Use Dragon with your AI assistant

What you need

• A 64-bit Windows computer that can run Dragon’s AVX2 engine.
• Dragon 5.0.2 or later, installed with its evaluation files. Update an older installation first.
• An AI desktop application with support for local MCP servers, such as ChatGPT desktop. You also need the account required by that application.

Set it up once

1. Install or update Dragon

   Download and run the Dragon 5.0.2 installer. Open Dragon once to check that it starts and that your evaluation and endgame database settings are correct. An existing installation can keep its settings and databases; the MCP server uses those same files.

   Download Dragon 5.0.2 for Windows (AVX2) · System requirements and installation help

2. Add Dragon to your AI application

   In ChatGPT desktop, open Settings → MCP servers → Add server. Choose STDIO (a local program) and enter the following settings. Other applications may use slightly different names.

   Name

   Dragon

   Connection type

   STDIO

   Program / Command

   C:\Program Files\Dragon Draughts\dragon64r.exe

   Arguments

   Add these as three separate arguments, in this order. Do not add quotation marks around an individual entry.

   Argument 1

   mcp

   Argument 2

   -enginedir

   Argument 3

   C:\Program Files\Dragon Draughts

   These examples use the usual installation folder. If you installed Dragon elsewhere, change the folder in both the program path and the third argument.

3. Save and connect

   Save the settings and select Restart for the Dragon server. The AI application starts Dragon when it needs it; you do not have to open the Dragon window first.

   To check the connection, ask: “Ask Dragon which version is running.” In ChatGPT desktop, you can also type /mcp to view the connected servers.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "dragon": {
      "command": "C:\\Program Files\\Dragon Draughts\\dragon64r.exe",
      "args": [
        "mcp",
        "-enginedir",
        "C:\\Program Files\\Dragon Draughts"
      ]
    }
  }
}

codex mcp add dragon -- "C:\Program Files\Dragon Draughts\dragon64r.exe" mcp -enginedir "C:\Program Files\Dragon Draughts"

Paste a game and ask a question

Copy a game in PDN format and paste it into the chat. PDN is the usual text format for draughts games. Include the player names if available, and say whether you played White or Black.

• “I played White. What should I have played at move 16?”
• “When did Black go wrong? Give me the most important moments.”
• “What is the best way to continue from the final position?”
• “Compare 32-28 with 33-29 in the starting position.”
• “What happens if I play this line? Keep the original game unchanged.”
• “Which captures are compulsory in this position?”

[White "White player"]
[Black "Black player"]
[Result "*"]

1. 32-28 19-23 2. 28x19 14x23 *

I played White. Ask Dragon for the best continuation.

You can also paste a position in PDN/FEN notation, for example W:W31-50:B1-20. This is the starting position with White to move.

Have a screenshot or a photo of a real board? Just attach it and ask for an analysis. The AI recognises the position and uses Dragon to find the best moves. Tell it whose turn it is, then ask questions or explore continuations.

A quick review, then a closer look

A game review allocates 0.1 second per played move by default. It highlights possible mistakes. Ask for a longer analysis of an interesting moment if you want to look more closely. Dragon normally uses its configured number of processor cores.

A positive score favours the player indicated in the answer. Search scores are estimates and may change with a longer analysis. For positions covered by the installed endgame databases, Dragon can also report an exact win, draw or loss.

If something does not work