Turkish draughts (Dama) is a two-player checkers game on an 8×8 board where each side starts with 16 men filling the 2nd and 3rd ranks of their side; the back ranks stay empty. White begins. All moves are orthogonal — forward, sideways, but never backward or diagonal for men. Capture is compulsory and the sequence capturing the most pieces must be played; a man reaching the last rank promotes to a dama, a king that flies any distance along ranks and files.
Play now — it's freeThe board is 8×8 = 64 squares; traditional boards are a single colour, with no dark/light distinction.
Each player has 16 men that completely fill the 2nd and 3rd ranks of their side; both back ranks and the two middle ranks start empty.
White makes the first move; from then on the players alternate one move per turn.
A man steps one square per move: forward, left or right. It can never move backward or diagonally.
It may step onto an empty square, or capture by jumping an adjacent enemy piece that sits directly ahead, to its left or to its right, landing on the empty square immediately beyond it.
If a capture is available, it must be taken — quiet moves are not allowed.
When more than one capture is possible, the sequence capturing the most pieces must be chosen. If several sequences tie, the player may choose freely.
Men and kings count equally as pieces during captures — both are worth one.
Captured pieces are removed from the board immediately, so new capture lines can open up within the same move.
A capture chain may not be abandoned halfway: once you start capturing, the sequence must be played to its end.
A man that reaches the far rank promotes to a dama (king).
The dama slides any number of empty squares orthogonally in all four directions — forward, backward and sideways.
Capturing with the dama: it flies over exactly one enemy piece standing any distance away on its line and lands on any empty square beyond it.
Within one capture chain, a dama may not turn 180° between two captures.
Important detail: if a man reaches the last rank during a capture and can keep capturing, it continues as a man — promotion applies only when the move ends there.
You win when the opponent has no pieces left or no legal move.
If each side is left with a single piece (king versus a lone man), the game is conventionally drawn — neither side can force a win.
On this site: if 30 consecutive moves consist only of king moves with no capture, the game is drawn. Each move has a 40-second allowance; an automated assistant plays when the time runs out.
Keep your two back ranks intact early on: with 16 pieces, defence lives in the formation.
Force compulsory captures: sometimes offering one piece sets up taking two.
Centralise your dama as soon as it lands: a flying king controls four directions at once.
Watch enemy king lines: avoid leaving a lone piece on a rank or file swept by a dama.
Count capture chains before you move: the maximum-capture rule can force paths you would rather avoid.
It is the most widely played checkers variant in Türkiye: on an 8×8 board each player starts with 16 men, all movement is orthogonal, capture is compulsory with a maximum-capture rule, and reaching the far rank promotes a man to a flying king called dama.
Each player has 16 pieces (32 in total). They completely fill the 2nd and 3rd ranks of each player's side; the back ranks stay empty.
International draughts uses 12 men on the dark diagonal squares; Turkish draughts uses 16 men on every square of two full ranks with orthogonal movement. Maximum capture is compulsory and the king flies along whole ranks and files.
A man reaching the far rank promotes to a dama. If it reaches that rank during a capture chain and can keep capturing, it continues as a man — promotion only applies when the move ends on the last rank.
The dama slides any distance through empty squares along ranks or files in all four directions, captures a single enemy piece on its line by flying over it, and may land on any empty square beyond — but it may not turn 180° between two captures in one chain.
Capturing is mandatory when possible, and when several captures are available the one taking the most pieces must be played; ties leave the choice to the player. A started chain must be completed.
You win if the opponent loses all pieces or has no legal move. King versus a lone man is a draw, and on this site 30 moves of only king moves without a capture also end the game as a draw.
Yes — play free in your browser at dama.yeeqia.com, no download and no sign-up required.
Yes, the site is mobile-first and runs in any modern browser on Android or iPhone, with full Turkish and English support.