Proper Chessiquette?

I am in a little bit of a quandary on the proper thing to do: I am playing someone on another chess site who is a strong player. He inadvertently left his Queen loose and emailed me immediately afterwards to say that he had dropped it on the wrong square accidentally. I believe it was an honest mistake.....

Does a gentleman chess player take it, offer a draw and start over, or what?

I understand that your problem happened on another site, but how come not even this site has an option to ask your opponent to let you undo your previous move?

I think it would probably be unsportsmanlike to ask your opponent if you could undo your own move but it would be gracious to be able to offer the option to someone for an obvious mistake. Perhaps the option is not there because there would be the problem of someone asking if he could take back his move which isn't allowed in serious OTB games. Anyway, I feel bad taking my opponent's Q and probably winning the game on what may have been a software glitch. Just wondering how other guys would handle the situation.........

I can't remember who said it...but there's a quote "a man who would take back a move would pick a pocket".  He should just resign the game and start over...it was his mistake.  I hate people who ask to take back a move.  Suck it up.  I do. ugh.

Actually he did not ask for a take back. He just explained the situation and said the game would probably go to me. I'm thinking, take the Q and offer a draw. If it happens the next game, go Conan the Barbarian on him and play it through so I can hear the lamentation of his women weeping.....

That's a pretty neat quote, AfafBouardi

Take the queen and run. Don't laugh, just run. Laughing will cause some sort of karmic realignment in the future, at your expense of course.

“A man that will take back a move at chess will pick a pocket.”
- Richard Fenton (1837 – 1916)

It sounds harsh, but just capture it and play on. If you let him take back the move, the rest of the game seems meaningless and it's hard to concentrate. Proper etiquette is for him to resign.

There was a topic discussion that went something like this:

player A said that he had made an unintended move. Would player B agree to rewinding the board to undo the move?

player B agreed - and made a neutral move which meant that he did not take advantage of player A's slip.

player A then made a different move from the one he had proposed - taking advantage of player B's co-operation.

As a direct result, player B lost a major piece. player B was not best pleased.

 Maybe.

it doesnt matter what kind of mistake it was, a mistake is a mistake.. it will now cost him the game. I would punish his mistake big time

You say he's a strong player, I presume you mean quite a bit stronger than you?

Now ask yourself, if the shoe was on the other foot, and you misplaced the Queen, and you sent him that message, would he be as considerate as you are trying to be, or might he think you blundered, saw it too late and are trying to cover up? (I'm not suggesting this is what happened to him)

My point is, in this game, if you make a mistake, you pay. Be sympathetic, but take the point.

The same thing has happened to me a few times. I resign, and try to be more careful next time.

Well it's more likely that instead of a blunder it's a piece slip, and in that case it wasn't really a blunder, was it?

On the other hand, starting the whole game over because the opponent made the mistake is rather annoying, but if there was an offer takeback button I would accept if I really thought he just made an unintended move.

I think it depends on what you're playing for. Technically, you would be quite in the right to take the queen and claim the win. I however, tend to get more out of a game by playing it through, without such obvious blunders. It's also quite plausible that it was genuine accident - I should know. But then again it's up to you, and I may be just a credulous fool...

Although I am with Scarblac on this topic, I am such a softy. I have never and never will request a takeback but on the ICC, I often give them. I just feel like a complete ass when I say no.

I actually gave a takeback in an USCF, OTB tourney to a 12-year old who dropped a knight. He asked for a take-back and started to cry...I ended with a draw.

Now if it was clear it was a blunder, then no I definitley wouldn't give a takeback.

I think there is no reason why a good player should be less prone to a mouse slip than a total patzer. Bur the patzer would be less likely to be believed.

When a player's hand leaves the piece the move is completed. Take the Queen, regret nothing.

Take it and don't look back.