Animal Chess vs Computer

How to play Animal Chess (Jungle / Dou Shou Qi) against the computer

This is single-player Animal Chess — also known as Jungle or Dou Shou Qi — against a computer opponent that runs right in your browser. Choose Red or Blue and one of three difficulty levels — Easy, Normal or Expert — then race an animal into the computer’s den or capture its whole army. Every win earns ranking points on the leaderboard (+10, +30 or +100). The rules below are the full traditional rules: rank order, the swimming Rat, river jumps and traps.

Starting a game against the computer

• Choose Red or Blue. Red always moves first, so if you take Blue the computer makes the first move.
• Choose a difficulty: Easy, Normal or Expert. Each button shows how many ranking points a win on that level is worth.
• Press Start game. The board appears and whichever side moves first begins.

Controls

• On your turn, tap/click one of your pieces to see its legal moves, then tap/click a highlighted target to move there. Tap another of your pieces to change the selection.
• The computer answers automatically after a short pause — the status line shows “Computer is thinking…” while it chooses its move.
• There is no undo: once a move is made it stands, just like a real ranked game.
• New game returns to the setup screen so you can change side or level. An unfinished game scores nothing.

Difficulty levels and ranking points

• Easy (+10 per win) — the computer looks only one move ahead and about half the time plays a deliberately weaker move. Ideal for learning the rules.
• Normal (+30 per win) — it looks two moves ahead (its move and your best reply) and only occasionally slips, about one move in ten.
• Expert (+100 per win) — it searches three moves deep (its move, your reply, its follow-up) and never blunders on purpose. Leave a piece unprotected and it will take it.

Only a win scores. A loss or a draw earns nothing, so just start again. Your best result on each level is shown on the leaderboard: wins are saved on this device and uploaded automatically when you are signed in and online.

The goal

Win by moving any one of your animals into your opponent’s den (the star square on their back row), or by capturing all of their pieces. You may never move a piece into your own den.

The animals and their ranking

Each side has eight animals. A piece can capture an enemy piece of the same rank or lower. From strongest to weakest:

• 🐘 Elephant (8) — strongest, but cannot take the Rat.
• 🦁 Lion (7) — can leap over the river.
• 🐯 Tiger (6) — can leap over the river.
• 🐆 Leopard (5)
• 🐺 Wolf (4)
• 🐶 Dog (3)
• 🐱 Cat (2)
• 🐀 Rat (1) — weakest, yet it is the only piece that can capture the Elephant, and the only one that can swim.

Moving and capturing

• Every animal moves one square up, down, left or right (never diagonally).
• You capture by moving onto an enemy piece you outrank (equal rank counts). The famous exception: the Rat beats the Elephant, but the Elephant can never beat the Rat.

The river

• The two blue blocks in the middle are water. Only the Rat may step into the river.
• A Rat in the water cannot capture (or be captured by) a piece on land, and a Rat in the water cannot capture the Elephant — it must be on land to do that. A Rat can capture an enemy Rat that is also in the water.
• The Lion and Tiger can jump over the river — horizontally or vertically — to land on the far bank, capturing an outranked enemy if one is there. A Rat sitting anywhere in that stretch of water blocks the jump.

Traps and dens

• The three squares around each den are traps. Any enemy animal standing on one of your traps temporarily drops to rank 0, so even your weakest piece can capture it there.
• You can never enter your own den, so it is a safe square — but leaving the squares around it undefended invites a dash for the win.

Tips for beginners

• Use your Rat aggressively — it neutralises the enemy Elephant and can hide in the river.
• Lions and Tigers are powerful because of the river jump, but watch for a defending Rat that cancels it.
• Lure strong enemy pieces onto your traps, then pick them off cheaply.
• Always keep a guard near your own den; one careless turn can lose the game instantly.

Frequently asked questions