What is International draughts?
International draughts is the draughts game played at world championships. It is played on a 10×10 board with 20 men a side, set out on the dark squares of the four rows nearest each player.
Men move one square diagonally forward, as in checkers, but they may capture backwards as well as forwards. Kings fly: they move any distance along a diagonal, and capture a piece from a distance, landing on any empty square beyond it. Capturing is compulsory, and when there is a choice you must take the sequence that captures the most pieces.
Picking this variant on a Checkers table plays the full international rules on the board size you choose, with Checkers' red and black pieces.
Rule changes
| Rule | Standard Checkers | International draughts |
|---|---|---|
| Board and pieces | Standard Checkers8×8 board, 12 men each on the dark squares of the three nearest rows. | International draughts10×10 board, 20 men each on the dark squares of the four nearest rows. |
| Men capturing | Standard CheckersMen capture forwards only. | International draughtsMen capture forwards and backwards, though they still move only forwards. |
| Kings | Standard CheckersMove and capture one step diagonally in any direction. | International draughtsFly: move any distance along a diagonal and capture a piece from a distance, landing on any free square beyond it. |
| Choosing a capture | Standard CheckersCapturing is compulsory, but you may choose any capture, not only the longest. | International draughtsYou must take the sequence that captures the most pieces; kings and men count the same. |
| Reaching the far row in a capture | Standard CheckersThe man is crowned and the move ends. | International draughtsThe man is crowned only if the capture ends there; if it can jump on, it carries on as a man. |
| Draws | Standard CheckersThreefold repetition, or 40 moves each with only kings moving and no capture. | International draughtsThreefold repetition; 25 moves each with only kings moving and no capture; one king against two or three pieces with a king ends in a draw after 5 or 16 moves each. |
History
The 10×10 game took shape in France in the 18th century, where it was known as le jeu de dames à la polonaise, Polish draughts. It soon became the leading form of draughts in France and the Netherlands, and later in Belgium, the Soviet Union and much of Africa.
The Fédération Mondiale du Jeu de Dames (FMJD), founded in 1947, sets its rules and runs the world championships. Champions from the Netherlands, the Soviet Union, Senegal and Latvia have held the title, and in many countries the game is simply called draughts or dammen.