Chess is a game filled with riddles and puzzles. Here are 67 riddles about various aspects of chess, along with their answers, to test your chess knowledge.
Riddles about the Chess Board
#1
Riddle: How many squares are there on a chessboard?
Answer: There are 64 squares on a chessboard – 8 rows and 8 columns.
#2
Riddle: What is special about the corner squares of the chessboard?
Answer: The corner squares are always white.
#3
Riddle: What pattern is created by the square colors of a chessboard?
Answer: The chessboard squares show an alternating pattern of light and dark squares.
#4
Riddle: What are the coordinates of the four center squares on a chessboard?
Answer: The four center squares are d4, d5, e4 and e5.
#5
Riddle: Which is the only square on the chessboard that shares its initial with the piece that starts on it?
Answer: f3 – where the f pawn starts.
Riddles about Chess Pieces
#6
Riddle: How many total chess pieces are there at the start of a game?
Answer: There are 32 pieces at the start – 16 white pieces and 16 black pieces.
#7
Riddle: Which chess piece is the only one that can be exchanged for the opponent’s piece?
Answer: The pawn is the only piece that can be exchanged via en passant.
#8
Riddle: How many pawns are there in a standard chess starting position?
Answer: There are 16 pawns, 8 white and 8 black, at the start of a chess game.
#9
Riddle: Which is the only chess piece that cannot move in a straight line?
Answer: The knight is the only piece that cannot move in a straight line.
#10
Riddle: How many bishops are on a chessboard at the start of the game?
Answer: There are 4 bishops – 2 white bishops and 2 black bishops.
#11
Riddle: Which chess piece is valued at 9 points in standard chess scoring?
Answer: The queen has a value of 9 points.
#12
Riddle: How many rooks are there at the start of a chess game?
Answer: There are 4 rooks, 2 for white and 2 for black.
#13
Riddle: Which chess piece can reach any square on the board in a maximum of 2 moves?
Answer: The knight is the only piece that can reach any square in a maximum of 2 moves.
#14
Riddle: How many moves can a king make in any one turn?
Answer: The king can make only one move per turn.
#15
Riddle: Which is the only chess piece that can jump over other pieces?
Answer: The knight is the only piece that can jump over other pieces.
Riddles about Special Chess Moves
#16
Riddle: What is the only move in chess where a pawn can move 2 squares at once?
Answer: The double step from a pawn’s initial position allows it to advance 2 squares.
#17
Riddle: How can a pawn attack an enemy piece without moving forward?
Answer: Pawns can attack diagonally to capture enemy pieces.
#18
Riddle: What move allows capturing an opponent’s pawn that has moved two squares?
Answer: En passant allows capturing a pawn that evaded capture by moving two squares.
#19
Riddle: How many times can each pawn move with the en passant rule?
Answer: Only once – immediately after the opponent’s pawn moves 2 squares.
#20
Riddle: Which move allows the king to move two squares towards a rook?
Answer: Castling allows the king to move two squares towards a rook.
#21
Riddle: What are the two requirements for a king to castle?
Answer: The king and rook must be in their original positions and cannot have moved before.
#22
Riddle: In which direction can each king castle?
Answer: Kingside towards the h-rook and queenside towards the a-rook.
#23
Riddle: What is the maximum number of times each player can castle in a game?
Answer: Only once with each rook, so a maximum of 2 times per player.
#24
Riddle: Which piece gives a check that directly threatens the enemy king?
Answer: A checking piece directly attacking the opponent’s king.
Riddles about Chess Rules
#25
Riddle: How do you win a game of chess?
Answer: By checkmating the opponent’s king.
#26
Riddle: What three results are possible in a game of chess?
Answer: White win, black win or draw.
#27
Riddle: How do you achieve stalemate in chess?
Answer: When the king is not in check but has no legal moves.
#28
Riddle: Which color piece is moved first in a game of chess?
Answer: White always moves first in standard chess rules.
#29
Riddle: How is a draw declared in chess when neither player can force a win?
Answer: It is a draw by mutual agreement.
#30
Riddle: What is an immediate draw if executed on the first move?
Answer: Moving the king to directly face the opponent’s king.
#31
Riddle: When can a player claim a draw by threefold repetition?
Answer: When the same board position occurs three times with the same player to move.
#32
Riddle: What is the maximum number of consecutive turns a player can make with one piece?
Answer: There is no limit – as many turns as legal moves exist.
#33
Riddle: How many points does each player start with in a standard chess game?
Answer: 16 points – one point per piece on the board initially.
#34
Riddle: What is the timeout period if a player fails to make a move in a timed chess game?
Answer: They forfeit on time after 5 minutes or as set for the game.
Riddles about Famous Chess Players
#35
Riddle: Which world chess champion was famous for playing blindfolded chess?
Answer: Paul Morphy, considered one of the greatest chess players.
