Brass Pawn vs En Croissant: ready-to-play Apple app vs desktop Tauri database GUI
Zero-setup Apple trainer vs desktop Tauri database GUI
| Dimension | Brass Pawn | En Croissant |
|---|---|---|
| Target devices | iPhone, iPad and Mac (native SwiftUI) | Desktop only: macOS, Windows and Linux (Tauri webview; no iPhone or iPad app) |
| Out-of-the-box readiness | Engines, neural nets, 14,351 puzzles & 900 games ship inside the install | Requires downloading UCI engines, reference databases and puzzle files inside the app |
| Core strength | Coached sparring, spaced-repetition tactics, positional judgement, endgames & Rush | PGN repertoire tree building, multi-million-game database search & multi-engine UCI tabs |
| Move coaching | Win-probability grading + plain-English board-feature sentences | Numeric engine lines, centipawn/WDL graphs and PGN move annotations |
| Camera board scanner | On-device Apple Vision photo board reader built in | FEN / PGN text import on desktop |
| Source licence | GNU AGPLv3 open source | GNU GPLv3 open source |
Mobility, multiplayer and cost
| Aspect | Brass Pawn | En Croissant |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone & iPad offline training | Full native touch UI with 2D & 3D boards | Not available on iOS or iPadOS |
| Human multiplayer | Apple Game Center matches (3, 5, 10, 15, 30 min) + friend invites | Offline desktop database & analysis workbench |
| Opening repertoire builder | Deliberately excluded | Strong PGN repertoire editor with spaced-repetition line practice |
| Cost | Free unlimited play + 5/day drills; Pro $3.99/mo or $39.99 once on App Store (AGPLv3 source) | $0 free open-source desktop download |
How Apple players use Brass Pawn and En Croissant
| Task | Better tool | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Training on iPhone, iPad or Mac without configuring engine binaries or PGN folders | Brass Pawn | Opens immediately into tactics, coached play, positional exercises and Watch. |
| Managing a personal PGN opening repertoire and querying Caissabase / Lichess Elite DB on desktop | En Croissant | Modern open-source desktop database workbench built specifically for PGN trees. |
| Understanding mistakes in plain sentences rather than raw MultiPV centipawns | Brass Pawn | Grades win-probability drops and names concrete positional features. |
| Working on a Windows or Linux laptop | En Croissant | Cross-platform desktop builds; Brass Pawn is Apple-native. |
| Combining free open-source desktop opening prep with mobile/iPad daily tactics & sparring | Both together | En Croissant handles opening trees on desktop; Brass Pawn handles everything else on iPhone, iPad & Mac. |
Two modern open-source chess tools that complement each other cleanly
En Croissant and Brass Pawn share a deep respect for local execution, open-source licensing and zero ad clutter, yet they overlap remarkably little. En Croissant is a desktop database and opening-repertoire workbench built in Tauri; it has no iPhone or iPad app and leaves coaching prose out in favour of raw UCI panels and PGN trees.
Brass Pawn deliberately omits opening-repertoire trees and multi-gigabyte reference databases so it can be an instant, tactile SwiftUI trainer across iPhone, iPad and Mac — complete with bundled Stockfish 18 and Reckless 0.10, win-probability coaching, 116 quiet positional judgements and Game Center play.
Signed Mac App Store convenience with full source transparency
On macOS, Brass Pawn installs directly from the App Store with Apple sandboxing, automatic updates and zero Gatekeeper warnings, while keeping its complete Swift and engine C-interface source public on GitHub under AGPLv3.
Honest boundaries
When En Croissant is the better fit
- En Croissant is 100% free on desktop and includes full PGN database search, Lichess/Chess.com account game downloaders and an opening repertoire builder.
- En Croissant lets you run multiple custom UCI engines side by side on macOS, Windows and Linux.
- Brass Pawn focuses on structured training modes and coached play rather than PGN database management.
Frequently asked questions
- Does En Croissant have an iPhone or iPad app?
- No. En Croissant is a desktop Tauri application for macOS, Windows and Linux. Brass Pawn runs natively on iPhone, iPad and Mac.
- Do I have to download Stockfish or puzzle databases separately inside Brass Pawn?
- No. Both Stockfish 18 and Reckless 0.10 (including their neural networks), all 14,351 tactics puzzles, 116 positional exercises, 15 endgame drills, 1,624 Guess the Elo games and 900 Watch games ship inside the app bundle.
- Why use both En Croissant and Brass Pawn on a Mac?
- Because Brass Pawn intentionally omits opening repertoire trees: you can keep your opening PGN files in En Croissant at your desk while using Brass Pawn on Mac, iPad and iPhone for coached sparring, positional judgement, endgame conversion and spaced-repetition tactics.
- Are both apps free of telemetry and ads?
- Yes — both are copyleft open-source applications with zero advertising.
Native on iPhone, iPad & Mac
Practise offline with Stockfish 18 and Reckless 0.10
Play unlimited coached games against the engine or over Game Center for free, with five daily exercises in Tactics, Rush, Positional judgement, Endgames and Guess the Elo — and zero advertising under the GNU AGPLv3.