TheCompleteGuidetoChess

Master:ChessTactics,ChessOpeningsandChessStrategies

LoganDonovan

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TableofContents

Introduction

HistoryofChessChaturangaTraveltoPersiaChessinEurope

ChessboardAndChessPieces

ChessNotation

Chapter1:MajorChessOpeningsRuyLopezItalianGameSicilianDefenseFrenchDefenseCaro-KannDefensePircDefenseEnglishOpeningAlekhine’sDefenseQueen’sGambitModernDefenseKing’sIndianDefenseKing’sIndianAttackTheDutchDefenseWhat’sNext?

Chapter2:GeneralGuidelinesforStrategyTargetDevelopmentTerritorialDomination

MakingYourAdvantagesRelevantHelpfulStrategicGuidelinesOwningYourLastStand

Chapter3:EndgameStrategies14TipsForTheEndGame

Chapter4:KeyPrinciplesBehindChessStrategiesPiecequalityanddevelopmentCentercontrolKingsafetyDualityoftheQueenRook-TheEnforcerTheWilyKnightColor-blindBishopsBishopversusKnightDynamicsPawnstructure

Chapter5:ChessTacticsEnPassantCastlingKnightForkQueenforkBishopforkRookforkArrangingapin

Chapter6:QuickCheckmateStrategiesFool’smateSmotheredmate(king’spawn)ScholarsmateHippopotamusmateLegal’smate

Chapter7:DrawsInChessDrawbyagreementStalemate

ThreefoldrepetitionThefiftymoveruleInsufficientmatingmaterialEtiquettesfordrawing

Chapter8:TournamentRulesWhenindoubt,askYouhavetomovethepieceyoutouchRecordingthemovesDonotinterferewithagameRemembertoturnoffyourcellphoneLearntousethechessclockRecordyourresult

Chapter9:LetsPlayChess

Chapter10:ChessPuzzles

Chapter11:TipsToGetStartedMemorizeopeningsAssessyouropponent’smoveMakethebestmoveHaveaplaninplaceKnowyourpieces’worthDevelopsoonandwellKnowwhentotradeStayalertatalltimesNevertakeunnecessaryrisksRefrainfromgivingunnecessarychecks

Thedosanddon’tsofchess

Keytakeaways

FREEBONUS

Conclusion

Introduction

Oftenwedisregardchessasagamefornerdsandintrovertsandnevertrulyattemptto fathomwhat it is all about.We can never really appreciate anything until weunderstandwhatgoesintoitandthiscouldn’tbeanytruerinthecaseofchess.Thereason why many of us shy away from playing chess is because of our lack ofknowledgeaboutthegameandbecauseofthis,wedonotattributemuchvaluetoit. We instead regard sports such as football, basketball, and soccer with suchtremendousrespectbecauseweareoftheopinionthatitnotonlyinvolvesphysicalactivitybutalsomentalinvolvementintheformofstrategiesandploys.Wouldyoube surprised to know that chess is a game that is filled with thousands of suchstrategiesand tactics?Ploys thatcouldhelpyousharpenyourmindandanalyticalskillswithpractice?

It’s true;chess isknownas thequintessentialgameofstrategyandplanning. It isreferenced inmanymoviesandattributed tocharacters in those films that reflecttraits of strategic thinking and cunning. Many people know or have heard thatlisteningtothecompositionsofMozarthelpstoincreaseone’sbrainfunctionasapassive activity. In the same respect, playing chess can be considered the activeversionoflisteningtoMozart.

Bygaininganunderstandingofthemovementsofthepiecesandhowtoplanandadjust their positioning against an opponent in real time, one is simultaneouslyactivating associations in the brain to identify predictable patterns and determineconsequencesbeforetheyhappen.Settingupblocksagainsttheopponenttocreatepathwayselsewhereforone’sadvantage ismuch likethestrategiesweseeused inpick-and-roll plays in basketball or slot options designed to break through adefense’sbarrierinAmericanfootball.

This kind of analytical thinking and the development of it can be applied to anumberofvariousareasinlifelikesettingupabusiness,playingthestockmarket,project management, planning surprise parties, organizing team activities likescavenger hunts or geocaching, effectivemultitasking or pulling off a really great

practicaljoke!

Playingchess trainsone’smind tounderstandhowmaneuvering individualpieceseffectivelywork toachieveadesiredgoal in thegrandscheme. Inotherwords, apersondevelopstheabilitytoseehowthedetailsmakeupthebigpictureandhowalarge,complexconceptcanbebrokendownintosimplestep-by-stepprocesses.Aperson develops keen problem-solving skills through analyzing challengingsituationsfrommultipleanglesandlearninghowtoapproachtheminvariousways.Onelearnshowtoforeseewhatapproacheswillrunintoproblemsdownthelineandhowtocounteractthemortakealternativeapproachesthatgivethemahighersuccessrate.Chessalsotrainsaperson’sthinkingtobecomeadaptable,sothatwithforesightandstrategy,ifonecannotbackoutofadifficultsituationtheywillhavedeveloped the know-how to see other options to turn their disadvantage into anadvantage. This quality pays tribute to the ever-famous quote, ‘Within everyproblem, there lies an opportunity.’ Chess players understand the practicalapplicationofthatmeaningbothinthegameandinlife.

