What happens if you leave your King in check? Can your opponent take it?

Question: What happens if you leave your King in check? Can your opponent take it?

Answer:

No, the King can never be captured. NEVER! Leaving the King in check is an illegal move and must be corrected before the next move is made. A player who leaves the King in check has to take back the last move.

If the game is being played using the 'touch move' rule, then that player has to move the same piece that was used to make the illegal move (castling is considered a King move). If that piece has no legal moves, then there is no penalty : the player can move any other piece to get out of check.

If a player has no moves to get out of check, the game ends with a checkmate. For details, see the link to the right under Suggested Reading.

In some forms of chess played at fast time controls, making an illegal move can mean losing the game. This is an unusual rule and must be announced before a game is played.