Makruk: Thai Chess

Thai Chess: A Unique Take on the Classic Game

Thai chess, played on an 8x8 board, shares similarities with classical chess but boasts key distinctions. The initial setup largely mirrors classical chess, however, two crucial differences exist: the white queen starts on e1 and the white king on d1 (each king is to the left of its queen from the player's perspective); and pawns are positioned on the third rank (white) and sixth rank (black).

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Standard chess piece movements for the king, rook, and pawn remain unchanged: the king moves one square orthogonally or diagonally; the rook moves any number of unoccupied squares horizontally or vertically; and the pawn advances one square forward and captures diagonally forward. The game supports single-player AI matches, local two-player games on a single device, and online multiplayer.

Piece Movement Specifics:

• King: Moves as in European chess. Castling is not permitted.
• Queen: Moves only one square diagonally.
• Rook: Moves any number of unoccupied squares horizontally or vertically.
• Bishop: Moves one square diagonally in any direction or one square forward vertically.
• Knight: Moves in an "L" shape (two squares in one direction, then one square perpendicularly), as in European chess.
• Pawn: Moves one square forward vertically and captures one square diagonally forward, mirroring European chess rules. Pawns promote only to queens upon reaching the sixth rank.

Winning the Game:

Checkmating the opponent's king secures victory, as in classical chess. A stalemate results in a draw.