#36
Riddle: Who was the youngest ever world chess champion at 22 years of age?
Answer: Garry Kasparov held the record for youngest world champion.
#37
Riddle: Who is the only world chess champion who never lost his title in a match?
Answer: Wilhelm Steinitz, the first undisputed world champion.
#38
Riddle: Which legendary chess grandmaster was known as “The Beast from Baku”?
Answer: Garry Kasparov was known by that nickname.
#39
Riddle: Who was the first American chess master and world championship challenger?
Answer: Paul Morphy, in the 1850s.
#40
Riddle: Which player dominated women’s chess as world champion for over two decades?
Answer: Susan Polgar from 1996 until she retired in 2014.
#41
Riddle: Who wrote the first authoritative encyclopedia of chess openings and strategies?
Answer: Ruy Lopez, a Spanish priest in the 16th century.
#42
Riddle: Which former world champion is known for his aggressive sacrificial attacking style?
Answer: Mikhail Tal of the Soviet Union.
#43
Riddle: Who was the first machine to defeat a world chess champion?
Answer: In 1997, Deep Blue defeated Garry Kasparov.
#44
Riddle: Which player famously lost an 1863 match after arriving 12 minutes late?
Answer: Paul Morphy lost on time after a late arrival.
Riddles about Chess Strategies
#45
Riddle: What is the main opening move for white to start with central control?
Answer: The king pawn opening starting 1. e4 gains space in the center.
#46
Riddle: What is the name for the strategy of trading pieces to ease positional pressure?
Answer: Simplification or reducing down to an endgame.
#47
Riddle: What tactic uses short-term sacrifices to gain attacking positions?
Answer: Gambits are openings that give up material for compensation.
#48
Riddle: How can you attack both sides of the board to stretch the opponent’s defenses?
Answer: Open up files and diagonals for long-range pieces.
#49
Riddle: What tactic pins a piece so it cannot move without exposing a more valuable piece?
Answer: A pin immobilizes a piece in front of a more valuable one.
#50
Riddle: What tactic uses a short threat to force opponent moves that create weaknesses?
Answer: A decoy, distracting the opponent.
#51
Riddle: What tactic uses a checking move to gain time or force a certain reply?
Answer: A check can be used as a move that demands a response.
Riddles about Chess Psychology
#52
Riddle: What is it called when a player thinks for a very long time before moving?
Answer: Taking excessive time on a move can be time trouble stalling.
#53
Riddle: What cognitive bias leads players to avoid exchanges that appear to lose points?
Answer: Loss aversion – being more motivated to avoid losses than gains.
#54
Riddle: What bias leads to underestimating threats from the opponent’s last move?
Answer: Recency bias – focusing too much on recent events.
#55
Riddle: What term describes the illusion of control from winning a previous gamble?
Answer: The gambler’s fallacy.
#56
Riddle: What can result from a chess player being overconfident in their ability?
Answer: Overconfidence can lead to careless mistakes.
#57
Riddle: What cognitive bias causes us to avoid changing earlier chess assessments?
Answer: Confirmation bias.
#58
Riddle: What is the name of the phenomenon where we recall our good moves but forget blunders?
Answer: Egocentric bias.
Riddles about Chess Competitions
#59
Riddle: How many chess players compete in a traditional chess tournament?
Answer: Usually 8, 16 or 32 players in a tournament.
#60
Riddle: What major team chess competition between nations was dominated by the USSR?
Answer: The Chess Olympiad.
#61
Riddle: Which major title can be earned through strong performances in top events?
Answer: The chess Grandmaster title.
#62
Riddle: In ranked competitive chess, what is a bigger upset – beating a higher ranked player, or losing to a lower ranked player?
Answer: Losing to a much lower ranked player costs more Elo rating points.
#63
Riddle: What is the highest rated chess event where all competitors must be under a certain age?
Answer: The World Junior Chess Championship.
#64
Riddle: What is the fastest competitive chess format with each player having just minutes total?
Answer: Blitz chess has 3-5 minutes per player.
#65
Riddle: Which fancy Fair Play rule allows talking between teammates during a team chess match?
Answer: Consulting teammates is allowed in a tandem simul.
Conclusion
So there you have it – 67 tricky and interesting riddles spanning all aspects of the game to challenge your chess knowledge. Solving chess puzzles, seeing tactics and patterns, and learning the key principles of the game will go a long way in helping solve these riddles. Chess is infinitely deep – there will always be more riddles to uncover about this age-old game of strategy.
#66
Riddle: What is the most important principle of chess strategy that applies at all levels from beginner to master?
Answer: Piece coordination – maximizing the power of your forces by getting them to work together.
#67
Riddle: What aspect of chess transcends over-the-board play to apply broadly in life?
Answer: The discipline of structured thinking before deciding – looking ahead at consequences before committing.
