Editing Atomic chess (section)

===Check===
{{Chess diagram
| fen=k7/1R6/8/8/2K5/8/8/8
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| header=Black to move: Win or stalemate?
| footer=With Black to move, this position would be a stalemate in variations of atomic chess that do not allow a king to move into check, but a win for White in variations that do not enforce the rules of check. In no version of the game would it be legal for the king to take the rook.
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Threats to the king can be direct or indirect. Putting a king in check is a direct attack and is sometimes called "atomic check".<ref name=blackburnrules>{{cite web |last=Blackburn |first=Leonard |title=The Rules of Atomic Chess |publisher=Parkland College |url=http://virtual.parkland.edu/lblackburn/Atomic/rules.pdf |access-date=25 May 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140525213403/http://virtual.parkland.edu/lblackburn/Atomic/rules.pdf |archive-date=25 May 2014}}</ref> An indirect threat occurs when a player threatens to explode the king by capturing an adjacent piece. In most variations of atomic chess, players must respond to being checked in a similar way they would in traditional chess—by moving the king out of check, blocking the check, or removing the checking piece—but an exception exists when the checked player can win the game by exploding the checking player's king.

As the king cannot take another piece, it is possible to move the kings next to each other without a check occurring or to escape check. This possibility is often used by a losing player to defensively position his king next to his opponent's at endgame, hoping for a draw. Depending on the board setup, this strategy is sometimes optimal and allows the draw to be forced. At other times, a player can counter by forcing a win with a position such that a piece or pawn can be exploded next to their opponent's king without blowing up their own king, or they can force the opposing king away using their king and the remaining pieces on the board, which will typically result in a loss for the retreating king.

The variant of atomic chess played at the [[Internet Chess Club]] is one that does not enforce check at all, making legal any move, even one leaving the king to be captured directly in the next move.<ref name=tipau/><ref name=iccrules>{{cite web |title=ICC Help: atomic |work=chessclub.com |publisher=The Internet Chess Club |url=http://www.chessclub.com/help/atomic |access-date=24 May 2014 |archive-date=25 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140525233041/http://www6.chessclub.com/help/atomic |url-status=live }}</ref>