Once a piece is promoted, it loses its former capabilities and can only move according to its new powers. Pieces cannot be demoted during the game unless they are captured and removed from the game board. At the start of the game, make sure each game piece has the black side facing up.
Each player has a total of 2 Lances. Promoted Lances can move 1 space in any direction, but not backward diagonally.
Each player has 2 Knights. Promoted Knights can move 1 space in any direction except backward diagonally.
There are 2 Silver Generals for each player. Promoted Silver Generals can move 1 space in any direction except backward diagonally.
Each player has 2 Gold Generals. Gold Generals do not have promoted moves.
Each player has 1 King. The King does not have promoted moves.
Each player has 1 Rook and 1 Bishop. Both the Rook and the Bishop move in the same way as in Western chess. A promoted Rook can move like a standard Rook, or can move 1 space in any direction. Promoted Bishops also move like a standard Bishop or can move 1 space in any direction.
Promoted Pawns can move 1 space in any direction except backward diagonally.
Knights are the only pieces that can jump over other pieces. However, you still can’t open the game by moving your knight because it would land on a space occupied by one of your pawns.
Capturing pieces is optional, but it makes your opponent’s side weaker and gives you pieces to drop back into play. You will need to protect your pieces from becoming captured by blocking your opponent’s moves. In Japan, captured pieces are traditionally placed on a special platform called a “koma. ”
Every piece but the King and Gold General has a promoted side. Promotion is optional in most cases. However, you must promote your pawns and lances in the last row and your knights in the last 2 rows.
When you drop pieces, they’re always turned to the “standard” side, even if you drop them into the promoted territory. You can’t drop a pawn into a column where you already have an unpromoted pawn. However, it’s okay to drop a pawn into a column where you have a promoted pawn.
It takes practice to master the art of attacking your opponent’s King. However, trying out different moves is the best way to gain experience.
Putting your opponent on constant defense by repeatedly attacking their King is a great strategy for winning the game. It will prevent your opponent from making moves toward your King, and it keeps them on their toes. Just like when playing Western chess, it’s a courtesy to say “check” out loud once you have put your opponent in that position. However, it’s not required. In traditional game play, you can’t call “check” 4 times in a row using the same board position. If you do, the game is called, and you lose.
You can also gain a checkmate by dropping captured pieces onto the board. Any piece but a pawn can be dropped into a “check” or “checkmate” position.
In Shogi, each game piece has an assigned point value that you use to break a draw.
If you prefer, you can give the win to the player with the highest points. However, this is not how traditional Shogi is played.