Asonebeginstoplaychessmoreandengageinthegamewithvariousplayers,theywillcometonoticethateachpersonhasaparticularstyleofplayingthatcomestorepresent their particular patterns of thinking. For example a person who playsmoreontheoffensiveside ismore likelyanaggressivepersonthathasanoverallassertiveattitudetowardlife,whereassomeonewhoplaysmoreonthedefensiveislikelytobeonthecautioussideoflifethatwaitstoseehowasituationwillplayoutbeforemakingtheirdefinitivemove.Learningtoreadaperson’sstyleofplayisanimportantpartofthegame,thesameasitisinplayingpokerorthegameoflifeatlarge; itwill help to predict the opponent’s next probablemove and in adjustingyourstyletocountertheirseffectively.

If you are unaware of these facts about chess, you have perhaps done the rightthingbypurchasingthisbook.Allthatyouneedisthepreliminaryknowledgeaboutchessandtheinteresttolearntheopeningsandtacticssuggestedhere,tomakethebestuseofthisbook.

Inthefirstchapterofthisbook,Ihavehighlightedthemostcommonandpowerfulopeningsinchessthatcanchangethestyleofyourgame.Inthesecondchapter,Ihave listed the key principles based on which chess strategies are built. Anunderstandingoftheseprincipleswillhelpusretorttoouropponent’smovesinaneffective manner. In the continuing chapters, I have highlighted the commonly

employedchesstacticsandstrategies.

Itisinmydearaspirationsthatthisbookinyourpossessionhelpsyouelevatenotonlyyourskillfulnessinchess,butyourintellectualgraceaswell.

Sincerely,

LoganDonovan

P.S.Don’tforgettograbyourfreebonusattheendofthebook

HistoryofChess

Beforewegoover thevariouschessopeningsand tactics, it is important thatweknowabouthowthisbelovedgameoriginated.Thehistoryofchess isfascinatingenoughandyouwouldbe impressed to seehow thisgamehas transformedovertheyears.Theversionthatweknowtodayisnothowitstartedcenturiesago.Letusrewindtheclocksandlookdeepintothemarvelinghistoryofthisgame.

Chaturanga

Eventhoughwecannotassociateacertainstartingtimelinewiththisgame,wewillhave to go by the time frame agreed upon by most historians. The game ofChaturangawasbelievedtohavebeeninventedinIndiaaroundthesixthcentury.

ItwasduringtheruleoftheGuptasthatthegameofChaturangawasdiscovered.ThegamewasthencalledChaturanga,basedonthefourdivisionsofthemilitary.At thatpointof time, thefourdivisionsof thearmywere theelephants, infantry,horse cavalry and chariots, and the pieces in the game represented these fourdivisions.InthegameofChaturanga,thekingwasaccompaniedbyhisgeneralorcounselorandtherewasnoQueen.

TherulesofChaturangadifferfromtherulesofmodernchessinmanyaspectsandthoughthesetwogameshaddifferentrules,thegameofChaturangacanbeplayedeasily on the modern chessboard. In the game of Chaturanga, the soldier wasallowed tomoveonlyone square as part of his initialmoveunlike thepawnsoftoday,whichareallowedtomovetwosquaresaspartoftheirinitialmove.Anotherimportant difference between the two games lay in the way the pieces werearrangedontheboard.Inthemodernversionofchess,thekingsareplacedfacingeach other. However, in the game of Chaturanga, the kings were placed in adiagonallyoppositefashion.

AchiefdistinctioninrulesisthatinChaturanga,towin,theplayermusteliminate

all the pieces of the opponent, except their king; hence it is very clear that theconcept of checkmate does not exist in the game of Chaturanga. Another keyvariance is that if a playermanages to stalemate theopponent, theplayerwho isstalematedwinsthegame.Thiscontradictswiththeruleinmodernchess,namely,stalematesareconsideredasadraw.

TraveltoPersia

WhenChaturangamoved toPersia, thisgameunderwentseveralchangesand thebiggestrevolutioninthegameofchesshappenedatthispointoftime.ThegamesoonbecameahitamongthenoblefamiliesofPersiaandveryrapidlybecameanintegralpartof formal education inPersia.WhenChaturangamoved toPersia, itwasknownas“Shatranj”,andwhenyoulookattherulesofthisversion,youwillrealize that it is not so different from the modern version that we are nowaccustomed to; nevertheless, therewere still differences between the two. It wasduringthisstagewhenseveralmodernday tacticsemerged, inotherwords,manyfamouschesstacticsemployedtodaywereactuallyderivedfromShatranj.

Thewaythevariouspieceswerearrangedontheboardisnotdifferentwhenyoulook at both the games. The significant difference between the two, like inChaturanga,laysinthefactthatthepawnwasnotallowedtomovemorethanonestep initially under Shatranj. Also, just like how it was inChaturanga, if a playermanaged to eliminate the pieces of the opponent, except their king, he wasconsidered as a winner in the game of Shatranj. On the other hand, if a playermanaged to stalemate the opponent, he was considered as a winner. This is thepolaroppositeofthestalemateruleunderChaturanga.

Itwasduringthisperiodwhenseveralprominentplayersemerged.Thesepopularplayers wrote several books on the various strategies, openings, and tactics alsospokeoftheirexperiences.TheseliteraryaccountsbytheShatranjplayersweretheinitial contributions made to chess literature. A few noteworthy Shatranj playersduringthisperiodwereAl-Razi,As-SuliandRabrab.

