Makruk: Thai Chess

Thai Chess: A Digital Adaptation of a Classic

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

The movement of the king and rook remains consistent with classical chess: the king moves one square in any direction, and the rook moves any number of unoccupied squares horizontally or vertically. Pawns advance one square forward and capture diagonally forward, mirroring their classical counterparts. The game supports single-player mode against AI, local two-player mode 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 vertically forward.
• Knight: Moves in an "L" shape (two squares in one direction, then one square perpendicularly), identical to its European chess counterpart.
• Pawn: Moves one square forward and captures one square diagonally forward, as in European chess. Promotion is limited to a queen 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.