Crown Chain rules

Crown Chain is a compact chess-transformation puzzle. Each capture changes the piece you control, so every move also changes the next set of legal moves.

Capturing and transforming

The player controls one active piece. Select it to preview legal destinations, then capture a highlighted target. After the capture, the active piece usually transforms into the captured piece. A rook capture gives you rook movement next; a bishop capture gives you bishop movement next.

This creates the chain. You are not only asking whether a capture is legal now. You are also asking whether the transformed piece can continue the route afterward. The best move is often the one that leaves several future captures rather than the one that takes the nearest target.

Basic mode

Basic mode focuses on familiar chess pieces. It is the easiest mode to read quickly because most players can predict rook, bishop, knight, queen, king, and pawn-like movement patterns. The challenge comes from ordering the captures so that the current piece always has a next target.

Chaos mode

Chaos mode adds variant pieces as the level rises. These pieces have their own movement shapes, so the preview board becomes important. The mode is less about memorizing every piece name and more about reading the highlighted movement pattern before committing.

Time Attack

Time Attack adds pressure by limiting the decision window. It rewards readable positions, fast pattern recognition, and simple routes. A safe capture that keeps the chain obvious may be better than a clever capture that requires too much calculation.

Scoring approach

Score comes from keeping the chain alive and handling higher-pressure positions. Try to avoid captures that isolate the active piece from the rest of the board. When the preview shows many legal squares but only one useful target, the position is fragile; when it shows several useful targets, the chain is healthy.