Shashi online is a common search: the courtyard game everyone learned as a child is well worth playing on a phone or in a browser when there is no board and no partner at hand. Before you pick a site or an app, a few things are worth knowing: which rules it plays by, who you are playing against, a person or a bot, and how it works on screen. That is what this page covers, along with what tamashebi.cc has to offer.
Shashi is not on tamashebi.cc yet, and no opening date has been announced. The site currently offers nardi, Joker, Japanese Joker, domino and Bura: free, in the browser, against live opponents. Seka is in preparation.
Why play shashi online
- There is always a partner. Even at midnight someone will take a seat, or you can play a bot.
- The program keeps the rules. Compulsory capture, continuing a capture, crowning a damka (king): everything is enforced automatically, so there is nothing to argue about.
- The board is always set up correctly. On a real board people often forget that the bottom-left square must be dark.
- Time is limited. Online games usually limit the time per move, so a game does not drag on.
- Rating and history. Many sites keep count of wins and losses, so you can see your game improving.
Check one thing before you start: which kind of draughts the site plays. "Shashi" means Russian draughts: 8x8, men capture backwards, the king flies. In English and American checkers a man cannot capture backwards and the king moves only one square; international draughts is played on a 10x10 board where taking the most pieces is compulsory. At first glance it is the same game, but the habits are different. The rules are covered in detail in our shashi rules article.
Live opponent vs bot
A bot and a person are good for different things. A bot never gets tired, never rushes and rarely makes a tactical mistake; a good program is stronger at draughts than a person. A live opponent makes mistakes, takes risks, sometimes sets a trap and changes from one game to the next.
- A bot for learning: to try a new opening, to see capture combinations, or when you have five minutes and do not want to wait for anyone.
- A person for playing: a real win, psychology, chat, a rematch with a friend.
- Bots with difficulty levels are best: start on an easy one and move up when you win three in a row.
- Etiquette at a live table is the same as in the courtyard: do not run the clock down in a lost position, and say hello.
On tamashebi.cc, for example, nardi offers both: you can wait for a live opponent or, if nobody turns up, play a bot. That is the same logic to look for on a good shashi site.
One tip about playing a bot: do not try to fool it with the same trap over and over. A good bot will not fall for it twice, a weak one will, and either way you learn little. Use the bot to practise what you find hard against people: long capture combinations, endgames with kings, defending when you are a man down.
Playing on a phone
Shashi suits a phone well: the board is square and fits a portrait screen, and a move is two taps, one on the piece and one on the square. The only difficulty is small squares, especially on a damka's long move, when you have to tap exactly the right square.
- Choose a game that opens in the browser: no download, and your phone's storage does not fill up.
- Check whether the site highlights the possible moves when you tap a piece; with compulsory capture this is especially handy.
- Silence notifications during a game: in timed play a single call can cost you the move.
- A stable connection: Wi-Fi or a good mobile signal. Many sites wait a few seconds if your connection drops, but not forever.
That is exactly how the games on tamashebi.cc work: nardi, Joker and domino open in the browser on phone and computer alike, and you can try them without registering. Some tables use Domino Coin, a virtual coin that is not money.
How to choose where to play shashi
There are many online checkers sites and apps, and they differ a lot. Before you create an account or download anything, check these five things:
- Rules: is it Russian draughts (8x8, backward captures, flying king) or something else? A good site says so clearly and often lets you choose.
- Money: does the site ask you to top up an account or offer games for money? Draughts is a game of skill; it needs no money to be fun, and a site that pushes you towards playing for money serves a different purpose.
- Ads: some free apps show a video ad after every game. After one or two games you will see how much it gets in the way.
- Registration: can you play as a guest? That is handy for a first try, though for a rating you will want an account.
- Language and opponents: how many people play at your time of day? On an empty site you will not find a live opponent and will be left with the bot.
Your first online game: tips
- Start with a bot or without a fast clock: get used to the screen first, how you select a piece, how compulsory capture is shown, how a damka is marked.
- Then try a live opponent with a long time control, a few minutes each, say. Move on to fast, seconds-per-move games later.
- Notice what the site does when you capture: some make the only possible capture automatically, others wait for you to tap it.
- Review a lost game if the site lets you. In draughts one move often decides everything: the moment you "gave away" a man and your opponent took three.
Until we have shashi: what to play
- Nardi: the closest to shashi. Two players, a board, fifteen pieces, blocking and hitting. The difference is the dice.
- Japanese Joker: a variant of Joker played on the site as a separate game, with its own rules.
- Domino: a calm, logical game in which you work out which tiles your opponent still holds.
- Joker: a four-player card game with Georgian rules, for when you want to play with friends.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I play shashi on tamashebi.cc?
- Not yet: shashi is not on the site. Nardi, Joker, Japanese Joker, domino and Bura are playable now; Seka is in preparation.
- Is online shashi free?
- On many sites, yes. The main thing is to watch whether a site asks for money or offers games for money. Draughts is a game of skill and needs no money to be enjoyable.
- Will playing a bot teach me shashi?
- Yes, especially tactics: capture combinations and forced captures. But playing people teaches what a bot cannot: patience, and waiting for your opponent's mistake.
- How is shashi different from nardi?
- Shashi has no luck at all: both players see everything and you choose every move yourself. In nardi the dice decide how far you move, so a weaker player can win a single game. On the other hand nardi has scoring and matches, and it is already playable on tamashebi.cc.
- Shashi rules, step by step
- The best free online games
- Playing in the browser, no app needed
- How to beat the bot
- All games
Games on tamashebi.cc are free to play. Some tables use Domino Coin, a virtual in-game coin: it is never money, cannot be bought or cashed out, and means nothing outside the site. The games are for fun and for skill. The site is available in Georgian, English, Russian and Turkish.
The games on Tamashebi.cc are played in a Georgian-language interface. They are free and use a virtual coin, never real money.