ChessinEurope

WhentheIslamicconquestofPersiahappenedintheseventhcentury,thegameofShatranj traveledtoall theMuslimcountries.Bytheendof1000A.D., thisgame

soonbecamepopular inRussiaandEurope.Eventually, thegameevenspread toJapan andChina.The Japanese andChinese improved the game of Shatranj andbroughtaboutalotofvariationsandtheseversionsofchesshavemajordifferencesfromthestyleofchessthatisplayedallovertheworld.

Fromthebeginningofthe13thcenturytill theendofthe15thcentury, thisgameunderwent a lot of changes. Several rules of Shatranj were changed and newertactics were discovered and employed. The rules that were framed during thisperiodwere soon accepted all overEurope.These rules are still inpractice in alltournamentsacrosstheglobeeventodayanditwasduringthistimethatthegameofShatranjstartedtransformingslowlyintochess.

Eventually,moreruleswerecreated toensure that thegamedidnot takeeons tofinish.Thepawnswereallowedtomovetwosquaresasapartoftheirinitialmoveprecisely due to this reason. The move known as “en passant” also came intoexistence to speed up the game and in addition, it was during this time that theconceptofcastlingwasalsointroduced.Withtheadventofthefourteenthcentury,the powers of the Queen and the Bishop increased tremendously. The Queengainedalotofpowerandtherewasapointintimewhenchesswasreferredtoas“MadQueenChess”becauseofthepowersbestowedupontheQueen.Whenthefifteenthcentury rolled in, thegamestarted resemblingwhatwearenow familiarwithtoday.Severalfamouschessstrategiesandtacticswerealsodiscoveredduringthisera.

Ihopeyoufoundthehistoryofchessfascinatingandintriguing.Whowouldhavethought that the simple game ofChaturangawould evolve into one of themostpopulargamesintheworldtoday,chess!

ChessboardAndChessPieces

Before you startplayingchess, it is imperative that youunderstand theboardandwhateachpieceontheboardrepresents.Allthepiecesneedtobearrangedinacorrect fashionandonly thencan thegamesbegin.Letus lookat theboardandpiecesindetail.

TheChessboard

Atfirstwearriveatthechessboard.Asyoucansee,thereare8by8squaretilesforatotalof64;halfthetilesarewhiteandtheotherhalfareblack.

Onthesidesvertically,observehowtherearenumbersextendingfrom1-8; thesearetermed“Ranks”.

On the sides horizontally, observehow there are alphabets extending fromA-H;thesearetermed“Files”.

These terminologies were coined to make it simpler to identify each square.Sometimes, people may call them rows and columns but if you want to startlearningthelanguageandgameofchess,itwillbesimplertocontinuereferringtothemasfilesandranks.

Pawn–Value1

Thepawnisthefirstlineofdefensethateverybodyhasontheboard.Thereare8pawns each side in all and they are also known as foot soldiers.They stand infrontof theotherpieces andprotect them.Although they stand in the first row,theirvalueisnottoohigh.Thismakespeoplebelievethatpawnsarenotvaluablebut you must recognize that all your pieces are vital, especially towards theendgame. It is possible for you to checkmate your opponent’s king and obtainvictoryduringthelatterstagesofthegamewithmerelyyourpawnsifthepositionsarefitting.

Thefirstmoveofyourpawncaneitherbeonesteportwostepsdependingonwhatstrategyyouhaveinmind.Thepawnwillalwaysonlycaptureanotherpiecebymovingdiagonallyexceptifyouutilizethe“enpassant”movethatwillbeexplainedina laterchapter.Afterthefirstmovethepawncanonlymoveonestepforwardperturn,soifthereisanotherpieceinfront,thenyourpawnispotentiallytrapped.Your pawns cannot move backwards once it moves forward and so, you mustmovethemcarefullyontheboard.

Knight–Value3

Thenextpieceisknownastheknight.Theknightisshapedlikeahorseandisalsosometimesalsoreferredtoasthehorse.Eachplayerisdealttwoknightsatthebeginningofeachgame.

Theknightstartsbystandingnexttotherookonbothsidesandmovesinan“L”shapefashion.Thismeansthatittakestwostraightstepsandthenonetotherightortheleft.Similarly,itcanalsomoveonetotherightorleftandthen2stepsforwardsorbackwards.Theknightisquitepowerful,inthat,youropponentmightnot notice that you have strategically placed your knight in a powerful position.With thismovement pattern, it can jumpover pieces,which if usedwith awell-calculatedstrategy,makesthisamostdangerouspiece.Itcancaptureapieceonlyifthevictimliesonthelastsquare.

Bishop–Value3

Thebishopisapiecethatstandsnexttothekingononesideandthequeenontheother.Owingtothisplacement,onebishopwillalwaysstandonitscolorandtheotherontheoppositecolor.

The bishop alwaysmoves diagonally and cannotmove in any otherway andevenwhileattacking,itwillonlycapturediagonally.Itcanmoveasmanydiagonalsquaresasitlikesaslongastheboardpermits.Itisgenerallyconsideredtobemorepowerful than theknight although theirpiecevalues are equal.Manybelieve thattwobishopsattackingaremuchmoreeffectivethantwoknightsoraknightandabishoptogether.Youcanposeabiggerthreattoyouropponentbyusingyourtwobishopsandplayinganattackinggame,especiallytowardstheendgame.

Rook–Value5

Thenextpieceon theboard thatwewill readon is the rook.Manyconsiderthistobeoneofthemostpowerfulpiecesontheboardandrightlyso.Therookisalsoknownastheelephantandstartsoffplacedonthefarendsoftheboard,oneoneachside.

