Everything you need to know — from the basic rules and controls to advanced tactics that will help you win consistently.
Your goal in Checkers Master is simple: capture every one of your opponent's pieces, or manoeuvre them into a position where they have no legal move remaining. The first player to achieve either of these conditions wins the game.
Checkers is a two-player game. In the online version you play against the computer. The board is 8×8 dark and light squares — pieces always live on the dark squares and move diagonally across them.
At the start of every game each player has 12 pieces arranged on the three rows of dark squares nearest to them. The six rows in the middle of the board start empty — this is the battlefield.
The player with the lighter-coloured pieces moves first. In Checkers Master your pieces are displayed in a contrasting colour and the game will prompt you when it is your turn.
Regular pieces may only move diagonally forward — toward the opponent's side of the board.
A piece may jump over an adjacent opponent's piece to land on the empty square immediately beyond it. The captured piece is removed from the board.
Capturing is mandatory. If you have a jump available, you must take it — you cannot choose to make a non-capturing move instead.
Multi-jump: if after a capture the same piece can make another jump, you must continue jumping in the same turn until no further jumps are available.
A piece that reaches the far end of the board (the opponent's back row) is immediately crowned a King. King promotion ends that piece's movement for the turn.
Kings can move and capture in all four diagonal directions — both forward and backward — making them the most powerful pieces on the board.
The game ends when one player captures all opponent pieces or the opponent has no legal move. A draw can be declared if no capture has occurred for 40 moves.
Click & Drag
Click any of your pieces, hold the mouse button, drag to a highlighted square, and release to complete your move.
Tap & Drag (Mobile)
Touch a piece with your finger, drag it across the board, and lift your finger to place it on the destination square.
Valid Moves Highlighted
When you select a piece, all legal squares it can move to are highlighted in green. You can only drop onto highlighted squares.
Deselect
Click or tap outside a highlighted square to cancel your selection and choose a different piece.
Kings are the elite units of Checkers Master. Once a regular piece reaches the opponent's back row it is crowned — in the game a crown symbol appears on top of the piece to distinguish it from regular checkers.
A King can move diagonally in any direction: forward-left, forward-right, backward-left, backward-right. This dramatically expands your tactical options. Kings can retreat to safety, chase down fleeing enemy pieces, or set up long-range capture chains.
Protecting your pieces long enough to crown them is a core mid-game objective. At the same time, preventing your opponent from crowning theirs should always be on your mind.
Control the Centre
Pieces in the centre of the board control more squares and have more jump options than those stuck on the edges. Push toward the middle early.
Guard Your Back Row
Leave one or two pieces in your back row for as long as possible. This prevents your opponent from crowning pieces and gives you a defensive anchor.
Trade to Your Advantage
Do not avoid all exchanges. If you can trade a piece to gain a positional advantage or open a path to the crown row, the sacrifice is usually worth it.
Think Two Moves Ahead
Before every move, ask: what can my opponent do in response? Checkers rewards players who anticipate the consequences of mandatory-capture rules.
Advance in Groups
Lone pieces are easy targets. Move pieces together so they protect each other from single jumps. A paired advance is far harder to stop than a solo rush.
Crown ASAP
Getting your first King early can swing the entire game. Kings create threats on both sides of the board simultaneously, putting constant pressure on your opponent.