In all Draughts variants, the following rules apply:
- Players take turn by moving one piece
- Pieces can move to an adjacent empty position
- An adjacent opponent piece can be captured by jumping over it (which implies the next position is available)
- When possible, several captures can be performed at the same round (with the same piece)
In International Draughts, the additional rules also apply:
- The board and initial position is the following:
- Pieces moves only on dark squares
- Simple pieces can only move forward, except for capture
- Promoted pieces, called kings, can move along any diagonal
- After a capture, a king can stop at any available position on the diagonal after the captured piece (assuming skipped positions were free)
- White starts
- Capture is compulsory
- Captured pieces are removed after all captures are done
- If a player must choose between several capture sequences, he must choose the one that captures the most opponent pieces
- If a piece reaches the last line during a capture sequence, it is not promoted, unless the capture finishes on the last line
- A player who cannot play any move loses the game