How to Play Capture Chinese Checkers

For those who don't find regular Chinese checkers satisfying, try your hand and skill at Capture Chinese Checkers. In this version, as one player jumps the checker of another player, that checker is removed from the board. The winner of the game is the one with the most captured checkers.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Chinese checker board
• Chinese checkers (colored marbles)

1. Place all 60 checkers in the hexagonal area of the board, leaving the hole in the center empty and making the pattern symmetrical on all sides.

2. Choose 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 players. It doesn't matter which color checkers the players move.

3. Take turns jumping over any other checker to an empty space beyond it. Each player collects the checkers he jumps over.

4. Make as many jumps as you want in a single turn, capturing all checkers jumped over.

5. Continue playing until no jumps are possible. The player with the most captured checkers is the winner.

6. Play a faster game by jumping over non-adjacent checkers. For instance, if there are two empty spaces between a player's checker and another checker, the player may jump if there are three empty spaces on the other side of the non-adjacent checker. The player's checker will fill the third space, leaving two empty spaces after the jumped checker.

Tips & Warnings

• Chinese checkers did not originate in China. It was a German game called Stern-Halma that was renamed as a marketing strategy. Calling it Chinese checkers made it seem exotic while emphasizing its similarity to the game of checkers.

Resources

• Learn all the rules of Chinese checkers at Love to Know.