The rook only moves in straight lines like the pawn and cannot attackdiagonally.Itcanonlykillwhateverliesinitspathandcanmovebothverticallyandhorizontally.Anotherdistinctionisthatitcanmoveasmanysquaresasitlikessoitcanmovetotheotherendoftheboardinasingleturn,providedthereisnothingobstructing itsway.The rook is alsoused to serveanother importantpurpose. Itcanbeusedtoexchangeplaceswiththekingtosafeguardhim,whichisknownas“Castling”.All thatmustbe is toclearoutthespacesbetweenthekingandrook,andthentheirpositionsmaybeexchangedlegallywithsomeruleexceptions.

Queen–Value9

Themosteffectivepieceontheboardisnonetheless,thequeen.Thepositionof the queen is next to the king; thewhite queen starts off standing on awhitesquareandtheblackqueenonablacksquare.

Thequeenisallowedtomoveinanydirectionandtakeasmanymovesasshelikes.Thismakesherextremelypowerfulandfearfulsoit isextremelycrucialthatyousafeguardyourqueenasmuchaspossibleandnotallowanyharmtocometoher. She can win you the game in no time, provided you use her to her fullpotential.Thequeenisahybridandhasthediagonalpowerofthebishopandthestraight-lineattackoftherook.Shedoesnotmoveliketheknight,whichisheronlydrawback.

King

Theking is themost importantpieceon theboard anddefendinghim is themainmotive of a chess game. Even if you have all of your other pieces on theboard, losingthekingwillmeantheendofthegameandyour losssorightfromtheverybeginning,youmustsafeguardyourking.

Thekingcanmoveonlyonestep,diagonallyorstraight.Thislimitshispowersalotandmakesiteasyforyouropponenttoattackhim.Althoughyouwouldthinkthekingisuseless,youmustunderstandthatitisthemostimportantpieceandcanhelp youwin the game in late games scenarios.Accordingly, start thinking of itsmeritsandhowyoucoulduseitstrategicallytoyouradvantagebecauseafterall,it’syourmostimportantpiece.Mostpeopledonotmovetheirkingmuchatallduringthe early and middle stages of the game as once he is out of his fort, he isendangered. It is best that you castle early and put him in a safe zone, lest theenemiesrestrictyouroffensivebykeepingyouin“check”.

Startingposition

Onboth sidesof theboard, there are 16whitepieces and16blackpieces.Both

playershaveanidenticalnumberofeachpiece.

Thewhitepawnsallstartoffonthe2ndrankandtheblackpawnsallstartoffonthe7thrank.

Onthe1stand8thranksaretherestofthepieces.Theyareintheorderfromlefttoright respectively of: Rook, Knight, Bishop, Queen, King, Bishop, Knight, andRook.

ChessNotation

Haveyoueverbeeninfuriatedinattemptingtolearnchessthroughwhatappearstobealgebraicmathequationsandwithnoluckdecipheringthemeanings?

Ifyouhaveneverlearnedthislanguageofchessbefore,andsomebodyproposedtoyouaheftyamountofmoneytodecryptBxd7+Qxd7,youwouldbesweatingandexhaustingeveryspeckofyourintellectualpowerbutundoubtedlytonoavail.

The truth is, learning chess notation is extremely important to your ability tosucceedasachessplayer.Itmightseemabitdauntingatfirstbutinactualityitissimpler than learning the multiplications table. The benefits of learning how torecord games are enormous, and what’s even bigger is being able to deciphergames.

Foraquickillustration,onceyourabletorecordandreadchessnotations,youwillbecomeableto:

Examineexcellentmoves

Scrutinizeblunders

Replaymatches

Analyzedifferentplayingstyles

Reviewthegamesoftopplayers

What this all boils down to is becoming a better chess player. Don’t limit yourabilitybynotlearningthisamazingtooltoputintoyourarsenal.BelowisatableofthemostcommonlyusedAlgebraicNotations;makeanefforttomemorizethem.Afteryouareconfidentthatyouhaveagoodgraspofthedefinitionsandnotations,we will proceed to an excellent example that can help you in both learning thenotationandseeinghowalivematchplaysoutbetweentwochessplayers!

ALGEBRAICNOTATION

NotationPractice

Now that we have the basic notation down, youmust be itching to see how itworksinrealitysoletusgetstraighttoit.

Theexampleselectedherestartsoffwiththepopularopeningdiscussedinthenextchapter, “RuyLopez”.Now, let’s practice using algebraic notations and see howgamesarerecorded.We’vealsoincludedasmallsamplesheetofwhatscoresheetsarelike!

1.e4c5(Thewhitepawnmovestoe4andtheblackpawnmovestoc5)

2.Nf3Nc6(Thewhiteknightmovestof3andtheblackknightmovestoc6)

3.Bb5e6(Thewhitebishopmovestob5andablackpawnmovestoe6)

RuyLopezhasbeeninitiated.

4.Qe2d6(Thewhitequeenmovestoe2andablackpawnmovestod6)

NoticethatasaresultoftheRuyLopez,theblackknightonc6isnowpinned.Inotherwords,theknightcannotmoveotherwisethekingwouldbeindanger.

5.Na3Qf6(Awhiteknightmovestoa3andtheblackqueentof6)

6.e5!xe5(Thewhitepawnmakesagoodsacrificebymovingtoe5togetattackedbyablackpawn)

Thisisasmalltrapsetbywhitetoopenafiletoattackblack’sking.

