The Minister
A brand new chess piece — the first in nearly 500 years. The Minister only exists in Void Chess, and it has powers no other piece has ever had.
A brand new chess piece — the first in nearly 500 years. The Minister only exists in Void Chess, and it has powers no other piece has ever had.
The last new piece added to chess was the modern queen, almost 500 years ago. The Minister is the first new piece to join chess since then — and it only exists in Void Chess.
On the 9×9 Void Chess board, the Minister starts in the back row. Like the queen or king, each side has only one. Lose your Minister, and you lose your ability to defend the board from voids.
The Minister moves in a way no other chess piece does. Up to two squares per turn, with the ability to change direction.
The Minister needs empty adjacent squares to move through. If completely surrounded, it has no legal moves at all. But even a single opening creates possibilities.
A single opening unlocks movement. A diagonal opening unlocks more squares than an adjacent one — because the Minister can change direction on its 2nd step.
No other chess piece has any of these powers. Together they make the Minister the most important piece in Void Chess.
When any other chess piece captures, the tile becomes red and unstable. On the next turn, that square becomes a permanent void. But when the Minister captures, the tile stays normal. No red. No void. The Minister is the only piece that can capture peacefully — making it perfect for taking enemy pieces in squares you want to keep.
When an enemy piece is sitting on a red unstable tile, the Minister can capture that piece and heal the tile in one move. The enemy piece dies, and the red tile becomes a normal square again — no future void on that square. This power is your main defense against board destruction during recapture chains.
This is the most powerful ability in Void Chess. Voids are normally permanent — no piece can stand on a void or pass through it. Except the Minister. When the Minister walks onto a black void, the void disappears and the square becomes a normal chess square again. The board grows back. The Minister is the only piece in chess that can restore destroyed territory.
There's one more rule that makes the Minister special.
The Minister is the only piece in Void Chess that never dies from a red tile. Other pieces are destroyed if they end their owner's turn sitting on an unstable tile. The Minister is fully immune. It can stand on dangerous squares to defend without fear. Combined with its healing power, this makes the Minister the safest piece on the entire board.
Three principles every Void Chess player needs to know.
Move the pawn in front of the Minister early in the game, then bring the Minister out. An active Minister can reach more squares and respond to threats faster. A trapped Minister is a wasted piece.
Do not trade your Minister for another piece — not even a queen. Without your Minister, you lose the ability to heal red tiles and restore voids. Your opponent will destroy your board piece by piece, and you cannot stop them.
Treat the Minister like a doctor on the battlefield. Let your other pieces fight and create red tiles. Then send the Minister in to heal the wounds. Reclaim squares near your king and rooks first — those are the most valuable to defend.
A full walk-through of every Minister power, with live game examples.
Watch on YouTubePlay Void Chess now — free in your browser or on Android.