Quick spell
Play it, then make your normal move. Quick spells are your everyday tools: protect a piece, draw cards or slow your opponent down.
Rules and card guide
How to play Chess65
Chess65 is chess with a layer of cards on top. Every rule of chess still applies and the goal is still checkmate, but each turn you can also play a spell or set a trap. This page covers every rule and all 20 cards.
- 10different cards in a deck
- 1+1optional card, then a move
- 6energy at most
- 20unique cards
The basics
Chess65 follows the normal rules of chess: the same board, the same pieces and the same moves. The goal is the same too: checkmate the enemy king.
What is new is a layer of cards. Before your move you may play a card that bends the rules for a moment: shield a piece, jump a rook like a knight, or hide a trap on a quiet square. Cards cost energy, which builds up as the game goes on, and each player has a deck of 10 different cards.
It runs in your browser on desktop and mobile, with nothing to download, and it is free to play.
Good to know
Cards are an extra option, not an obligation. If you ignore your hand, you are simply playing chess. The one exception: if you have no legal move but can play a card, you must play it.
Your turn
A turn has three steps. The first happens by itself, the second is optional and the third is the chess move you already know.
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Turn starts
You gain +1 energy. On every 2nd turn you also draw a card.
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Play a card optional
Play or set at most 1 card from your hand, if you can pay its energy cost.
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Make your move
Make 1 move, just like in chess. A Move card counts as this move.
After a Quick spell or a trap you make your normal move. After a Move spell your turn is over, because the card was your move. (If a Counterspell cancels it, you still make a normal move.)
Card types
Every card is one of three kinds. The kind decides when the card acts.
Move spell
The card is your move for the turn. You play it instead of moving a piece, so its effect and your move happen together.
Trap
Set it face down, then make your normal move. It does nothing yet: it springs on its own during your opponent’s turn when its condition happens. Your opponent sees that a card is set, but not which one.
Energy and card plays
Energy pays for cards. A card costs between 1 and 6 energy.
- You gain +1 energy at the start of each of your turns, up to a maximum of 6.
- You gain +1 extra energy whenever you lose a piece. This is the comeback mechanic: the player who is behind can catch up.
- Energy you do not spend carries over, so you can save up for an expensive card.
Card plays are a separate limit. Each player has 6 card plays per game by default, and setting a trap uses one up. In the game settings you can change the limit to 4, 6, 8 or unlimited.
Key rule
A deck never holds two copies of the same card, so each card can be played at most once per game.
Deck and hand
- 3cards in White’s opening hand
- 4cards in Black’s opening hand
- 2turns for each card you draw
- 6cards fit in your hand
- Your deck is 10 different cards, one copy of each, shuffled at the start of the game.
- White starts with 3 cards and Black with 4. The extra card offsets White’s first-move advantage.
- You draw 1 card at the start of every 2nd turn of yours.
- You can hold at most 6 cards. A card drawn into a full hand is burned, which means it is lost.
- Redraw hand: if you dislike your opening hand, you can shuffle it back and draw a new one. You can do this once, on your first turn, before you do anything else.
Traps in detail
Traps are the sneaky part of Chess65. You set one face down on your turn and it waits. It springs on its own during your opponent’s turn, the moment its condition happens.
- You can have at most 2 traps face down at once.
- A trap stays active for 4 of your opponent’s turns by default. If it has not sprung by then, it is discarded. The game settings offer 3, 4 or 6 turns, or no expiry. The turns left are shown on the trap slot.
- Setting a trap costs its energy and uses up one of your card plays, like any other card.
- A Seal Breaker can destroy an opponent’s face-down trap. It is itself a spell, so if your opponent has a Counterspell set, the Counterspell cancels it first and is used up.
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Ambush
Your opponent never sees which square you picked, so choose a square their pieces will want to use. Only a piece that newly enters the square is destroyed; the king and shielded pieces are safe.
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Counterspell
It waits for any spell. The spell is cancelled, but the energy and card play it used are not refunded. If it cancels a Move spell, your opponent still makes a normal move that turn. It does not answer traps.
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Retaliation
It trades one of your pieces for the enemy piece that took it. It does nothing against a king or a shielded piece.
Limits
Cards bend the rules of chess, but these limits always hold.
- Cards can never capture the king, and your opponent’s cards cannot target it.
- Your own move or card can never leave your king in check: a Move spell cannot, and after a Quick spell or a trap your move must get you out of check. Only an enemy trap (Ambush or Retaliation) that removes the piece you just moved can expose your king.
