Pandolfini’s Ultimate Guide to Chess

by Bruce Pandolfini

  Diagram 59. Black’s knight is pinned to its queen and also attacked by a pawn. If the knight moves, the rook can take the queen.

  Student: Are there other cool ways to win material besides forks and pins?

  Teacher: Well, there’s the skewer, which is another straight-line tactic. Like a pin, it also involves one attacker and two defenders. But unlike a pin, the shielding defender is not frozen in place. Rather it’s attacked and practically chased out of the way, either exposing the defender behind to capture or aiming for use or control of a key square on the same line. In a pin, the attacker is first in line, the less valuable defending unit is second, and the more valuable defending unit is third. In a skewer, the attacker is first, the more valuable defending unit is second, and the less valuable one is third, although for some skewers, the defending units can be the same, such as two knights, or instead can have the same value, such as a bishop and a knight.

  Student: Could you distinguish further between pins and skewers?

  Teacher: When the enemy unit in front can’t or shouldn’t move, then it’s a pin. But when it must or should move, then it’s a skewer. The same logic works when the attacked enemy units are a bishop and a knight—different in power, but similar in value. If the front a piece is frozen, it’s a pin; if it’s being chased, it’s a skewer. Queens, rooks, and bishops can give skewers, and all units can be skewered. In diagram 60, the rook skewers king and bishop. The king will have to move out of check, and the bishop can then be taken for free.

  Diagram 60. The rook skewers king and bishop. After the king moves out of check, the bishop can be taken for free.

  Student: All these tactics are appealing, but is there one with a little bit more surprise to it?

  Teacher: Many players are charmed by the discovered attack or discovery. That’s a third type of straight-line tactic. Unlike pins and skewers, however, the discovered attack involves two attackers and only one defender along the primary line of aggression. One attacker moves, the other stays stationary. The moving unit unveils the stationary unit’s attack on a defending unit or to an important square. The stationary unit gives the discovered attack.

  Diagram 61. By moving the pawn to g6, Black attacks the bishop and unveils a discovered attack to the king from the queen, which is also a check.

  Student: I’ve heard people refer to discoveries in slightly different ways. Are there different kinds of discoveries?

  Teacher: There are several different kinds. A more deadly form of discovery is discovered check, like Black’s queen delivers to White’s king after the pawn moves in diagram 61. Discovered check occurs when the stationary part of the discovery winds up giving check to the enemy king, once the moving part of the discovery makes any move at all. In diagram 62, a bishop move undrapes a discovered check from Black’s queen.

  Diagram 62. Any bishop move gives discovered check.

  Student: Is there any discovery worse than a discovered check?

  Teacher: I don’t think you mean worse. I think you mean more deadly. Indeed there is. Even more ferocious than a single discovered check is double check. It’s particularly insidious because the defender can’t block the check or ordinarily take one of the checking pieces unless the king itself can do the taking on an adjacent square. Usually the defender’s only legal recourse is to move his own king out of check, which may include taking one of the two checking enemy units if possible. Double check can often lead to significant material gain or even checkmate. Although the main thrust of this section is the gain of material through non-mating tactics, discoveries can lead to some remarkable mating positions, as you can see in diagram 63. By moving the bishop to b5, White dispenses double check and mate.

  Student: Could you go over which pieces can do what in a discovery?

  Diagram 63. White moves the bishop to b5, giving double check and mate!

  Teacher: Queens, rooks, and bishops can be the stationary components in a discovery. Every unit except the queen can function as the moving attacker.

  Student: Why is it that the queen can never be the moving part of a discovery?

  Teacher: Because if there were an attacking queen in front to start with, it would already be giving a direct attack or posing an immediate threat. No line-piece behind the queen could reveal a power the queen doesn’t already possess and therefore issue.

  Student: Is there a piece that’s impervious to discoveries?

  Teacher: No, there isn’t. Every unit is capable of being exploited by a discovery, either by the stationary attacker, the moving attacker, or both. Let’s look at another position. In diagram 64, the bishop can take the pawn at b5, attacking the queen. The same bishop move produces a discovery from the white rook to the black king. Since this is discovered check, Black doesn’t have time to save his queen because he must first save his king. First comes first. After Black moves his king to safety, White’s bishop will be able to take the queen for free.

  Diagram 64, The bishop takes the pawn on b5 and the rook simultaneously gives discovered check.

  Student: That would be a royal disaster.

  Teacher: Enough about discoveries. Here’s another way to make life hard for your opponent. It’s called undermining. A unit is undermined when its protection is captured, driven away, or immobilized. Then it can often be captured for free. When a unit’s protection is captured, let’s say by an even exchange, the tactic is also known as removing the defender or removing the guard. Any unit can undermine an enemy unit. All units except the king can be undermined. In diagram 65, the defense of Black’s knight is undermined when White’s rook takes Black’s. After the pawn takes back the rook, White’s bishop then takes the knight for free.

  Student: Whew. I’m beginning to feel like a tactical wizard.

