Rules of the Game:

~ The Game Board ~

1. Čech Dáma is played on a standard 8 x 8 checkerboard consisting of 164 alternating light and dark squares.


2. The board is positioned squarely between two opposing players so that the dark double corner is on the right of each opponent and the single corner is on the left.


3. Only the dark squares are used for game play and each player has 8 checkers of contrasting colours.

~ Object of the Game ~

1. As with other checkers games, the objective of this game is to win against the opponent by preventing him/her from advancing any further on the board by either capturing all the opponent’s checkers or by blocking moves by the existing checkers on the checkerboard.

~Starting Position ~

1. Both players place their checkers on the first two rows closest to the side facing them.


2. The opponent with the lighter checker pieces begins the game with the first move and thereafter, they alternate turns by moving one checker at a time.

~Game Moves & Captures ~

1. The checker can move diagonally forward right or left onto an empty square.


2. Captures are mandatory.


3. If there is a choice of capturing with a queen or with a single checker, then the player must choose to capture with the queen.


4. If there are several ways to capture, each opponent has the choice of which way to move; it is NOT necessary to use a sequence that will capture the most men.


5. To capture an opponent’s piece, a single checker or queen must jump over the other checker or queen, and the jumping sequence must continue as long as there are checkers in the path of the capturing piece.


6. Single checkers capture in a forward jump only provided the checker is adjacent to the square the opponent’s man or queen is situated on and there is an unoccupied square next to it.


7. A capturing checker may not jump over any of the opponent’s pieces more than once and may not jump checkers of the same colour.

~ Crowned to become Queen ~

1. When the single checker reaches the last row of the opponent and the move terminates there, then the checker is crowned ‘queen’, which is the same as king in regular checkers games.

~ Queen Moves & Captures ~

1. The queen can move and capture any spaces diagonally.


2. The queen checker can also jump over the opponent’s checker any number of spaces diagonally and continue in a sequence of multiple jumps and captures.


3. The queen does not have to land directly behind the captured checker but can choose during the jumping sequence to land on any other square in the capturing line.


4. It is not necessary for the queen to jump over two or more opposing checkers at once.


5. The queen can stop on any of the empty squares following the capture; however, if a new capture is possible from one of these squares, then the queen must continue the sequence.


6. The following is a queen capturing move with before and after checker positions:

~ Win or Draw ~

• As in regular checker games, the winner is the player who has successfully prevented his/her opponent from being able to move any further on the board by either capturing all the opposing checkers or by blocking the opponent from making any future moves with the remaining pieces on the board.


• A draw is the result if both players agree to this end or if the same position has been encountered three times in a row.