7.Nc4Ne7(Awhiteknightadvancestoc4andablackknightadvancestoe7)

8.Qd3g5(White’squeenmovestod3andblackadvancesapawntog5)

9.Nd6+Kd8 (White’s knight advances to d6 and puts the black king in check.Black’skingmovestosafetyatd8)

10.Ne4+Ke8(Thewhiteknightthenmovestoe4whichleavestheblackkingincheckfromthewhitequeen.Thekingmovesbacktosafetyate8)

11. Nxf6# (1-0) (White’s knight makes the finishing blow, by attacking black’squeenatf6.Thismovealsoputsblackintocheckmate,andthegameisfinished)

CHAPTER1

MajorChessOpenings

Havinganeffectiveopeningcanhelpyousetthepaceandtoneforthegame.Youropeningcangiveawayyourstyletoyouropponentandviceversa,thus,itgivesyouampleopportunitytoplayaccordingtoyouropponent’sstyle.Youmightwonder,“Whatgoodanopeningcando”?Letmestatehereatthispointthatmanygameshavebeenfinishedinamatterofminutesduetopowerfulopenings.Sometimesallyouneedisachallengingopeningtocatchyouropponentoffguardanddrivethegame in your favor.Hence it is important that you are aware about thedifferentopenings in chessnotonly to use themagainst youropponentbut also to knowwhattoexpectwhenyouropponentplaysacertainone.

Keeping this inmind,Ihavechosensomeof themost importantchessopeningsandexplaintheminthischapter.Usethemwisely.

RuyLopez

Moves:1.e4e52.Nf3Nc63.Bb5

This opening is popularly known as the Spanish game and was named after aSpanishpriest,RuyLopez,whodiscoveredthisopening intheyearof1561.Thisopeningwas however not appreciated or usedmuch at that point of time.Onlyovertheyears,thishasbecomeafavoriteamongpros(grandmasterlevelsaswell)andisregardedasoneofthemostpowerfulchessopenings.It isusedasWhite’sbestattempt ingaininganadvantageafterdoublekingpawnformations.AmajorplusofthisopeningisthatitgivesthewhiteplayerenoughopportunitytodevelopacomplexoffensivestrategyandalsoslowsdownBlack’spawnformation.

ItalianGame

Moves:1.e4e52.Nf3Nc63.Bc4

The Italian Game is another old chess opening like the Ruy Lopez and wasdiscovered in the 1600s.Thisopeningwas fairly prominent at that point of timesincepeopleoverlookedtheRuyLopezopening.Nevertheless,withtheRuyLopezopeninghoggingthelimelightovertheyears,thisopeninghaslostitscharm.ThisisgenerallybecauseoftheconvictionthattheBb5move intheRuyLopezopeningputs the Black at a better disadvantage than the Bc4 move in this opening.Nevertheless, this isapowerfulopeningby itselfandshouldbeconsidered ifyouwanttostartthegameonanoffensivenote.

SicilianDefense

Moves:1.e4c5

This opening is a favorite among the Black players whenWhitemoves the kingpawn to e4. The reason is because this opening gives the Black player anopportunitytoretortverypowerfullytoWhite’sopening.ThismethodperhapscanneutralizeanyaggressiveopeningoftheWhiteplayer,whichispreciselythereasonbehind itspopularity today.Thec5 isamuchmoreeffective response toe4 thananyothermoveandcanbeusedtoblack’sadvantageifthenextmovesareplayedright.

Thisdefensivestancewasconsideredasaterribleopeningwhenitwasdiscoveredinitiallyandwasnotusedinmanygamesoriginally.Nowadays,itisoneofthemostcommon chess openings being widely used across various levels of tournamentsplay.

FrenchDefense

Moves:1.e4e62.d4d5

TheFrenchDefenseisanopeningthatfavorstheBlackplayers.EventhoughthisopeninggiveswayfortheWhiteplayertogetholdofthecenter,itforcesthewhitepawn in the e line andpressurizes theWhiteplayer toplayhisnextmovewiselywhichisusedtotheadvantageoftheBlackplayer.

Caro-KannDefenseMoves:1.e4c6

ThisisagainanotheropeningthatisfavoredbytheBlackplayersbecauseitoffersa

strongretorttotheWhite’se4opening.ThoughitoffersgooddefensetotheBlackplayer,itisnotaspopularastheFrenchdefense.Thisopeninghasundergonealotofvariationssinceitsdiscovery.TheopeningwasdiscoveredbytwochessplayersnamelyHoratioCaro,anEnglishplayerandMarcusKann,anAustrianplayerintheyear1886.Thoughthis isnotadynamicopeningunlikeothers,thiscanwinhugefavorsfortheBlackplayerifbackedbyawell-definedpawnstructure.

PircDefense

Moves:1.e4d62.d4Nf63.Nc3

ThisopeningisagainwellsuitedforBlackplayers.JustliketheSiciliandefense,thisopeningwasregardedasaterribleoneatthetimeofitsdiscovery.However,overtheyears,ithasgainedpopularityandhasbecomeafavoriteamongBlackplayers.Thisisaninterestingaswellasacleveropeningbecauseofthewayitiscapableofturningthetables.Inthebeginning,thisopeninggivesroomforthewhitetobuildin the center.However, this canbe used to the advantageofBlack to launch anaggressiveattackagainsttheWhiteinthecenterandisoneofthoseopeningsthatgive theBlackplayer ampleopportunity to takeup anoffensive strategy throughopeningupa lane for theblackqueenandbishop togainanupperhand for thegame.

