How to play chess: The Queen
The mighty queen is the most powerful piece on the chessboard, combining the powers of the rook and bishop. Such is the queen's power, that the player who loses his or her queen is almost sure to lose the game as well. No other piece rivals the speed and manoeuverability of the queen, and many games are often decided by a lightning queen sortie. Each player starts the game with one queen.
Movement
The queen can move any number of squares in a straight line horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. In this way, she combines the powers of the rook and bishop in a single piece. The legal moves of the queen are displayed on the board below:
It might seem that the queen can do almost anything that another piece can, but there are limits to the queen's prowess. Like the rook and bishop, she lacks the knight's ability to jump over obstacles, and so her routes must always be clear of obstruction. Try making a legal move with the white queen on the board below:
The queen captures the same way she moves. Drag the black queen to make a capture on the board below:
