What you need
A six-pointed star board with holes or hollows, and ten marbles or pegs for each player, each set a different colour. Each point of the star is a triangle of ten holes: one player’s starting area. The triangle directly opposite is that player’s home.
Despite its name, the game is German. It was invented in 1892 as Stern-Halma, a star-shaped version of the American game Halma, and renamed “Chinese checkers” by the Pressman toy company in the United States in 1928.
Setup
Each player fills one triangle with their ten marbles. How many triangles are used depends on the number of players:
- Two players: start in opposite triangles. Each plays one set (often 15 marbles each on boards that allow it), or two or three sets each.
- Three players: each takes one set and races into an empty opposite triangle, or each plays two sets on opposite points.
- Four players: two opposite triangles stay empty.
- Six players: every triangle is used; can be played as three teams of two, partners sitting opposite.
Five players cannot play fairly, because one player would have no opponent facing them. Toss a coin or roll a die for the first player; turns go clockwise.
How to play
On your turn, move one marble in one of two ways:
- Step: move to an adjacent empty hole, in any of the six directions.
- Hop: jump over one adjacent marble, of any colour, into the empty hole directly beyond it in a straight line. From there you may hop again, over another single marble, and keep chaining hops in any directions for as long as you like.
A move is either one step or a chain of hops, never a mix of both. Hopped marbles are not captured; they stay where they are. You do not have to make every hop available and may stop a chain part way.
Scoring and winning
The first player to move all ten marbles into their home triangle wins. The others usually keep playing to decide second place and beyond. In team play, both partners must finish for their team to win.
Common variants
- Fast-paced (Super Chinese Checkers): popular in France. A marble may hop over a distant piece to the same distance on the other side, provided the holes in between are empty, so very long hops are possible.
- Multiple hops in one jump: some players allow a hop over several marbles in a row.
- Capture: all 60 marbles start in the central hexagon with the centre empty; any marble may hop any other, hopped marbles are captured, and only hops are allowed.
- Diamond game: a Japanese and Korean version for fewer players, with a king piece in some sets.
Tips for first games
- Build “ladders”: lines of your marbles spaced one hole apart give you long chains of hops.
- Do not leave your last marbles behind. A straggler stuck in your starting triangle can cost the whole game.
- Opponents’ marbles are useful stepping stones too; plan hops over them.
- Fill your home triangle from the far tip first, so latecomers have room to land.
- Avoid moves that build a ladder your opponent can use better than you.
Frequently asked questions
Can you capture marbles? No. In standard Chinese checkers nothing is captured.
Can I combine a step and a hop? No. A move is either a single step or a series of hops.
Do I have to keep hopping? No. You may stop a chain of hops whenever you like.
Can five people play? Not fairly; the standard games are for 2, 3, 4 or 6 players.
Can I hop over my own marbles? Yes. You may hop over any single marble, yours or an opponent’s.
