Shot Glass Checkers

Shot glass checkers is regular checkers, except the pieces are small glasses. Each player sets twelve half-full glasses on the dark squares of their first three rows. When one of your glasses gets jumped and captured, you drink it and set it beside the board.

To tell the two sides apart, you need two different drinks or glasses: light and dark beer, white and red wine spritzers, or clear glasses against colored ones. Play on a chess or checkers board – the bigger the squares, the better.

Moves follow standard checkers rules:

• Moving: A glass moves one square diagonally forward onto a free dark square. Decide who goes first at random.
• Jumping: If an opposing glass sits diagonally in front of you with an empty square behind it, you jump over it. Captures are mandatory, and you can chain several jumps in a single move.
• Drinking: The owner drinks every glass that gets jumped. A multi-jump can mean several glasses at once.
• King: When a glass reaches your opponent’s back row, it becomes a king and gets filled to the brim. Kings can move and jump backwards too. If a king gets captured, that full glass is due.
• End of the game: Whoever runs out of glasses or can’t make a move loses. Under the usual rule, the loser then drinks whatever is left on the board.

Variations

• Costly crown: Instead of topping up the glass, the opponent takes two sips whenever someone gets a king.
• Flying kings: Following continental draughts rules, kings can move any distance diagonally – faster games, more dangerous kings.
• Split the rest: Both players share the glasses left at the end instead of the loser drinking them all.
• Alcohol-free: Cola against apple spritzer or orange juice against water – as long as the colors look different.

Tips

A standard board is often too small for shot glasses. A big homemade board on cardboard or a tape grid on the table works better. Glasses with a heavy base are less likely to tip during jumps. And drink first, then keep playing – otherwise empty glasses get in the way.