Your first duel starts here
Cross the board. Read the terrain.
Make every piece count.
Pawn&Peak is a turn-based strategy game for two players. Your goal: move your pieces off the far side of the board or neutralise the opposing team. Learn the current beta rules below, then try a few tips for your first match.
See how to win
01 · Read the board
A standard match takes place on a 10 × 10 board. Each team starts with two Scouts, two Protectors and two Guardians.
In the starting view, Red moves from the bottom towards the top exit; Blue goes the other way. Red plays first. Players then take turns moving one piece at a time.
Select a piece to see its available destinations, then choose a tile. The badges show its base strength and movement points.
02 · Know your team
A piece scores its base strength when it exits. Its appearance and colours do not change its abilities.
Strength 1 · Movement 5 · Exit 1 point
Your most mobile piece. Its special ability replaces a normal move: it moves to a diagonally adjacent tile or two tiles in a straight line, ignoring elevation costs.
This takes the whole turn. The destination must be empty; the special move cannot capture or exit the board. For a straight move, the intermediate tile must also be empty.
Strength 2 · Movement 4 · Exit 2 points
Its special ability gives it +1 attack when the movement cost to reach its target is exactly four points.
Elevation counts towards that cost. You do not have to cross four tiles to benefit from this charge.
Strength 3 · Movement 3 · Exit 3 points
Your strongest but least mobile piece. If it is the very first piece to exit in the entire match, its team wins immediately.
If another piece has already exited, the Guardian scores three points and the match is decided on score.
03 · Choose your path
A normal move goes from tile to tile, horizontally or vertically. The path can turn, but cannot pass through any piece. It must fit within your piece’s movement budget.
Each step costs 1 + the absolute height difference. Climbing and descending therefore cost the same. The cheapest available path determines the movement cost.
To exit, reach the opposite edge and keep one extra point to cross the line. Reaching the last row alone is not enough.
Example: one flat step followed by a climb of one level costs 1 + 2 = 3 points. A Guardian uses its entire movement budget to cross just those two tiles.
04 · Set up a capture
To capture, move onto an opponent’s tile. The final step counts towards the movement cost. A capture is only allowed if your attack meets or exceeds their defence: the attacker wins ties.
Support and reinforcements only count horizontally or vertically adjacent tiles, not diagonals.
05 · Finish the duel
If your Guardian is the very first piece to exit in the entire match, you win immediately.
As soon as two pieces in total have exited, across both teams, the match ends. The higher score wins; equal scores mean a draw. Captures do not award points.
If your opponent has no pieces left on the board after your action, and an exit has not already ended the match, you win. You also win if they have no legal move on their turn. Remaining pieces are not added to the score.
The limit is 200 moves across both teams. If at least one point has been scored, scores decide the result. Otherwise, each team’s most advanced piece towards its exit is compared; if progress is equal, base strength breaks the tie. A remaining tie means a draw.
In a timed match, watch your clock: running out of time gives your opponent the win. Resigning also gives them the win.
06 · Turn rules into tactics
Start with the tutorials in the Puzzle menu, then try Training against the computer. The beta is available on Windows; a signed-in account is required to access the game.
Beta guide · Rules checked against the game engine on 6 November 2026. Challenges can start with a specific score, set of pieces and move limit.