- You cannot play a card that would leave you with no legal move.
- A Barrier cannot be placed next to the enemy king.
- You need enough energy and at least one card play left, and you can play at most 1 card per turn.
- In check, with no legal move and no card that saves you? That is checkmate.
How a game ends
A game ends with a win for one side or with a draw.
Wins
- Checkmate. Your king is attacked and you have no legal move and no card that saves you.
- Resignation. A player gives up.
- Timeout. In a timed game, the player whose time runs out loses.
Draws
- Stalemate. The player to move is not in check but has no legal move and no playable card. This is a draw by default. The game settings have an optional rule where the stalemating side wins instead.
- Threefold repetition. The same position occurs three times.
- 50-move rule. 50 moves go by without a capture, a pawn move or a card.
- Insufficient material. Only the kings and at most one bishop or knight are left, no trap is face down, and neither player can play another card (no card plays left, or no cards in hand or deck).
- Agreement. You can offer a draw once per turn. If your opponent accepts, the game is drawn. If they finish their turn without answering, the offer lapses.
The clock
You can play with or without a chess clock. A setting such as 5+3 gives each player 5 minutes, plus 3 seconds added after every move.
- No clock
- 3+2
- 5+3
- 10+5
If your time runs out, you lose. Time spent choosing a card’s targets counts against you. Against the AI and on one screen, the clock pauses while a revealed card is on screen; in online games it keeps running, so tap the card to close it.
Modes and ranked play
Play against the computer, against a friend or against the world.
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Versus the computer
Play the AI at five levels, from Pawn to Queen, with all 20 cards available.
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Two players, one screen
Pass and play on a single device. Hands stay hidden: the screen covers your cards whenever you hand the device over.
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Online with a friend
Create a room and send the link. The game starts when your friend opens it.
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Quick match
Get matched with an opponent online, casual or ranked, on a 3+2, 5+3 or 10+5 clock.
Ranked play
Ranked quick matches use a Glicko-2 rating. Everyone starts at 1500. Your rating changes after every ranked game, by more when the result is a surprise. You need an account to play ranked.
Your first 5 ranked games are placement games, and your league stays hidden until you have played them. After that you get a league and a division from your rating.
Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond each have four divisions, IV to I. Divisions are 50 rating points wide, except Bronze IV, which covers every rating below 1050. Master and Grandmaster sit above them and have no divisions.
The leaderboard shows the top 50 ranked players.
In online games
- Quick chat messages with a mute button
- Draw offers, once per turn (they work against the AI too)
- Rematch with the colors swapped
- Game history, plus a move-by-move review with an evaluation bar (the review works after any game)
Building your deck
Each of the 20 cards does something no other card does. Pick 10 different ones that fit how you play: go on the attack, build a fortress, or control the board. You can change your deck between games whenever you like.
| Tier | Cards | In short |
|---|---|---|
| S+ | 1 | Turns a game on its own |
| S | 2 | Swings a game |
| A | 5 | Strong in most decks |
| B | 7 | Shines in the right deck |
| C | 5 | Niche, but it has its moments |
Your deck goes with you everywhere: against the AI, on one screen, with a friend, and in casual and ranked online games.
Good to know
Cosmetic board themes and card backs never affect the game. Money never buys cards or power: gems and the season pass only add cosmetics and progress rewards.
A monthly season pass adds 25 tiers of rewards on a free and a premium track. Premium costs $4.99 a month or 600 gems for one season, and adds +25% XP from every game. Gem packs start at $0.99.
All 20 cards
Every card in the game, with its energy cost, kind and power tier.
FAQ
Can I play a card and still move?
Yes, with a Quick spell or a trap: play or set it, then make your normal move. A Move spell is different, because the card is your move for that turn.
Do I have to play cards?
Not normally. Playing a card is optional on every turn, and if you play none the game is simply chess, though your opponent’s cards still count. The one exception: if you have no legal move but can play a card, you must play it. The game does not end and you cannot pass.
What if I am in check?
The normal rules apply: you must get out of check. A move or a card that helps you can do it. If you have neither, it is checkmate.
Which cards can I use?
All 20, from your first game: against the AI, on one screen and in online games, casual or ranked. Build your deck from any 10 different cards.
Do I need to pay to play?
No. Chess65 is free to play in your browser, and cosmetics never affect the game.
Ready for your first game?
Start with a guided game against the easy AI. A short tour points out your hand, your energy, the board and the trap slots.