  Teacher: Try conjuring up this tactical concept: the overload. A unit is overloaded if it can’t fulfill all its defensive commitments. A typical instance is when a unit tries to guard two friendly units simultaneously. If one of the threatened units is taken, the defending unit may be pulled out of position when it recaptures. This might leave the other friendly unit unguarded, so that it could be taken for free, or inadequately supported, so that it can be exploited in some way. All units can become overloaded. Every unit can be lost by an overload tactic, except the king.

  Diagram 65. White undermines the knight by first exchanging rook for rook.

  Student: Could you give an example?

  Teacher: Diagram 66 below shows a pawn guarding a bishop and a knight, which are both, in turn, attacked by the White knight. The pawn is overloaded. White can gain a piece in either of two ways, both involving the overloaded Black pawn. If Black’s knight on c6 is taken by White’s bishop on e4, and the pawn on d7 takes back, the bishop on e6 is left unguarded and can be captured for free by the knight on d4. Or, instead, if the Black bishop on e6 is first captured by the White knight on d4, and the Black pawn then takes back on e6, White’s bishop on e4 would be able to capture the Black knight on c6 for free. Through either variation, White gains a minor piece.

  Diagram 66. Black’s pawn is overloaded.

  Student: It may be an overload, but I’m close to overdose.

  Teacher: We’re almost done with our introduction to the tactical life. I’d like you to learn about the x-ray, or x-ray attack, which some people call a hurdle. The basic kind of x-ray, though not the only kind, involves two units of one color and one of the other, all three occupying and having the ability to move along the same line. A typical lineup would be, for example, (1) a White unit; (2) a Black unit; and (3) a White unit, in that order. If either White unit is captured by the Black unit, the other White unit could take back. Thus unit (1) defends unit (3), and unit (3) defends unit (1), even though unit (2) is in the middle. Units (1) and (3) provide x-ray support, by protecting each other right through the Black unit.

  Student: Are x-rays somewhat defensive?

  Teacher: No, not at all. X-rays can be used in attack or defense. Queens and rooks ca
n x-ray along ranks and files; queens and bishops along diagonals. The queen is particularly effective because it’s adept at merging lines of attack. A queen can use a diagonal to join up with a rook, or a rank or file to converge with a bishop. In diagram 67, White’s rooks guard each other, even with a Black rook in between.

  Student: Do you always need three units to be involved in an x-ray?

  Diagram 67. White’s rooks protect each other through Black’s rook.

  Teacher: Sometimes the x-ray doesn’t concern three units on the same straight line, but two units and a key square on the line in question. In this instance, the x-ray might consist of (1) a White unit; (2) a Black unit; and (3) a key square the White unit guards and/or influences through the Black unit. I’m going to give you an example of a mating attack instead of a non-mating one in order to demonstrate the idea more clearly. In diagram 68, White can force checkmate by checking with his queen on d8, knowing that his d1-rook provides an x-ray defense of the queen. After Black’s rook takes White’s queen, White’s rook takes back on d8 and gives mate.

  Diagram 68. White’s queen checks on d8, with x-ray support from the rook at d1.

  Student: I guess a chessic x-ray could leave your opponent a little exposed.

  Teacher: Getting trapped can have the same effect. A piece is trapped if it doesn’t have a safe move and can’t adequately be protected. After trapping a piece, the idea is to win it by direct attack, capturing it for free or in exchange for a unit of lower value. If the lower-valued unit is then recaptured, the attacker—the trapper—still comes out ahead.

  Student: What should a trapped thing do?

  Teacher: Often the only remedy left to the trapped unit is to sell its life as dearly as possible, taking the most valuable unit in sight, even if that’s only a pawn. Even a pawn is something, and that’s generally better than nothing. Every unit can be trapped and won. When it happens to the king, the game is over by checkmate. In diagram 69, the knight is trapped by the bishop and attacked by the rook. The knight is lost.

  Diagram 69. The knight is trapped and lost.

  Student: You said “even a pawn.” But what about promotion, when a pawn can grow up to become a more imposing piece? In addition to being a rule, could promotion also be considered a tactic?

  Teacher: You’re right. The pawn’s ability to advance and promote upon reaching the last row can be a vital tactical weapon. Like most tactics, the ability to execute this particular one usually depends on some or several mistakes by your opponent. You probably wouldn’t enjoy seeing an enemy pawn make it to your own side of the board.

  Student: I guess not. Does promotion always win?

  Teacher: No, not automatically, though promotion generally decides a game unless the dynamics of the situation are quite extraordinary or the other side promotes immediately afterward. But even in such cases where both sides promote, the side promoting first usually wins. Of course, let me also point out that promotion tactics can be non-mating or mating. Here we’re not so interested in promoting to give checkmate as we are to gain material.

  Student: You’ve just said that promoting usually wins. But at the end of the movie Searching for Bobby Fischer, I recall that the boy who promoted first actually lost the game.

