Basic Play at Pool Checkers

The most common endgame in pool checkers is three kings against one king. It is known as "the special". The lone king must be captured before it can make 13 moves. As soon as one player has three kings and the other one king, with no other pieces on the board, a count of the weaker side's moves is started. The game is drawn if the lone king makes 13 moves, even if it would be captured by the stronger side's next move.

The idea is to drive the lone king from the b8/h2, a7/g1, a3/f8 and c1/h6 lines, all the while retaining control of the a1/h8 line. When this is done, the only safe squares for Black will be a5, d8, e1 and h4.

1. d6-c5 e1-g3 2. c5-b6 g3-h2 3. b6-f2 c1-f4 4. f2-g1 a1-h8 (a waiting move) 5. g1-c5 h2-g1 White controls the b8/h2 and a7/g1 lines, as well as the c1/h6 line. 6. c5-e7 g1-e3 See diagram 2. 7. e7-b4 AB h8-f6 8. b4-a5 C e3-c5 See diagram 3.

White now controls all the necessary lines. The white kings form a triangle pointing at the black king, and it is Black's turn to move. If it were White's move, Black would gain a draw by making 13 moves. 9. a5-e1 D c5-e7 10. e1-a5 f4-c7 11. a5xd8 f6-h4 12. d8xf6 h4xe7 White wins, just in time.

A  7. e7-f8 h8xg7  8. f8xh6 e3-c1  9. h6xe3 c1xf4  White wins
B  7. e7-a3 h8-b2  8. a3xc1 f4-h6  9. c1xf4 hfxe3  White wins.
C  8. b4-e1 f4-d6  White again wins by pointing a triangle at the black king.
D  9. a5-d8 c5-e7  10. d8-b6(a5) f4-c7  11. b6(a5)xd8 f6-h4  12. d8xf6 
h4xe7  White wins.

The special frequently arises when one player is forced to give up one or more men to reach the king row. While giving up these men, the player hopes to be able to occupy the a1/h8 line, which is sometimes referred to as the Mason-Dixon Line, or the Mason. If he can do this, the game will be a draw, because the stronger side will not be able to force a trade of kings to capture the lone king. The special can be applied in the same way in Russian checkers and in Spanish checkers.

If you would like to make your own diagrams similar to the ones above, see the information on my Checkers Main Page.

Black to Move and Win

James "Step" Searles, one of the pool checker players at the Citadel Salvation Army Center in Brooklyn (Checkers Main Page), likes this engame study so much that he had me print it on letter envelopes for his personal correspondence with other checker players.

As with many engame problems, if you see a variation that is particularly charming, you are probably on the right track.

PC Solutions, Adrian Millett - Computer programs for many variations of checkers, including pool checkers

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