Shogi King

Learn › Unit 3

Captures and drops

Captured pieces change sides and come back. Where you may — and may not — drop them.

  1. Captured pieces change sides

    In shogi a captured piece isn't gone — it joins the capturer's hand, unpromoted, ready to be dropped back as their own.

  2. Dropping a piece

    Instead of moving, you may spend your turn placing a piece from your hand on any empty square — unpromoted, and with a few restrictions.

  3. Illegal drops

    Nifu (two pawns on a file), uchifuzume (mate by a dropped pawn) and dead-end drops — the three drops shogi forbids.

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