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What is Wargame Chess?

Wargame Chess is a tabletop wargame that uses a chess set, but also incorporates other gaming devices like dice and cards. The core rules to the game are a framework that supports a variety of faction options. Understanding faction differences and interactions accounts for most of the game’s nuance.

Wargame Chess is not a variation of traditional chess - though it uses the same pieces and borrows some concepts from it, it is a wholly different game.

Getting started

First, you will need the Game Rules and Resources. Then, take a look over the various Factions to see which one best suits your play style.

Upcoming Additions and Changes

Posted February 2, 2026

There will be some adjustments to terminology used in the game. At the very least, the term "Positional" will be replaced with "Noble", and the phrase "removed from the board" will be replaced with the term "Banished". We polled playtesters and members of the team, and they felt these were more fitting to the game's themes and setting.

As well, we will be implementing a Concepts and Theory module, meant to be read before the game's rules. We noticed explaining concepts like movement theory, dice math, and more to new players helped give them a context for the rules they were about to read, and made their first few games play more smoothly.

Mission and vision

Wargame Chess aims to provide a free and easily accessible wargaming experience.

You can read our full mission and vision statements here.

Account

By creating an account, your choice of light or dark theme will keep when you load to a new page.

Discussions

Until we set up discussion pages on this site, if you wish to discuss the game you can use our page here on Patreon. If you prefer socializing on a different platform (eg. Reddit, Discord), you're welcome to create a page there.

Support us

If you'd like to support our endeavours, check out the game's Patreon page or our Ko-Fi page.

And feel free to check out our Instagram and Bluesky pages too!

Credits

Click here to see our team members.