The last week of October was delightful. I was at home, on leave, with nothing particular to do. Every night, before going to sleep, I would play a few games of 'choice checkers' with my son, Andrew Veda.
In checkers if a checker can be captured, it must be captured; and if the checkers have no square to move to, then the game is lost. Choice checkers, on the other hand, is more like chess offering you choice. I would like to popularise choice checkers and hence have evolved a set of rules. Study them, arise and play the game!
Laws Of Choice Checkers
By Nirmaldasan
1. The board has eight rows (ranks) and eight columns (files). Each rank and file are alternately coloured black and white. The board is so placed that the dark square is on the left-hand corner. The ranks are numbered 1 to 8 and the files are lettered 'a' to 'h' to help record the moves of the game.
2. Choice checkers is played only on the dark squares between eight white checkers and eight black checkers. The whites are placed on the dark squares of ranks 1 and 2. The blacks are placed similarly but on ranks 7 and 8.
3. A checker can move only forward to the next square in any one of the diagonals it is placed. It cannot move to an occupied square. But if that square is occupied by the enemy, the checker can capture the piece by jumping over to the empty square beyond it along the diagonal. A checker can make multiple jumps in a single move along many diagonals if alternate squares are occupied by the enemy. Jumps are not mandatory, hence the name choice checkers.
4. Checkers become kings when they reach the last rank. Kings can move/jump both forward and backward.
5. A jumping checker cannot continue to jump as a king in the same move. It cannot jump twice over the same piece.
6. White makes the first move.
7. A game ends in a win if all the opponent's pieces are captured. It is a draw if the opponent's pieces are locked. A piece is said to be locked if it cannot move/jump to an empty square when it is its turn to move. A player can claim a draw if no jump occurs in thirty moves.