Learn › Unit 4

Winning and drawing 勝ち負け

Check and checkmate, resigning, repetition, impasse, and the move cap.

1. Check and checkmate

   How to answer a check — move the king, capture the checker, or block — and what makes a checkmate.

2. Resigning

   Most shogi games end with a resignation, not a checkmate. How and when to resign, and what to say.

3. Repetition and perpetual check

   When the same position appears four times the game is a draw — unless one side checked on every move, in which case that side loses.

4. Impasse and the point count

   When both kings reach enemy territory the game can be settled by counting pieces. This site uses the 27-point rule.

5. The move cap

   A backstop, not a rule of shogi — a game that reaches 500 moves is settled by the impasse count.

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