
- BGG rank
- BGG #7,625
- BGG rating
- 7.7
Chess960
- 2 players
- 10–180 min
- Complexity 3.3/5
- 1996

1875
Rules assistance for Bashni
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

For 2 players
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Bashni is a board game released in 1875 for 2 players and 20 minutes per game. Its main mechanics are Square Grid, Grid Movement, and Pattern Movement.
Bashni is a traditional Russian game in the Checkers family. The game is identical to Shashki (Russian Checkers) in the rules regarding movement, capture, and promotion, but every time a piece is captured, it is put at the bottom of the capturing piece or stack. If the captured piece is itself on a stack, only the top piece is captured, and the underlying pieces are thus "liberated". This means pieces are never permanently removed, but stacks get steadily higher throughout the game. According to Abstract Games magazine issue 1, the game has a revival in Russia, with tournaments being held in St. Petersburg regularly. Bashni was the inspiration for Laska, Chess world champion Emanuel Lasker's stacking game, that is better known in the west.
Bashni supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Bashni is 20 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
Bashni has a complexity rating of 3.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-weight game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Bashni belongs to these categories: Abstract Strategy. Its main mechanics are Square Grid, Grid Movement, and Pattern Movement. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The catalogue lists Bashni as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.