Question 1

Why can't I move the piece I want?

Accepted Answer

Because capturing is compulsory: when any of your pieces can jump, you must jump, so only the pieces with a capture are highlighted and the status bar says so. In the middle of a multi-jump only the jumping piece may move, and it must go on.

Question 2

My piece was crowned in the middle of a jump. Why did my turn end?

Accepted Answer

That is the rule in American checkers: a man crowned by a capture stops there and its turn is over, even if as a king it could jump again. It can make that jump on your next turn, if it is still there.

Question 3

Do I have to take the most pieces I can?

Accepted Answer

No. Under American rules you choose any capture, and when a chain of jumps can branch, any way through it. What you can't do is stop a chain early while the same piece can still jump.

Question 4

Can kings fly across the board?

Accepted Answer

No. That is international draughts. Here a king moves and jumps one square at a time, like a man, but in all four diagonal directions.

Question 5

Who goes first?

Accepted Answer

Player 1 in the first game, and then the first move swaps from game to game: against the bot, on one device and in an online room.

Question 6

How does a game end in a draw?

Accepted Answer

After 40 moves by each player in a row with no capture and no crowning, the game is drawn. It keeps a game between two kings from going on forever.

Question 7

How good is the bot?

Accepted Answer

Easy moves at random, but when it has captures to choose from it prefers one where its piece can't be taken straight back. Medium looks four moves ahead and counts pieces, with a king worth more than a man. Hard thinks for under a second a move and usually looks seven or more moves ahead, and further near the end of a game: it guards its back row, holds the middle and trades down when ahead. It is strong, but it can be beaten.

Question 8

How do I play with a friend?

Accepted Answer

Choose Online room, create a room and send the five-character code or the link. No account is needed. Each of you picks your pieces, and the host starts once both players are in. Rooms are deleted 24 hours after the last activity.

Question 9

What happens if someone leaves?

Accepted Answer

Leaving a game in progress ends it, and the player who stayed wins. A player whose connection drops shows as away and has five minutes to come back before that happens. If the host leaves, the other player becomes the host.

Question 10

Can we play on one device?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Local 2-player uses the same board and rules: make your move, then pass the device.

Question 11

What if I can't tell the two colors apart?

Accepted Answer

You don't need to. Every piece has a texture stamped on it as well as a color (rings, stripes, dots, checks, a zigzag or rays), and no two players can pick the same pieces, so the texture alone tells you whose is whose. A king carries a crown on a white badge, whatever its color.

Question 12

Is my record saved?

Accepted Answer

Your wins, losses and draws against each bot and in online games are counted in your browser's localStorage, along with how local games on that device went. They stay on your device. If you're logged in to a Detour account, your bot and online records are saved to your account too, and follow you to any device you log in on.