EnglishOpening

Moves:1.c4

ThisisanotheropeningthatcanworkwondersfortheWhiteplayer,ifplayedright.Thisopeninghasundergonealotofexperimentationsovertheyearsandtherearenumerous combinations of subsequent moves. If the white player plays itcautiously,hewillbeabletoadoptanoffensivestrategyagainsttheBlackplayerbyopeningupalaneforthequeen.Forallpracticalpurposes,thiscanbecalledasareversed Sicilian defense for easy understanding. However, this opening is moredynamic than the Sicilian defense as there is lot of scope for improvement andinnovation; for this element of unpredictability associatedwith it, this opening isconsideredasanotheroneofthemostpowerfulopenings.

Alekhine’sDefenseMoves:1.e4f6

Asopposed to theotheropeningswehave seen tillnow,Alekhine’sdefensewasnotdiscoveredeonsago.Itisinfactamodernopeningandwasonlydiscoveredintheyearof1921.ThisdefenseisalsoregardedasahypermoderndefenseandisaveryusefulopeningforBlackplayersasitgivesthemanopportunitytolaunchanaggressive attack.Under this opening, theWhite player is prompted tomovehispawns forward in order to create a broad pawn formation. This broad pawnformationcanbeeasilyusedbytheBlacktoitsadvantageandcanbecomethebasisforlaunchinganaggressiveattack.AnotherreasonwhytheBlackplayersfavorthismove is the fact that it is capableofnullifying all thepre-determinedmoves thatformapartofWhite’sopening.Thisstyleofplayalsoremovesallsymmetrytotheboard,whichisadvantageoustoaggressiveplayers.

Queen’sGambitMoves:1.d4d52.c4

This is one of the oldest openings in Chess and is considered as an aggressiveopening,wellsuitedfortheWhiteplayers.Thoughitmight looklikefavoringtheBlackplayerattheoutsetbecauseofthelossofpawnfortheWhite,thisopeningisproven to have given the White player enough ground to launch an offensiveattack.However,anotablepointaboutthisopeningisthatitalsogivesopportunityfortheBlackplayertorespondtoWhite’smoveswithanaggressivestrategy.Henceit cannot be completely regarded as an opening that will benefit just theWhiteplayer.VariousgamesholdenoughprooftothefactthatthisopeningcanbenefittheBlackplayeraswell,ifthesubsequentmovesareplayedright.

ModernDefense

Moves:1.e4g62.d4Bg7

This opening has been used to catch the opponent off guard in some games,thoughitisnotusedfrequently.ThisopeningsetsouttosupporttheBlackplayerbutendsuphelpingtheWhiteplayergainanadvantageovertheBlackplayer.AsinthecaseoftheAlekhine’sdefense,thewhitepawnsarepromptedtomoveforwardtosetupasolidpawnstructureinthecenter.ThispaveswayfortheBlacktoattackaround the center. Just like the Alekhine’s defense, this opening negates anyadvantageandrestoresbalanceinthegame.SinceWhitewillnotbeabletopredictthenextmovesofBlack,thisopeningcanbeusedbyBlacktolaunchanaggressiveattack.At the same time, this opening also helpsWhite in adopting anoffensivestrategy because there is enough opportunity forWhite to build a strong center.Withastrongcenter,itmakesiteasyandpossibleforWhitetolaunchanaggressiveattackagainsttheBlack.Thoughithasmanymerits,thisopeningisleastpreferredbytheplayersasithasatendencytocomplicatethegameandoftenplayersareleftwithno ideaas towhatwouldbe thenextmoveof theiropponent.This lackofpredictabilityandclarityassociatedwiththisopeningisthemainreasonbehinditslackoffame.

King’sIndianDefenseMoves:1.d4Nf62.c4g6

This is another commonly used chess opening and is another example ofhypermoderngameplay.Thisopeningmakes it feasibleforWhitetogaincontrolover the centerwith his pawns.At the same time, theBlack player is also givenenoughopportunitytochallengethecentercontrolexercisedbyWhite.Ithasbeenaconstantfavoriteamongprofessionalplayersasitisaverydynamicopeningand

has a lot of scope for improvement. Another added advantage of choosing thisopening for Black is that you are given an opportunity to develop your bishop,knight and also castle your king in the beginning of the game itself. You willunderstand the importance of castling your king early into the game in a laterchapterofthisbook.

King’sIndianAttackMoves:1.Nf3d52.g3

ThemirroroppositetoBlack’sKing’sIndianDefenseistheKing’sIndianAttack.Asyoumighthaveguessed, thisopeningfavors theWhite.Openingssuchas theFrenchDefense, Siciliandefense are a favorite among theBlackplayers, as theseopenings tend to break the symmetry in the openings of White. However, thisopeningiscapableofretortinganydefensivestrategyadoptedbyBlackandallowsWhitetoadoptanoffensivestrategy.Thisopeningcanresultinaggressivemiddlegameswherebyboththeplayerslosealotofpieces.

AninterestingaspectoftheKing’sIndianattackisthatitneednotbeusedjustasanopening.Itcanbeadoptedasastrategyduringthecourseofthegameaswell.Ideally,WhitecanadoptthisstrategytosquelchanydefensivemovesofBlack.Thetwingoalsofthisopening/strategyareasfollows:

ToenableWhitetodeveloptheirpieces.

