codex · nerf
Retrograde Knights
Your knights can only move backward toward your own side; a knight's rank can never advance.
At a glance
- Type
- Nerf
- Tier
- VIII. UnhingedUnhinged: the highest tier, a game-defining moment.
- Focus
- Knights, Movement, Positioning
- 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
Retrograde Knightsis 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.
“Horses that only ever bolt for the stable.”
History
- July 5, 2026Added in the expanded-nerfs wave: 82 new handicaps across all eight tiers. (PR #144)
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