The rook may look like a miniature castle, but on the chess board, it’s a powerful, long-range piece. Whether you’re brand-new to chess or brushing up on strategy, here’s everything you need to know about the game’s second strongest piece!

In this post:

Chess 101: the rook

How the rook moves

Special move: castling

How to use the rook strategically

Do’s with the rook

Don’ts with the rook

The word rook is believed to originate from the Persian word rukh , meaning “chariot.” Over time, this piece came to be represented as a castle—hence its familiar turret shape on modern 3D sets. On 2D boards for in-person gameplay, it’s usually shown as a small tower-like icon.

Each player starts with two rooks , positioned in the four corners of the board —one on each end of the back rank.

In terms of piece value , the rook is worth 5 points, making it the second most valuable piece after the queen .…