MiniChess

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Mate with King + 2 Rooks

Real chess

You play White with your King and two Rooks. Your job is to checkmate the lonely black king.

Two rooks can do it with the ladder: one rook cuts the king off along a rank, the other gives check from the next rank to push it back. Take turns, and the king climbs to the edge where the last check is mate. If the king gets close to a rook, slide that rook to the far side of the board.

This one uses the real rules of chess, so watch out for two things:

  • Stalemate: if the black king can't move but isn't in check, the game is a draw — always leave it a square!
  • Don't give your rooks away: if the king can capture one, you're back to the harder King + Rook mate. Lose both and King vs King is a draw.

We ignore the three-fold repetition rule, so shuffling back and forth won't draw a game you're winning. But you must checkmate within 50 moves, or it's a draw!

Checkmate with King and 2 Rooks

You play White with a king and two rooks. Checkmate the lone black king within 50 moves to win. This is real chess against a real engine, and it is the easiest of the three mates to learn, because the two rooks can do it without much help from your king.

The trick is the ladder, sometimes called the lawnmower. One rook cuts the black king off along a rank, then the other rook gives check from the next rank, pushing the king back a step. Take turns with the rooks and the king climbs the ladder to the edge, where the last check is mate. If the king comes close enough to attack a rook, slide that rook to the far side of the board and carry on.

Stalemate is a draw, so always leave the black king a square until the mating move. Losing one rook is not the end, because a king and rook can still win, but if the king takes both rooks the game is a draw. The three-fold repetition rule is ignored.