Tobringaboutanall-outagainsttheblackking

ThisrequiresexceptionaltacticsfromtheBlackplayertoneutralizetheseaggressivemovesfromtheWhite.

TheDutchDefense

Moves:1.d4f5

TheDutchdefenseisconsideredasthemostaggressiveretortbyBlacktoWhite’sopening.ThisopeninggivesBlacktheopportunitytolaunchanattackonWhite’skingsideduringthecourseofthegame.However,thisattackresultsinthef7squareof theblackbecoming an easy target for theWhite.This drawback canbe easilyovercomebycastlingtheking.Thisisoneopeningthatpromotesaggressivemovesfrombothplayers and thismakes the game all themore interesting and exciting.Despite itsmultiple benefits, this opening can also be a double-edged sword forblackasyouopenyourselfupagainstaquickcheckmate ifyou’renotcarefulandareplayingagainstanexperiencedWhite.

Thesearesomeofthecommonlyusedopenings.Iamsurethatyouweresurprisedaswell as inspired after reading about these interestingopenings. I am confidentyou are waiting to try them out in your next game. The importance of a goodopeningcanneverbestressedenough.Agoodopeningcanmostcertainlychangethefateofthegame;henceitisabsolutelyessentialthatyouhavesomeknowledgeaboutthesevariousopenings.

What’sNext?

We looked at the differentmajor openings that you could employ in a game ofchess.Now,letustakeaquickdiscussiononwhattodoafterthoseinitialcrucialmoves.

Thevery first advice is todeveloppieces fast.This concept includesmemorizingyour different opening strategies literally by heart and knowingwhich position isadvantageoustoeachpiece.Youshouldbepreparedwithagameplanifyouwishtohaveagoodstarttoyourgameinsteadofgoingintoitwithoutaplan.

The next thing to do is, control the center of the board. As you know, it isimportant tobalance theboard at all times.Atnopoint in the game should youremain confused about your pieces and their development. How you place yourpiecesinthecenteroftheboardiswhatwilldeterminehowyourgamewillmoveforward.Therearetwotypesofsituationsthatcanarisewhenyouwishtogarnercontrolover thecenterof yourboard.One isknownas theopencenter and theother is ablocked center.Theopen center is onewhere you and youropponentbothhaveanequalchanceatcontrollingthecenter,soyouhavetoquicklyadvanceallofyourimportantpiecestotheepicenter;thiswillensurethatyouhaveagoodcontrolovertheboard.Theblockedcenterisonewheretheopponenthasalreadyplacedallofhisorher importantpiecesandit isdifficultforyoutomoveanyofyourpiecesforward.Thisisabadsituationanditisimportantthatyoudoyourbesttoavoiditbycreatingpuzzlingcircumstancesforyouropponent.Youmustcreatethese situations for your opponent but if they don’t come about, then youmustquickly re-strategize.Try to look for anopeningand strategizehowyoucan takecontrolofthecenterassoonaspossible.

Apartfromthesetwo,thereisanothersituationknownasthedynamiccenter.Thedynamic center is onewhere the two players are unsure ofwho really holds thecenter of the board. In this situation, it is important to seewho has the quickerroutetogaincontrolofthecenterandthatyoucandobyseeingwhosekeypieceshavemoreofapositionaladvantage.

Thenextthingtodoisquicklymoveyourkingtosafety.Asyouknow,yourkingisyour most important piece in the game. At no point should it be exposed orvulnerable. For this, youmust immediatelymove him to a safe place. However,rememberthatthemoveshouldbemeaningful.Don’tsimplymovehiminsuchawaythatitendangershisposition.Ifheissafewhereverheis,thenlethimremainthere. It pays to castle early in the game as you can usually place your king in a

protected position. For this, you must purposely move all the pieces that liebetweenthekingandtherookandthenexchangetheirpositions,whichisanotherreasonwhythe“RuyLopez”openingissopopular.Anotherimportantconceptisliterallytosendanentouragewithyourking.Thismeansthatyoumoveafewsafetypieceswithyourking ifyouwishtotransporthimfromtheusualspot.So ifyoumovethekingforward,yournextmoveistoplacesomethinginfrontofhim.Thatway,yousafeguardyourkingandhavethechancetohelphimremainsafe.Evenifyouropponentkills thedefense,yourkingcaneasilykill theotherperson’spiece.However, make sure you know what you are doing as it might be a trap. Theopponentmightpurposelykillyourdefensetoprovokeyoutomakeamistakesothinkitthroughwhenyouplaceadefensivepieceinfrontofyourking.

Anotheradvantageofanearlycastleisdevelopingyourpieces.Whatthiswilldois,helpyoumovethemaroundinsteadofhavingthemstagnate intheirplace.Manynewplayers fearmoving theirbigpieces suchasbishopandknight thinking theywillendangerthesebutiftheyarenotmoved,thenyouwillendangeryourkingandslowyouroffensiveattack.Insayingthis,rememberitisbestthatyoumovethemontheboardassoonasyoucan;thisisalsoknownasdevelopingthem.

Thenext important thing is toconcentrateonpiecequality.Thismeans that youfocus on the value of the piece beforemoving it on the board. Each piece hasdifferentvalues,asyouknow,andyoumustplacethemontheboardinsuchawaythatthevaluesarespreadoutontheboardinsteadofbeinglumpedalltogether.

