Join us on Tuesday, Dec. 9th, 2025 at Western Illinois University - QC Campus 3300 River Drive Rooms 103/104 at 6:30pm (after the potluck) to play a friendly Tournament of Bughouse Chess!
If you do not have a partner, we will form 2 player teams with all individuals who show up!
This is our last meet up of the year. The WIU campus will be closed from Dec. 10, 2025 to Jan. 19, 2026 for winter break. We will return Tues. Jan. 20th, 2026!
Rules:
Bughouse is a chess variant played on two chessboards by four players in teams of two. Each team member faces one opponent of the other team. Partners sit next to each other and one player per team has black pieces, while the other has white pieces. Each player plays the opponent as in a standard chess game, with the exception of the rules specified below.
Captured pieces:
A player capturing a piece immediately passes that piece to their partner. The partner keeps these pieces in their reserve and may, on their turn, instead of playing a regular move, place one of these pieces on the board (as in shogi and crazyhouse), called dropping the piece. Pieces in reserve may be dropped on any vacant square, including squares where the piece delivers check or checkmate; however, pawns may not be dropped on the first or last rank. (A variant does not allow dropped pieces to deliver check.) Dropped pawns may promote, but all promoted pawns convert back to pawns when captured. In play over the board, a promoted pawn can be put on its side to indicate promotion. A pawn placed on the second rank may move two squares on its first move, and, if it lands directly next to an enemy pawn, be captured en passant. A rook placed on the rook's typical starting square (a1, h1, a8, h8) may take part in castling. Each player must keep the reserve or stock pieces on the table in front of the board, always visible to all players of the game.
Clock and completion of a move:
Bughouse chess is usually played with chess clocks to prevent players from waiting indefinitely to be passed a piece. Clocks are placed on the outside of the adjacent boards so that all players can see both clocks. At the start of the game, the players with the black pieces start the clocks simultaneously. Bughouse is usually played using clock move, meaning players are committed to a move only after pressing the clock. Touch move is practiced to a lesser extent. When used, it applies to pieces in reserve as well; they are considered dropped after contact has been made with an empty square.
Bughouse can be played without a clock, but then there is usually a rule preventing a player waiting for pieces (stalling or sitting) indefinitely. One rule states that players may not delay their move beyond the time that it takes for their partner to make three moves.
End of the game:
The match ends when the game on either board ends. A game is won when one player gets checkmated, resigns, runs out of time, or makes an illegal move. The match can be drawn by agreement or when two players on opposite teams run out of time or are checkmated simultaneously. Threefold repetition may apply to a single board; however, players should be mindful that the reserve of pieces is taken into account (e.g., even if one board repeats the same position after three moves, it is not a draw if the piece reserve changes).
Alternatively, when one board finishes, play can continue on the other board. In this case, pieces in reserve can still be dropped, but no new pieces are coming in. The outcome of the match is then decided by adding the score of the two boards.
Communication:
Partners are normally allowed to talk to each other during the game. They can, for instance, ask for a specific piece, for more trades, ask to hold a piece, suggest moves or ask their partner to stall. Shouts like "Knight mates!" or "Don't give up a Bishop!" are common and can lead to seemingly absurd sacrificial captures on the other board. Partners are not allowed to physically act on the other board.
Source: wikipedia
You may also like the following events from Leathernecks Chess Club:
Also check out other
Sports events in Moline,
Food & Drink events in Moline.
