Spell Chess is an exciting new variant of the classic board game on chess.com, based on its collaboration with Supercell, the creators of the popular Clash games (Clash of Clans and Clash Royale). It features two special spells that greatly change how the matches play out, adding new considerations to the already deep calculations required to win.
Spell Chess explained
Spell Chess makes two small but meaningful changes to the traditional chess gameplay experience: By adding a Freeze spell and a Jump spell, players can significantly alter their strategies along the way, disrupting their opponents’ preparation in the process.
The Freeze spell, as the name suggests, freezes all pieces in a 3×3 square, making them immobile for a move. Meanwhile, the Jump spell enchants a piece on a specific square, allowing the rest of your army to jump over it to exploit any potential newfound opening. (This means you’re enchanting the “jumpee,” not the jumper, so to speak.) The Jump spell lasts for the full turn, meaning your opponent can also jump over the square on their next move!
Each player starts with five Freeze spells and two Jump spells. You can only use one spell per turn before you make your move. They also have a three-move cooldown, so you can’t just spam freezes to win the game.
Similarly to Duck Chess, you can win by capturing the enemy king, but the normal checkmate also works in this mode. This is important to keep in mind for any Jump spell shenanigans: blocking a check won’t save you. (Incidentally, you can combine the two game modes to play an exciting and brain-busting game of Duck Spell Chess, which we won’t go into here to avoid a mental breakdown, but you can check out an interesting series of games from Duck Chess enthusiast Eric Rosen’ video.)
The arrival of Spell Chess is just one of the many goodies that were announced as part of the September collaborative event between Chess.com and Supercell, which also featured themed chess bots, a 16-player streamer tournament, community areas, and special groups. If previous variant chess formats are of any indication, Spell Chess is expected to stick around beyond its promotional run.
The Spell Chess format on chess.com is not to be confused with spellchess.io, a different and standalone experience, which revolves around earning XP and getting cards, and upgrading your tools along the way. Unlike the game mode discussed here, this one offers progression unlocks beyond the single game, and while it’s also fun, it is entirely unrelated to chess.com’s spell-filled take on the game.
How to play Spell Chess: Tips and tricks and gameplay strategies
Both the Freeze and the Jump spells are incredibly powerful in the context of traditional chess, and they make major differences in how you should approach the game. Don’t expect to get away with your standard opening repertoire, or you might immediately find yourself frozen and jumped over (and checkmated).
In most cases, casting a Freeze spell will force your opponent to do the same in response or risk significant damage in return. This means that if you can bait out a Freeze spell without any real threat on the board, you have a huge advantage in the upcoming moves. Freezing first is often an issue as it means your opponent’s pieces will be the first to thaw out should they respond in kind.
Initiative is at a premium in this mode, making White heavily favored at all levels of play. If Black is not careful, a rapidly played Bb5 and Qh5 coupled with a Freeze spell will immediately threaten devastation, as the traditional method of blocking the threat accomplishes nothing due to the Jump spell on tap.
Speaking of which, the Jump spell makes it even more valuable than usual to understand x-rays and skewers, lining up your pieces in an advantageous manner on important rows, lines, and diagonals. In very rare cases, pawns can also make use of it on their very first moves by moving two squares instead of one.
You can find further insights in Jarl Carlander’s detailed Spell Chess breakdown, which has proven to be an excellent resource for players of all levels. For different chess tactics, you can learn more about forks, pins, and more by checking out the rest of our chess content.