  Teacher: Learning chess is like learning a language. There are the rules, and then there are the exceptions. Here’s another illustration with a surprising twist. Most of the time, players promote a pawn to a new queen because an extra queen is almost always decisive. But there are times, as we’ve already adumbrated, when less force is better and it’s more effective to underpromote to a rook, a bishop, or a knight.

  Student: I get it. Less can be more.

  Teacher: Believe it or not, there can be possible drawbacks to making a new queen. In a situation in which you are clearly winning, you shouldn’t promote to a queen if doing so draws the game by stalemating your opponent, or even by giving him the mere opportunity to stalemate. Why take unnecessary chances? In such cases, when you need to promote to a piece that still enables you to win while avoiding a stalemate, it may be better to delay promotion or to underpromote to a rook.

  Student: An extra rook should win, right?

  Teacher: Are you kidding? You should almost always win with an extra rook—that is, if you’re playing chess and know how to play it. But there are times when promoting to a rook might not be prudent either—for example, if doing so gives stalemate or misses out on an opportunity that only a knight could provide. Bear in mind that a knight can do what a queen or a rook can’t: it can give a forking knight check or a knight checkmate. Clearly there are instances when it’s preferable to underpromote to a knight—when less is most definitely more.

  Student: Okay, when should I start thinking that more could be less?

  Teacher: As is practically always the case in chess, it all depends. Most of the time, direct promotion to a queen will win. But clearly, as our discussion has shown, sometimes it’s better to choose something other than the queen.

  Student: Could you just show a typical promotion, without a fancy underpromoting theme?

  Teacher: Be glad to. In diagrams 70-72, White’s pawn advances to the last rank and promotes to a queen, giving checkmate.

  Diagram 70. It’s White’s turn.

  Diagram 71. White has just advanced the pawn to the last rank, but has not completed the move.

  Diagram 72. White has just promoted to a queen, completing the move and giving mate.

  Student: I’ve been meaning to ask this: Are tactics the same thing as strategy? People seem to use these words to mean the same thing.

  Teacher: The two terms are often confused and misused. At the beginning of the lesson I described tactics as local operations. For the most part, strategy refers to an overall plan, while tactics signify the individual actions needed to bring about that plan. Strategy tends to be long-term, tactics short-term. Strategy is usually general, tactics specific. In this book, our strategy will be to cover everything useful to playing a complete game of chess, going from the simpler to the more complex, examining specific tactics and tasks as they naturally apply to the developing stages of a chess game. Our tactics will be the specific explanations and examples that guide us each step of the way, so that we can eventually implement our total plan. Our strategy will show us what to do and our tactics will indicate how to do it. But that’s enough for now. A Bobby Fischer can’t be created in one lesson. Sometimes it takes three, four, or even more.

  LESSON 3

  MATING PATTERNS

  Teacher: What is the real goal of a chess game?

  Student: To win, which means giving checkmate. Most of the time, it’s the only goal.

  Teacher: Vince Lombardi once said winning was the only thing. While checkmate is the obvious goal, there are others, such as learning how to think with discipline and with enthusiasm. Practically speaking, your tactics and strategy should work toward checkmate. Intellectually, your goal should be a better brain.

  Student: So chess combines the sportical with the cortical?

  Teacher: There’s a thought. Now back to this one, all right? We’ve just spent some time discussing individual non-mating tactics that can be used throughout the game to gain material. We can do the same kind of thing with mating tactics, also known as mating patterns or mating nets.

  Student: How?

  Teacher: Let’s start with the basics. Usually, a few chess units are needed to give mate. One unit checks the enemy king, while others keep it from escaping. Sometimes only one unit is needed to give the mate, and on occasion the opponent’s own forces obstruct escape and are part of the arrangement. However it comes about, the result is called a mating pattern. A successful chessplayer has a stockpile of mating patterns.

  Student: How many are there?

  Teacher: At least hundreds, in all their variations. But we don’t need to know that many in order to proceed or play a worthwhile game of chess. Let’s take a look at a few examples in order to get t
he hang of it. In diagram 73, you’ll find a mating pattern involving the queen and bishop, sometimes called a crisscross mate. Examine the position carefully and make sure that the Black king can’t avoid being captured on the next move, remembering that the king is never allowed to move into check. Then explain to me why this position constitutes checkmate.

  Diagram 73. A crisscross mate.

  Student: It’s mate because the White bishop checks the Black king, the White bishop can’t be blocked or captured, the Black king has no safe escape square, and the Black king would be captured on White’s next move—if the rules of the game didn’t require the game to end right now by checkmate, without another move being played.

  Teacher: Very good. Can you see how White can mate Black in one move in the next diagram? Here’s a hint: In all problems of this kind, start by looking for moves that check the enemy king.

  Diagram 74. White can give a support mate at f7.

  Student: I don’t think it’s right to take on f7 with the bishop, even though it’s protected by the queen, because the king could get out of check by moving to f8. No, the right answer must be Qxf7#.

  Diagram 75. White gives a support mate, the queen being protected by the bishop.