Play Turkish Draughts (Dama) Online

Play free online vs the computer or a friend — the orthogonal game

Bu sayfanın Türkçesi: Dama oyna — Türk daması

Turkish draughts — dama in Turkish — is the great outlier of the checkers family. It is played on an 8×8 board using every square, and instead of moving diagonally, pieces move orthogonally: forward and sideways. Each side has 16 pieces, kings fly like a rook, and the maximum-capture rule is compulsory. Enormously popular across Turkey, the Middle East and North Africa — play it free right in your browser, against the computer or against another person on a link you send.

Play Turkish draughts vs the computer

Start a game right now — free, no signup, nothing to download. Turkish draughts runs in your browser against a computer opponent on three levels: Easy, Medium and Hard. The board highlights every legal move, glows the pieces that must capture, and enforces the orthogonal rules for you, so you can learn dama by playing it rather than by reading about it first.

Playing online against people

You can play Turkish draughts online against another person, and there are three ways in. None of them needs an account:

• Invite a friend — the Invite a Friend button makes a private link. Send it, the other person opens it, and you are playing. The link carries the variant with it, so Turkish stays Turkish.
• The lobby — Find Opponent shows who is on the site right now and who is waiting for a game. You can challenge anyone listed, and every waiting challenge says which variant it is for.
• An open challenge — post one and close the tab. When somebody accepts, the game is waiting for you when you come back.

Online games count towards your Elo rating, which starts at 1200. All four variants share one rating rather than four thin ones — see how the site works. An account is free and optional; it carries your rating and friends list from one browser to the next.

What makes Turkish draughts special

Every other major draughts variant is diagonal. Turkish is the one that turns 90°, and that single change gives it a completely different feel:

• Orthogonal movement. Men move and capture forward and sideways — never backward, never diagonally — using all 64 squares of the board.
• Rook-like kings. A crowned king (dama) flies any distance in a straight line and captures from afar, landing on any empty square beyond its victim.
• Maximum capture is compulsory. When several captures are available you must play the one that takes the most pieces — and captured pieces vanish fast on the open board.

The rules in brief

Enough to start playing. The complete rules cover every case.

• Board and setup. 8×8, but all 64 squares are used. Each player has sixteen men on their second and third rows — the back row starts empty, which surprises everyone once.
• Moving. A man moves one square forward or sideways. Never backward, and never diagonally.
• Capturing follows the same directions: forward and sideways, over an adjacent piece onto the empty square behind it. Chains may turn right angles.
• Maximum capture is compulsory — of the available captures you must take the one that removes the most pieces.
• The king moves like a rook: any distance along a rank or file, capturing from a distance and stopping on any free square beyond its victim.
• Promotion happens on the far row — but a man that reaches it mid-capture and can keep capturing continues as a man, and is crowned only once the move ends there.

Turkish draughts strategy — thinking in straight lines

Almost nothing transfers from the diagonal games. These five ideas are where players who already know checkers most often go wrong.

1. Threats come from the front and the sides

In a diagonal game you learn to watch two squares ahead of each piece. Here it is three: the square in front, and the squares left and right. A piece that is safe from a forward jump can still be taken sideways, and beginners lose material to exactly that for the first few games.

2. The board empties fast — count material early

With all 64 squares in play, thirty-two pieces and compulsory maximum capture, exchanges come quickly and chains are long. Positions that look crowded can simplify in three moves. Keep counting: a one-piece lead becomes decisive far earlier here than in the diagonal games.

3. The first rook-like king often decides the game

A king that commands a whole rank and file on an open board is close to unanswerable. The race to crown is therefore sharper than in any other variant we host — and worth a sacrifice that would be reckless elsewhere.

4. Use compulsory capture to steer your opponent

As in the other variants, captures are forced — so offering a piece does not ask a question, it removes every other reply. On an orthogonal board this is even sharper, because a forced capture can drag a defender sideways off the file it was guarding.

5. Do not count on the crowning square

This is the rule that catches out experienced players: a man that reaches the back row while still capturing does not become a king mid-move. It keeps jumping as a man and is crowned only if the move ends there. Plan the ending of the chain, not just its start.

Frequently asked questions

What is Turkish draughts? An 8×8 checkers variant played on all squares, where pieces move orthogonally (forward and sideways) and kings fly like a rook.

How is Turkish draughts different from normal checkers? Normal checkers is diagonal on the dark squares; Turkish is orthogonal on every square. See the differences page.

How do pieces move in Turkish draughts? An ordinary man moves one square forward or sideways (never backward, never diagonally). It captures the same way, jumping an adjacent enemy in a straight line. A king moves and captures any distance in a straight orthogonal line, like a rook.

Can I play Turkish draughts online for free? Yes — free in your browser with no signup, against the computer on three levels or against another person.

More questions? See the full Turkish draughts FAQ.

Start playing

Turkish draughts feels strange for one move and then completely natural. Open it with Turkish preselected and try a game — the rook-like kings are unlike anything in ordinary checkers.

Prefer the diagonal game? Try Brazilian draughts or international draughts, or start with American checkers.