is played on the dark squares of a standard checkerboard (or chessboard) of 64 alternating dark and light squares (eight rows, eight columns), by two opponents having 12 checkers each of contrasting colors, normally referred to as black and white. Serious Checkers players generally use red and white (sometimes yellow) checkers, and green and buff checkerboards. In any case, colors of the checkers and the board should be different in order to provide good contrast, and especially to avoid such combinations as black checkers on black squares. |
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The board is positioned squarely between the players and turned so that a dark square is on each player's left-hand side and the double-corner on the right. Each player places their checkers on the dark squares of the three rows nearest them. |
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To decide which player will make the first move of the game, by custom, one player will conceal one checker of each color in each hand. The other player will then choose a hand; if the hand selected is that player's color, then he or she will move first. By mutual agreement, the players can opt for the ACF rule stating that the darker color shall move first. |
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The object of the game is to prevent the opponent from being able to move when it is their turn to do so. This is accomplished either by capturing all of the opponent's checkers, or by blocking those that remain so that none of them can be moved. If neither player can accomplish this, the game is a draw. |
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Single checkers, known as men, may move forward only, one square at a time in a diagonal direction, to an unoccupied square. Men shall not move backward. |
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Men capture pieces by jumping over an opposing man or king on a diagonally adjacent square to the square immediately beyond, but shall not do so if this square is occupied. |
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Men may only jump in a forward direction, but may continue jumping as long as they encounter opposing checkers with unoccupied squares immediately beyond them. Men shall not jump backward. |
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Men shall never jump over checkers of the same color, nor shall they jump over the same opposing man or king more than once. |
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Once a man reaches the far side of the board, whether by means of a jump or a simple move, it shall become a king, and the move terminates. The opponent shall then crown the new king by placing a checker of the same color on top it. A player is not permitted to make a move until the opponent's king is crowned. |
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At the player's discretion, kings shall move forward or backward, one square at a time in a diagonal direction to an unoccupied square. |
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Kings capture pieces by jumping, forward or backward, over an opposing man or king on a diagonally adjacent square to the square immediately beyond, but shall not do so if this square is occupied. |
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Kings may continue jumping as long as they encounter opposing checkers with unoccupied squares immediately beyond them. |
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Kings shall never jump over checkers of the same color, nor shall they jump over the same opposing man or king more than once. |
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Players shall not be required to jump. This rule is a source of great contention between proponents of these Customary Rules and the proponents of the ACF rules that require players to jump if they can. |
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Time limits may be imposed by mutual agreement. If no official time limit has been agreed to, it is customary to wait six to ten minutes before heckling your opponent. If the players so choose, they may adopt the following ACF rules regarding time limits: Time limits for play may be based on a fixed amount of time for each move, with less time allowed for situations in which there is one, and only one, capturing move possible (only applicable when using the ACF rule requiring a player to jump), or on a fixed amount of time for a given number of moves, without regard to how much of this time is used on any one move. When the latter method is used, and the given number of moves has been made by each player, with neither having used up the allotted time, an additional allotment of time and moves is given to each. This continues until the conclusion of the game. Unused time is retained when a new allotment is given. A player loses a game if his time expires before he has completed the required number of moves. |
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