Chinese checkers: a fascinating strategy game for all ages
A star-shaped board, pegs to move across it, and an origin far less Chinese than you would think.
A German history, not a Chinese one
Despite what the name suggests, Chinese checkers comes neither from China nor from antiquity. The game is a variant of Halma, invented in the United States around 1883 on a square board. In 1892, a German publisher brought out a version on a six-pointed star board under the name Stern-Halma — literally “star halma”, the name it still carries in Germany today.
It was in the 1920s that American publishers renamed it “Chinese Checkers”, to give it a whiff of the exotic. The name stuck; the Chinese origin never existed.
Aim of the game
Move all your pegs from your starting point to the opposite point of the star, before the other players. The first to do so wins.
How you move your pegs
On your turn, you make one of the following two moves:
- A step into a free neighbouring hole;
- A jump over an adjacent peg — your own or an opponent's — landing in the free hole directly beyond.
A jump can be chained with further jumps in the same turn, which lets you cross a good part of the board in one go. Unlike traditional draughts, jumping over a peg does not capture it: it stays where it is. There is no die and no piece taken.
A little tactics
The whole game is about building chains of jumps. A lone peg advances one step; well placed, it crosses the star in a single turn. Good players therefore lay their pegs out in a “ladder” to use their own pieces as springboards — while avoiding offering those same springboards to their opponents, since anyone may jump over any peg.
The other classic mistake is emptying your starting point too quickly: the last pegs left behind then have nothing to bounce off.
Frequently asked questions
How many players?
2, 3, 4 or 6 players — the six-pointed star divides evenly in those four cases.
Is there a die?
No. Chinese checkers is a game of pure thought, with no element of chance.
From what age?
The rules are understood in a minute, which makes it accessible to children without stopping adults from getting caught up in it.
Our Chinese checkers are available in a board version and a box version, or browse our full selection of traditional games.