Italian draughts explained
Italian draughts (Italian: Dama italiana) is a variant of the draughts family played mainly in Italy and Northern Africa. It is a two-handed game played on a board consisting of sixty-four squares, thirty-two white and thirty-two black. There are twenty-four pieces: twelve white and twelve black. The board is placed so that the rightmost square on both sides of the board is black.
Capturing
A number of rules apply to captures in Italian draughts, whether by men or kings; this tends to make Italian draughts a game where many mistakes can be made.
- If a player is faced with the prospect of choosing which captures to make, the first and foremost rule to obey is to capture the greatest quantity of pieces.
- If a player may capture an equal number of pieces with either a man or king, he must do so with the king.
- If a player may capture an equal number of pieces with a king, in which one or more options contain a number of kings, he must capture the greatest number of kings possible.
- If a player may capture an equal number of pieces (each series containing a king) with a king, he must capture wherever the king occurs first.
- If none of these rules apply to the situation at hand, the player may choose according to his tactical requirements.
See also
