Bughouses

Bughouses is a popular two-player chess variant played on a standard chessboard. The core concept involves players capturing their opponent's pieces and then being able to "drop" these captured pieces onto any empty square on the board as their own. This is in addition to the normal moves of chess. Each player has a reserve of captured pieces that they can deploy.

The game begins with a standard chess setup. When a player captures an opponent's piece, that piece is placed aside in their reserve. On their turn, a player can either make a standard chess move or choose to place a piece from their reserve onto any unoccupied square on the board. The piece dropped must be a legal move, meaning it cannot be placed in a way that immediately puts its own king in check. Pawns cannot be dropped on the first or eighth rank.

Bughouses significantly alters chess strategy. The ability to introduce captured pieces back into play creates tactical complexities and opens up many new attacking possibilities. Players must constantly consider not only their opponent's current position but also the potential threats from their captured pieces. The game often leads to rapid attacks and can be more dynamic than standard chess. It is a common variant played online and in casual settings.