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    The Basics of Chess

    Drawing Games






    There are times when the result of a game of chess is indecisive; the game is a "draw".
    There are several ways in which such a result can be reached:




    1. Perpetual Check.

      Perpetual check is an endless series of checks which the opponent cannot avoid.

      		 In this diagram White is hopelessly behind in material.
      He cannot hope to win, but he can draw the game by endlessly
      checking with his Queen on the square where the Queen is now
      and on the square marked by the dot.

      Black's King is limited to moving back and forth
      between the two white squares available to him.
      The result - a draw.

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    2. Stalemate.

      As stated in the check and checkmate section, checkmate is when the checkmated King
      is in check (under attack) and has no possibility of getting his King out of check.

      In the case of stalemate, the King is not in check and has no legal moves.

      In this diagram White has no legal moves (his Pawn is blocked) and is not in check.
      The result - a draw.

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    3. Inadequate Mating Material.

      Toward the end of a game a player may be left with a material advantage
      not great enough to force checkmate.

      In situations where one side has a lone King and the other a King with one Bishop
      the game is drawn as one Bishop can't force checkmate (try!).

      Likewise a King with one or two(!) Knights can't force checkmate
      (the only way to force mate with two Knights is if the opponent blunders
      or has one or more Pawns(!), but that's covered in the intermediate section).

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    4. Mutual Agreement

      A game can simply be drawn by mutual agreement.

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    5. Repeating Moves

      If a player whose turn it is to play is about to make a move that will bring
      about the same position for the third time, he can claim a draw.
      For this rule to take effect, not only must the position of the pieces be the same,
      but the same moves must be available (e.g., en passant captures, castling rights, etc.)

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    6. Going Over The Move Limit

      If fifty moves have been made without either a capture or a Pawn
      move, either player can claim a draw.