Shogi

Protect your king, promote your pieces and bring captured pieces back into the fight.

Getting a board

Craft a Shogi Board and fit it into a Small Game Table. Place matching Game Chairs facing the table, then take a seat.

Materials

1 ×Gold nugget
7 ×Any planks
1 ×Yellow wool

How to play

Open the fitted board to make your moves. How to play in the side tray gives you the same lessons with illustrations inside the game.

Protect your king

Your army: Pieces point toward your opponent. Take turns moving one piece. — **Your army**
Pieces point toward your opponent. Take turns moving one piece.

Checkmate: Win by attacking the king so it has no safe reply. — **Checkmate**
Win by attacking the king so it has no safe reply.

Forward pieces

Pawn: Move one square forward. Pawns capture forward too. — **Pawn**
Move one square forward. Pawns capture forward too.

Lance: Slide forward any distance. Stop before your own piece; capture the first enemy. — **Lance**
Slide forward any distance. Stop before your own piece; capture the first enemy.

Jump or step

Knight: Jump two squares forward and one sideways. Only knights jump over pieces. — **Knight**
Jump two squares forward and one sideways. Only knights jump over pieces.

Silver: Step forward or diagonally. It cannot step sideways or straight back. — **Silver**
Step forward or diagonally. It cannot step sideways or straight back.

Close protection

Gold: Step to a neighbour, except the two backward diagonals. — **Gold**
Step to a neighbour, except the two backward diagonals.

King: Step to any neighbour, but never into an enemy attack. — **King**
Step to any neighbour, but never into an enemy attack.

Sliding pieces

Bishop: Slide diagonally any distance. Other pieces block the path. — **Bishop**
Slide diagonally any distance. Other pieces block the path.

Rook: Slide across or down any distance. Other pieces block the path. — **Rook**
Slide across or down any distance. Other pieces block the path.

Stronger sliders

Horse: A promoted bishop keeps its diagonals and gains one-step straight moves. — **Horse**
A promoted bishop keeps its diagonals and gains one-step straight moves.

Dragon: A promoted rook keeps its straight moves and gains one-step diagonals. — **Dragon**
A promoted rook keeps its straight moves and gains one-step diagonals.

Captured pieces join you

Capture: Land on an enemy piece to capture it. Its promotion is removed. — **Capture**
Land on an enemy piece to capture it. Its promotion is removed.

Keep it: The captured pawn becomes yours and waits beside the board. — **Keep it**
The captured pawn becomes yours and waits beside the board.

Drop instead of moving

From reserve: Spend your turn placing a captured piece on an empty square, unpromoted. — **From reserve**
Spend your turn placing a captured piece on an empty square, unpromoted.

Pawn limit: You cannot drop a pawn in a column already holding your unpromoted pawn. — **Pawn limit**
You cannot drop a pawn in a column already holding your unpromoted pawn.

Promote in the far camp

Three far rows: You may promote when a move starts or ends in the opponent's three back rows. — **Three far rows**
You may promote when a move starts or ends in the opponent's three back rows.

New movement: Pawn, lance, knight and silver promote to gold moves. Kings and golds never promote. — **New movement**
Pawn, lance, knight and silver promote to gold moves. Kings and golds never promote.

You must answer check

Escape the threat: Move your king, capture the attacker or block its path. The game only offers safe moves. — **Escape the threat**
Move your king, capture the attacker or block its path. The game only offers safe moves.

Forced promotion: Promote if a pawn or lance reaches the last row, or a knight reaches the last two. — **Forced promotion**
Promote if a pawn or lance reaches the last row, or a knight reaches the last two.

Rules in more detail

Drops must be playable

No dead end: No pawn or lance on the last row; no knight on either of the last two rows. — **No dead end**
No pawn or lance on the last row; no knight on either of the last two rows.

No pawn-drop mate: A pawn drop may check, but may not give immediate checkmate. Other drops may mate. — **No pawn-drop mate**
A pawn drop may check, but may not give immediate checkmate. Other drops may mate.

Unusual endings

Four repeats: Four identical positions draw, unless one player keeps checking: that player loses. — **Four repeats**
Four identical positions draw, unless one player keeps checking: that player loses.

Long games: At 500 moves, draw once neither king is in check. A checking sequence postpones it. — **Long games**
At 500 moves, draw once neither king is in check. A checking sequence postpones it.

Entering-king declaration

Get safely inside: Your king must be in the far camp, not checked, with at least ten other friendly pieces there. — **Get safely inside**
Your king must be in the far camp, not checked, with at least ten other friendly pieces there.

Count your strength: Count camp pieces and reserves: rook/bishop 5, others 1, king 0. 24-30 draws; 31+ wins. — **Count your strength**
Count camp pieces and reserves: rook/bishop 5, others 1, king 0. 24-30 draws; 31+ wins.

Drops, promotion and repetition

You cannot drop an unpromoted pawn on a file where you already have one, and pawn-drop mate is forbidden. A pawn or lance must promote on the last rank; a knight must promote on either of the last two ranks. Captured promoted pieces return to your hand unpromoted. Four occurrences of the same position normally give a draw, but a side responsible for perpetual check loses instead. Entering-king declaration has its own eligibility and point requirements.

Keep playing

Use Rematch after the result to play again. To pause an unfinished match, the table owner can remove and keep its board.

See seats and solo play for multiplayer and Play alone, or item stakes if you want to agree on a pot.