Magic Pieces: Fantasy Chess with Deckbuilding

Chess, but every player brings their own pieces

Magic Pieces is a strategy game for your browser that combines chess with deckbuilding. The board, the rules and checkmate stay the same. What changes is your army, because you build it yourself.

There are three factions and 18 pieces. Classic is the chess you already know. Raiders and Hollow break the rules, each in their own way: a Sea Witch who drags a second piece down with her prey, a Cannoneer who hits from two squares away without moving, a Necromancer who brings the fallen back. You put together a 16-piece army from your collection and mix the factions however you like. Your opponent does the same. Same rules, completely different dynamics.

Free to play. Right in your browser. No download.

Who I am

I'm a software developer, and I've been playing chess for years. At some point I started asking myself: what if both sides didn't have the same pieces?

Magic Pieces grew out of that question. I built it on my own, from the ground up: the game engine, matchmaking, online matches with a chess clock, a collection system and an academy that teaches you the game. All of it works, and you can play it today at magic-pieces.com.

But building a game and launching a game are two different things. That's why I'm here.

What's already in the game

Three factions, 18 pieces. Special moves cost mana, so every ability is a real decision: use it now, or save up for the big moment?

Your army, your rules. Build your own 16-piece deck and mix Classic, Raiders and Hollow freely. A Galleon fighting next to a Necromancer? Go for it.

Play your way. Online quick play and ranked matches with a chess clock, private games with a friend via invite link, against the computer, or two players on one device.

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Learn it, then master it. An academy with 7 guided lessons teaches you every piece step by step. After that, 227 puzzles are waiting, from mate in one to puzzles that only the right special move can solve.

Collect as you play. Open Summons to unlock new pieces, turn duplicates into Souls, complete daily quests, look up every piece's abilities and lore in the Codex, and track your stats and level in your profile. On desktop, tablet and phone, in English and German.

What your pledge will create

Everything you can play today already exists. This campaign is about what comes next, and every part of it is new:

A fourth faction. Six new pieces, each with its own special move, its own artwork and its own animations. I can't say much about it yet, only this: it comes from somewhere a lot higher up than a pirate ship or a crypt.

A new lesson and new puzzles. The Academy gets a lesson that teaches the new faction step by step, plus new puzzles built around its special moves.

Tournaments. A tournament mode where players meet in brackets and play for the title, open to everyone.

Ranked seasons with rewards. Ranked play currently runs as one long season. I'll add seasons with a clear end and rewards for where you finish.

Separately from this campaign, Magic Pieces is also on its way to Steam, with controller and Steam Deck support.

How I'll make it happen

The game exists and runs, so your pledge goes straight into new work. I'll build it in this order: the new faction first, then its lesson and puzzles, then tournaments, then ranked seasons. I work in small steps, every change is covered by automated tests, and each part goes live as soon as it's ready, so you'll see the progress in the game you're already playing. Backers of the Piece Designer tier help shape the new faction directly, and I'll share every step here in updates and on Discord.

If you've ever thought chess could be a little more, this is your moment. ☺️