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Can I claim a draw?

Can I claim a draw?

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I've been ducking and doging for quite a while in a game and we have gone ten move without a pawn being taken. I read somewhere that I can claim a draw under the rules of RHP. Is this true?

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No, that is not the rule. The rule is 50 moves with no pawns moved or captured.

P-

Edit! You can offer a draw, but your opponent doesn't need to accept.

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What if he has a king and a horse and i have a king. Nither of us can win. Do i have to wait for 50 moves till it ends.

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Originally posted by Chorney
What if he has a king and a horse and i have a king. Nither of us can win. Do i have to wait for 50 moves till it ends.
you can play even 400 moves... if none of U 2 offers a draw, the other one can naver accept the draw...
you always can OFFER a draw, the opponent can then accpet it.

what is the 50 moves rule for then?
you move around and you opponet never accepts your draw offers (as in the situation you described), after 50 non pawns moves and captures you can CLAIM the draw. it is not neccasary to offer the draw.
here at RHP this is not possible directly. contact russ (message, feedback, ...) and tell him the game id.
okay?
th

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Originally posted by Chorney
What if he has a king and a horse and i have a king. Nither of us can win. Do i have to wait for 50 moves till it ends.
There is a provision in the Laws of Chess for a draw in such a case*. A message to Russ (as suggested by Thire) should secure the draw, although I can't imagine any player being unwilling to agree a draw with K+N vs K.

*Article 1.3 states 'If the position is such that neither player can possibly checkmate, the game is drawn.' and Article 5.2b reiterates.

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There is an exception to the 50 move rule: when an ending is known to be a win, a player is allowed twice the number of moves it should take him with best play. (i.e. king/bishop/knight vs king is a win with 34 moves of best play, therefore player is allowed 68 moves to effect checkmate--otherwise a draw can be claimed.)

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Originally posted by Al Green
There is an exception to the 50 move rule: when an ending is known to be a win, a player is allowed twice the number of moves it should take him with best play. (i.e. king/bishop/knight vs king is a win with 34 moves of best play, therefore player is allowed 68 moves to effect checkmate--otherwise a draw can be claimed.)
This is wrong. It's 50 moves, without exceptions.

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I've heard of that exception before, but the current laws don't mention it. As Mr. Tebb said, 50 moves and that's that. I believe the exception mentioned was FIDE law some decades ago, but no longer.

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OK, Sorry, and thanks for the update. I was reading a book published by Milton Hanauer, M.S., J.D. in 1957 (Then director of NYC Interscholastic Chess League, former N.Y. State Champion and member U.S. International Team.)

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Originally posted by Al Green
OK, Sorry, and thanks for the update. I was reading a book published by Milton Hanauer, M.S., J.D. in 1957 (Then director of NYC Interscholastic Chess League, former N.Y. State Champion and member U.S. International Team.)
Was the book Chess Made Simple? If so, that's probably where I read it, too.

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Bingo! Recently acquired from an old friend. I think that was an excellent BEGINNERS book though it does have a few mistakes in it... Thanks again.

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Originally posted by Al Green
OK, Sorry, and thanks for the update. I was reading a book published by Milton Hanauer, M.S., J.D. in 1957 (Then director of NYC Interscholastic Chess League, former N.Y. State Champion and member U.S. International Team.)
Yes - It was a silly rule because chess theorists then decided it was great fun to find loads of obscure combinations of pieces that would lead to a win in huge numbers of moves.

All these obscure combinations, and the max moves, had to be listed somewhere so tournament directors could refer to them and the list had to be updated constantly, driving everyone mad.

Also it made games with those combinations of pieces really long and boring as the players had to make loads of moves, and didn't want to agree a draw to a theoretically won game, but unless they were chess theorists, they had no chance of finding the winning moves.

It could also be argued that (as players had to be told what their max moves were) they would then get have extra information about their winning chances, so the rule would affect their play.

All in all - a fine example of the principle that things are always more complicated than you think.

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