ekstramerking

Ekstramerking is a term used in some chess variant discussions to describe a mechanism by which an additional king is introduced into a board game. It is not part of the official rules of chess.

Usage and context: The term appears most often in hobbyist blogs, puzzle compilations, and community-created variant lists. There is no single canonical definition; different authors propose different implementations, often to explore new strategic and endgame challenges. The core questions in these variants concern how the extra king is obtained or placed, how it moves and is protected, how it interacts with standard kings, and what determines a win or loss.

Examples of approaches (non-exhaustive): Some variants add a second king of each color that must be checkmated or captured; others introduce the extra king as a neutral piece on the board with specific move rules; some rule sets tie the extra king's status to pawn promotions. Because of the variation, the term does not imply any fixed rules. Proposals typically aim to increase complexity, test defensive planning, and broaden endgame possibilities.

See also: Chess variants; Multi-king variants; Game design experiments.