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Pawn Game

Play a pawn game against the computer or a friend, or print pawn-race exercises with an answer key.

What this pawn game tool does

This page runs a pawn game, also called pawn wars or pawns only chess: a board with nothing but pawns. You can play against the computer at five levels, or play a second person on the same screen. Everything runs in your browser, and nothing is sent anywhere.

The Play tab offers five start positions: Classic (eight pawns each on ranks 2 and 7), six pawns each (files b to g), four pawns each (files c to f), Close quarters (ranks 3 and 6), and Face to face (ranks 4 and 5, where only captures are possible at first). You can also type your own pawn position.

The Printable exercises tab makes sheets of pawn-race problems with an answer key, ready to print or save as PDF.

Pawn game example

How to play a pawn game

To start a game against the computer:

  1. Open the Play tab, choose one of five levels, and pick White or Black. White always moves first.
  2. Pick a start position. Classic is the standard setup. The smaller ones make games shorter, with fewer pawns to race with. To set your own, type the placement in the setup box: P for white pawns, p for black pawns, from rank 8 down to rank 1, then w or b for the side to move.
  3. Check the options before you begin: the two-square first step, en passant, and what happens if a side has no legal move.
  4. Make your move on the board. Captures go one square diagonally forward, and en passant is available when that option is on.
  5. Use Hint when you are stuck. It marks the engine's best move, so you can see what the computer would play. Undo takes back the last move.
  6. To play a friend on the same screen, choose two players. Use Flip board to turn the board around between turns.
  7. To share a game, press Copy link to this game. The link keeps the rules, start position and moves, so someone else can open the same game.

Remember that a side with no legal move draws by default, unless the option makes it lose. Check the options before a game you want to play to the end.

What are the rules of pawn wars?

A pawn game has no single official rulebook. Groups differ on details such as blocked positions, so this page lets you switch those details on or off. The core rules are below, and they are the ones the page uses.

White moves first. A pawn moves one square straight forward onto an empty square. From its starting rank (rank 2 for White, rank 7 for Black) it may move two squares if both squares are empty, when that option is on. A pawn captures one square diagonally forward.

En passant works as in chess when its option is on, and it needs the two-square step. A pawn that reaches the last rank wins the game at once, and the page shows a queen there. Capturing every enemy pawn also wins. Capturing is never compulsory.

There are no kings, so there is no check and no checkmate. A player with no legal move draws by default, and the option can make that player lose instead. Pawns never move backwards, so every game ends. Two pawns facing each other on the same file block each other.

Who wins a pawn race?

A passed pawn is one with no enemy pawn in front of it on its own file or the two neighbouring files, so enemy pawns cannot stop it. When both sides have passed pawns, counting the moves each side needs to reach the last rank decides the race. The side with fewer moves wins, and if the counts are equal, the side to move wins the tie.

A pawn on its start rank can use the two-square step, which saves one move in a race. Keeping pawns side by side or in chains lets them capture intruders. Moving a pawn ahead of the others can leave it capturable, so check what can take it before you advance.

When no pawn of a side can move or capture, that side has no legal move, and the option decides whether it is a draw or a loss.

How does this connect to real chess?

Pawn endings are common in chess, and a pawn race is the core of many of them. A pawn that reaches the last rank in chess must be promoted to a queen, rook, bishop or knight, under the Laws of Chess. This page keeps it simple: the pawn becomes a queen, and the game is won at once.

Study real pawn endings once the counting feels natural. In a real game the king also has to support the pawns, so the counting here is the first step, not the whole endgame. The chess endgame trainer linked below is the next step after this.

The rules here follow the familiar chess pawn moves, so the two-square step, en passant and capturing diagonally will feel natural to anyone who knows chess. The main difference is the win condition: there is no checkmate, and the game ends when a pawn reaches the last rank or every enemy pawn is gone.

Examples

8♟7♟♟♟♟♟♟♟6543♟2♟♟♟♟♟♟♟1abcdefgh
Classic start position: eight pawns each on ranks 2 and 7. White has 16 first moves (8 single steps, 8 double steps).
87♟6♟5♟4♟♟3♟21abcdefgh
Exercise: White to move and win. Only b6 wins; best play 1. b6 g3 2. b7 g2 3. b8=Q.
876♟5♟4♟3♟♟21abcdefgh
Exercise: White to move and win. Only fxg4 wins; best play 1. fxg4 e5 2. a5 e4 3. a6 e3 4. a7 e2 5. a8=Q.

Questions and answers

Is there a computer to play against?

Yes. The Play tab has five levels, from beginner to expert. The two strongest levels think for up to half a second and up to a second. You can also play a second person on the same screen.

What are the rules of pawn wars?

A pawn moves one square forward onto an empty square, or two from its start rank when that option is on. It captures one square diagonally forward. The first pawn to reach the last rank wins, and so does the side that captures every enemy pawn. Pawns cannot move backwards, so every game ends.

Who moves first and is there a winner when pawns block each other?

White moves first. Two pawns facing each other on the same file block each other. If a side has no legal move at all, the game is a draw by default, or a loss if you turn that option on. Blocked pawns do not give a winner by themselves.

Can I play two players on one phone?

Yes. Choose two players on the Play tab and both people use the same screen. Turn the board around with Flip board so the player to move sees the position from their side. Copy link to this game makes a link that keeps the rules, position and moves.

How do I print pawn exercises with answers?

Open the Printable exercises tab and choose the number of exercises (4, 6, 8 or 12), the difficulty, the paper size (A4 or US Letter) and how many exercises go on each page (2, 4 or 6). The answer key page gives the single winning first move and the best line for each exercise. The same sheet number always gives the same sheet, and the link can be shared. Print the sheet or save it as PDF.

Does the page need kings?

No. Without kings there is no check, no checkmate and no king to protect, so each move is about the pawns alone. That keeps the game focused on the pawn race, which is the core of real pawn endings in chess.

  • Chess endgame trainer — use it to practise chess endings once the pawn race counting feels natural.
  • Mini chess — use it for another short game when you want a change from pawns only.
  • Chess puzzles — use it to practise tactics once the rules feel natural.
  • Chess worksheets — use it to print practice sheets for a class or a home lesson.
  • En passant — use it to learn the en passant capture that this page's option follows.
  • Chess board setup — use it to learn where every piece starts, including the pawns on ranks 2 and 7.
  • Chess cheat sheet — use it for a one-page summary of how every piece moves, including the pawn.

Open-source components used by this tool: ChessPieces font (Noto Sans Symbols 2 subset) (SIL OFL 1.1).