Play International Draughts Online
The 10x10 world championship game with flying kings and maximum captureEnjoy a free, no-signup game of International Draughts right in your browser. The 10x10 world championship game with flying kings and maximum capture Face a computer opponent tuned to three strengths - Easy, Medium and Hard - or invite a friend to a live game on a shared board. Nothing to install, nothing to pay: just open the board and start moving.
International belongs to the International branch of the draughts family and is played on a 10×10 board with 20 per side. Played competitively worldwide under the FMJD, the sport's global federation. Below the board you will find the full rules, a step-by-step how-to, strategy tips and answers to the questions players ask most.
About International Draughts
International Draughts, sometimes called Polish Draughts, is the premier competitive form of the game and the version recognized by the world federation, the FMJD. It is contested on a large ten by ten board with twenty pieces a side, giving it a vast strategic canvas. Men advance one square diagonally forward, yet they capture in both directions, so danger can strike from behind at any moment. Kings are flying, gliding any distance along an open diagonal and choosing where to land after a jump. Captures are compulsory and governed by the majority rule: you must play the line that removes the greatest number of enemy pieces. A man only earns its crown if it finishes a move on the back row, never merely passing through, which produces spectacular deep combinations that are the hallmark of top-level play.
International Draughts at a glance
| Goal | Capture or immobilize all of your opponent's pieces on the ten by ten board. |
|---|---|
| Board | 10×10 |
| Pieces | 20 per side |
| Kings | Flying (long-range) |
| Capturing | Forced; men both ways; maximum |
| Difficulty | Deep & tactical |
| Family | International checkers |
| Good to know | Played competitively worldwide under the FMJD, the sport's global federation. |
How to play International Draughts
Set up the board
Arrange twenty men on the dark squares of the four rows closest to you on the ten by ten board. The two center rows stay empty, giving both armies room to maneuver across a wide diagonal battlefield.
Moving your men
A man slides one square diagonally forward to an empty dark square. Forward is the only direction men may travel, but remember that although they cannot walk backward, they are allowed to capture backward.
Capturing pieces
Jump an adjacent enemy piece in any diagonal direction, forward or backward, landing just beyond it. When you can capture you must, and you are required to take the line that removes the maximum number of pieces available.
Crowning kings
A man becomes a king only if it stops on the far back row at the end of its move. If a jump merely passes over the back row and continues, no crown is granted; promotion needs the piece to finish there.
Winning the game
Victory comes when your opponent has no pieces left or cannot make any legal move. Because the board is large and kings fly, long forcing sequences decide most games between skilled players.
The story of International Draughts
International Draughts took shape in France during the eighteenth century when players enlarged the traditional board to ten by ten and adopted the flying king and backward captures for men. The result was a game of far greater scope, and it quickly earned the nickname Polish Draughts among the salons of Paris.
Over the nineteenth and twentieth centuries the game spread across Europe, Africa and the former Soviet sphere, becoming the dominant form in the Netherlands, France and much of West Africa. National schools of play developed rich opening theory and a deep tradition of composed combinations.
Today the World Draughts Federation, the FMJD, governs the sport and runs world championships for men, women and youth. Elite grandmasters study endgame databases and computer analysis, and the ten by ten game remains the yardstick by which serious draughts strength is measured.
International strategy: how to win more games
- Build strong diagonal chains that restrict enemy men while keeping your own advance flexible.
- Fight for the long diagonal, the powerful sweep of squares that a flying king dominates.
- Keep men supported so a single jump into your ranks triggers a bigger recapture for you.
- Delay promoting until you can crown a king onto an active, open diagonal.
- Use the backward capture threat to defend squares your men cannot physically reach.
- Plan combinations several moves deep; the ten by ten board rewards long forcing tactics.
Advanced International tactics
- Learn classical formations such as the hook and the phalanx that steer the majority rule in your favor.
- Study coup combinations that sacrifice several men to force a devastating maximum recapture.
- Control tempo with waiting moves so your opponent must break a solid structure first.
- Master flying-king endings where a single king holds two, exploiting the long diagonal.
- Recognize the classic three-king versus one-king win with its precise cornering method.
- Anticipate breakthrough shots on the flanks where an isolated man can suddenly promote.
- Balance material against mobility; a cramped extra piece is often worse than a clean equal position.
Common mistakes to avoid in International
- Overlooking the mandatory maximum-capture rule - which forfeits the move or loses material, so instead compare every capture line and always take the one that removes the most pieces.
- Missing a flying king's long-diagonal threat - which lets a distant king strike across the whole board, so instead scan the full open diagonals before you leave a man undefended.
- Breaking your formation carelessly on the 10x10 board - which opens lanes for deep multi-jumps, so instead keep your center columns linked and advance the whole wall together.
- Undervaluing the back two rows - which surrenders promotion squares and tempo, so instead defend your golden and double corner and delay crowning the enemy as long as you can.
International variations and related rule sets
International Draughts FAQ
How big is the International Draughts board?
It is a ten by ten board with one hundred squares, of which fifty dark squares are used. Each player starts with twenty men filling the four nearest rows.
Can men capture backward?
Yes. Although men can only move forward, they may jump in any diagonal direction, forward or backward. This backward capture ability makes the game far sharper than American Checkers.
What is the maximum-capture rule?
When several capturing lines exist you must choose the one that takes the greatest number of pieces. If two lines tie on count, either may be played, since there is no king tiebreak here.
How do flying kings work?
A king moves any number of empty squares along a diagonal and, when capturing, may jump a distant enemy piece and land on any free square beyond it. This long range makes kings extremely powerful.
When does a man get promoted?
Only when it ends its move standing on the far back row. If a jumping man passes across the back row and keeps capturing, it does not promote and remains a man.
Why is it also called Polish Draughts?
The ten by ten game gained its early popularity in eighteenth-century France and was nicknamed Polish Draughts, a label that stuck even though its development was largely French.
What is the FMJD?
The FMJD is the World Draughts Federation, the international body that organizes world championships and rates players. International Draughts is its flagship discipline.
Do I have to keep jumping in a multi-capture?
Yes. Once you begin a capturing sequence you must continue jumping with the same piece as long as further captures along the maximum line are available.
Can a jumped piece be leapt over twice?
No. During a single capturing move you may pass over the same square, but a captured piece is not removed until the move ends, and you may never jump the same piece twice.
Is International Draughts harder than checkers?
It is generally considered deeper because of the larger board, backward captures, flying kings and the maximum rule, all of which create longer and more forcing combinations.
How long does a competitive game last?
Serious games can run for hours and often reach complex king endings. Rapid and blitz time controls exist too, but classical play is demanding and slow.
Are captured pieces removed during or after the jump?
Captured pieces are removed only after the entire capturing move is complete. They remain on the board as obstacles during the sequence, which affects which further jumps are legal.
Keep learning
- International draughts explained
- How flying kings work
- Full rules for every checkers variant
- The complete checkers and draughts glossary
Last updated .