Archer Chess

Archer Chess

Decades ago my dad and I printed a custom board on a sheet of paper, grabbed some spare bishops, wrapped a hair tie around two of them, and started playing our own version of chess.

The difference is one piece, the Archer. It moves like a King but instead of capturing by moving, it shoots. Any enemy piece exactly two squares away cardinally is removed. No line of sight required. The Archer doesn't move.

That one rule changes the entire philosophy of the game. The centre becomes a dead zone rather than a battleground. Deadlocked positions don't survive. The game flows.

We played it for years on that paper board. This is the digital version.

Full rules on the How To Play page. Local two-player and vs AI included.