codex · nerf
Castle Curfew
You lose if you have not castled by your 20th move.
At a glance
- Type
- Nerf
- Tier
- IV. SevereSevere: a strong swing, offered as games open up.
- Focus
- Win/Loss
- Collection
- Core
- Appears in
- Nerf mode
- How it works
- Passive and secret: it is always on, and your opponent cannot see it.
How it works
Castle Curfewis one of Nerf Chess's secret handicaps. In Nerf mode you choose one of two nerfs before the first move, in secret, and carry it for the whole game.
The board quietly enforces it: any move it forbids is simply never offered, so you cannot break it by accident. Your opponent never sees which nerf you took until the game ends, so every move you make is also a clue they are trying to read.
“The gate bars at the twentieth bell.”
History
- July 5, 2026Added in the expanded-nerfs wave: 82 new handicaps across all eight tiers. (PR #144)
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