What is Trojan Chess?

Trojan Chess is a chess variant that uses the standard starting position and normal checkmate rules. Friendly pieces can hide inside rooks and queens, move with the stack, and deploy onto empty squares when the moment is right.

How is Trojan Chess different from regular chess?

You get one action per turn: Move (slide the whole stack), Board (hide a piece inside your rook or queen), or Deploy (release a hidden piece to an empty square). Capturing removes an entire enemy stack at once.

Do normal chess rules still apply?

Yes. Check, checkmate, castling, pawn promotion, stalemate, threefold repetition, the 50-move rule, and insufficient material draws all work as in standard chess.

Which pieces can carry cargo?

Only rooks and queens act as transports (carriers). Kings cannot board or carry stacks. A stack holds at most three pieces total.

Chess variant · free to play online

Trojan Chess: standard chess with hidden pieces

If you already play chess, you are 90% there. Same board, same checkmate goal, same openings — but your rooks and queens can hide friendly pieces inside. Move the stack, deploy the surprise. One action per turn.

Play online (3+2)Try vs bot

30-second summary for chess players

Starting position — identical to standard chess.
One action per turn — Move or Board or Deploy (not all three).
Transports — rooks and queens can hold up to two friendly pieces underneath (three pieces on the square total).
Stack capture — take a square, take the whole stack.
Win — checkmate, resignation, or flag on time (online games use 3+2).

Stacks & carriers

Every occupied square has a stack. The piece you see on the board is the carrier (bottom of the stack). Hidden pieces above it are cargo.

♞ knight♝ bishop♜ rook (carrier)

The rook moves the entire stack. Cargo stays hidden until you deploy it.

Only rooks and queens can be carriers.
Kings never board and never carry cargo.
Maximum 3 pieces on one square (1 carrier + 2 cargo).
Squares with stacks show a ×N badge in the app.

Your three actions (pick one per turn)

Regular chess: move one piece. Trojan Chess: choose a mode, then make one action.

1. Move

Like normal chess — but the whole stack slides

Select your carrier and drag it. The entire stack moves together using the carrier's movement (rook moves like a rook, queen like a queen). Castling still works when legal.

Chess habit: think "move the transport," not an individual cargo piece.

2. Board

Load cargo onto a transport

Move a solo friendly piece (not the king) onto one of your rooks or queens. That piece becomes cargo stacked above the carrier.

Use this to tuck a bishop behind a rook, then roll out later.

3. Deploy

Unload cargo to an empty square

Select a transport that has cargo, pick which piece to unload, and place it on an empty square. The deployed piece moves as its own type from the transport's square (e.g. a knight deploys with knight jumps).

You cannot deploy from a transport that already moved this turn.

Captures & check

Capturing an enemy square removes every piece in that stack — a single capture can swing material hard.
Check and checkmate work exactly like chess. Your king must escape threat; if it cannot, you lose.
You cannot move into check, leave your king in check, or ignore a check — same legality filtering as standard chess.

The big strategic shift: a rook hiding a knight is a loaded threat. Protect your transports, punish overloaded stacks, and deploy at the right moment.

What stays the same as chess

Rules you already know

Standard starting setup
Check, checkmate, stalemate
Castling & pawn promotion
Pawn promotion to queen
Draws: threefold, 50-move, insufficient material

Online play

Share a link — friend joins and plays
Built-in chat and rematch
3+2 clock (3 minutes + 2 seconds per move)
Resign when you are lost

Example sequence

Turn 1 (White): Board a bishop onto the queen at d1 — queen now carries cargo.
Turn 2 (White): Move the queen stack to a central square (Move action).
Turn 3 (White): Deploy the bishop to an empty square, striking a new diagonal (Deploy action).

Black plays normal chess moves or starts their own cargo chains. Most games mix classic tactics with one or two transport swings.

FAQ

Is Trojan Chess harder than chess?: The rules add one layer (stacking), but the win condition is unchanged. Most club players pick it up in a single game.
Can pawns carry or board?: Pawns can board onto a rook/queen and ride as cargo. They deploy and promote normally when reaching the back rank.
Do I need an account?: Online multiplayer requires a free account. You can play locally against a bot on the home page without logging in.
What time control is used online?: All online games use 3+2 for now: three minutes each plus two seconds added per move.