Chess Rules - Stalemate and Drawing the Game

It is black's turn. He is not in check, and he has no legal move. This is stalemate. The game is drawn.

When a player is not in check, and can make no legal move on his turn, the game is said to be stalemate.

When stalemate occurs, the game is drawn - a tie. In novice chess, the most common way for a draw to occur is through stalemate.

Other Ways to Draw

Here are some other common to draw a game:

• Players can agree to a draw.
• The game is drawn after 50 consecutive moves by each player without a capture or a pawn move.
• The game is drawn after the same board position with the same player to move has been repeated 3 times.
• The game is drawn when a position arises in which no series of legal move can lead to checkmate. This is called a "dead position".

For beginners, the 2 most important draw rules to understand are: stalemate and draw-by-agreement.