Special Chess Moves
May 31st, 2010 | 
Author: Castling
Several pieces in chess have special moves, or moves they can perform under the right circumstances. One of these special moves is castling, which is a useful move with strict rules. The castling move can only be used when neither the king nor the rook has been moved during the game. This means that both pieces being used in the casting move are in their original locations. In order to complete the move, there can be no other piece between the king and the rook. The king also cannot be in check either at the beginning of the move or as a result of the move.
If all of the conditions for castling are met, the move is completed by moving the king and rook toward each other. The king is moved two spaces toward the rook. The rook is moved to the space the king just moved through, or to the first space on the side of the king opposite the original position of the rook.
En- Passant
The en-passant is one of the lesser known moves in chess, and thus can be used to outwit opponents. En-passant is a move wherein a pawn is used to capture another pawn. This capture move can only be used when the opponent chooses to move a pawn two squares forward from its original position. If you have a pawn in position that could have captured the opponent’s pawn had the pawn only been moved one space, you can use the standard capture move just like the pawn was in that space. The opponent’s pawn is captured en-passant, even though it was not actually in the square your pawn now occupies.
Some restrictions apply to the en-passant move. This move can only be used to capture a pawn moved two spaces from its original position. En-passant can only be used on the move directly following your opponent moving the pawn two spaces forward. No other chess piece can make the en-passant move.
Promotion
Just as pieces which make it across a checker board are promoted to kings, pawns which make it across a chess board can be promoted as well. Once a pawn reaches the other end of the board, it can be promoted, or replaced, with any other piece except a King. Generally, pawns are promoted to queens, because queens are the most powerful piece on the board. You can promote a pawn to queen even if you still have your queen in play. Many people turn a captured rook upside down to act as a second queen.
Since pawns can be promoted to the most valuable piece on the board, pawns are more valuable than they seem!