Don’t fall into the pawn-moving trap early on. This iswheremost beginners gowrong.Theystartmovingthepawnaroundanddon’trealizethatitisimportanttomove the other pieces as well. Remember that a piece that is not active on theboardisasgoodasnothavingthepieceatall.Youmuststeerclearofthismistakeandstartmovingyourotherpiecesearlyon.Aswasmentionedbefore,youneedtomoveyourpawnstothecenteroftheboard.

Nextoff,letstakeamorein-depthlookatsomegeneralstrategies.

CHAPTER2

GeneralGuidelinesforStrategy

Oh, the love of the game. There are countless different methods to play chess,whichisperhapswhyitdrawssuchafertileassortmentofvariousthinkersfromallaroundtheworld,keepsevolvingevenafterhundredsofyearsofengagedplayandeven proves that no one particular style of play is significantly superior overanother.

DidyouknowthattheFIDE–theFédérationInternationaldesÉchecsorWorldChessFederation– is the third largestsportingorganization in theworld?ItonlyfollowsupbehindtheInternationalOlympicCommittee(IOC)andtheFédérationInternational Football Association (FIFA) for soccer! The FIDE represents overone hundred and sixty nations, making it a single, unifying testament to alongstandinghistory,richinmanycultures.

It isnowonder thegame is sodynamic; cultivating thismuchdiversityof ethnicbackgroundssituatedacrosstheworldtofinallyfacingeachotheroveronetable.Itisasmuchapeople-gameasitisanintellectualone,becauseplayersinevitably(andthankfully)bringtheiroutstandingbackgroundsofhumanityandpersonalityintoit,keepingchessallthemoreinteresting.

Chess parallels the same interests in life. Many players thrive on observing andparticipating in games where there’s exciting action; they allow themselves tobecome excited and emotional over great upsets. Fast and loose playerswho areused to board domination receive quite a disturbing reality-check when throwntogetherwithmorethoughtfulpositionalplayerswithhighlydevelopedstrategies.

And that iswhyI’msopleasedyou’re taking the time to read thisbook,becauseyouaregivingyourselftheopportunitytounderstandallthesepointsofviewandthevaluablenuances that laybeneath them. So let’s layout some further general

rulestogetyoupeppereduptobecomingaseasonedplayer,shallwe?

Tounderstandexactlywhatyou’llbegettinginto,perhapssomebriefclarificationisinorder–strategyandtacticsareasdifferentashomemadeandstore-boughtapplepie.You’llknowallthespecificingredientsittakestomakeeachonebutitisuptoyoutotakethetimetofigureoutwhystore-boughttacticsareatemporaryfixandacalculated move while homemade strategies are long-term investments that youideallyshouldcontinuetoimproveuponandthatkeepsyoucomingbackformore.

Tacticsteachyoutemporarytricksandwhentorecognizetheirusefulness.Strategylends a critical-thinking frame ofmind for you to cultivate a chess advantage bycarefullysettingupsmalladvantagesoveralongtime,alldriventowardsaparticulargoal.

Thepurposeofstrategycanberefinedtocreatingoneormoreoftheseadvantages:

Morematerial(force;strengthinpiecevalues)

Superiorpiecedevelopment

Superiorpawnstructure

Moreterritory(space)

SafeKingposition(usuallywhencastled)

We’llgetintotheseandotherspecificstrategiesinthenextfewchapters.Fornow,let’ssticktogeneralconcepts.AsIbrieflystatedamomentagothough,itwillbeupto you to recognize a possible advantage in gameplay and use these provideddynamics todevelopaplan thatallowsyou tohoneanedgeoveryouropponentfromthatwindowofopportunity.

Youmustbeabletoweighyouroptionswhenmakingthisjudgmentandcomparewithyouropponent’spositionwhiledeterminingwhatadvantagesastrategicmovewillbringyou.Forexampleyoumaybewilling tocaptureanenemybishopwithone of your pawns, which will gain you a material advantage, but the resultingmovement of that pawn can weaken your king’s defenses. Is that truly going toserveasanadvantageforyou?Probablynot.Inalllikelihood,consideringtheskill

ofyouropponent,amovelikethatcouldcostyouthegame,asitplaysoutfurther.

It is these small details inbattlebetweenplayerswho are constantly changinguptheirexistingadvantagesfornewonesinanattempttosolidifyasecurevictorythatultimatelyepitomizesbenchmarksofgreatplay.

TargetDevelopment

Doyouknowhowmostmillionairesearntheirprestigiousstatus?Itisusuallynotbymakingafewfellswoopsofeffortlikewinningthelottery,gettingluckyinthestockmarket,orhavinganideaorskillthathappenstobesopopularitcatcheslikewildfireandpropelsthemintoriches.Thosecasesaretherareones.Theyusuallyoccur once or a few times but have no consistency that the average person canmimicandachievecomparableresults.

Mostmillionairesdevelopanearningfortheirkeepbypinchingpenniesandsavingsmallamountsofmoneyeverychancetheyget.Overtimeandwithsomeskillandsuccess, theymanagetoraise themselves intopositionsofdistinctionthroughthecorrectutilizationof their resources.Whilekeeping theiroverallgoal inmind thewhole time, they realize the most reliable strategy to make it happen comes inmakingthemostofthosesmallstepswhentheypresentthemselves.

TodevelopamasterfulconsistencyinChessandearnsomefavorinbeingabletocontendwithunfamiliarstylesofplay,youmustadoptthissamestrategy.Ofcoursetheultimategoalistoarriveatcheckmatetothedemiseofyourenemy’skingbutyoucannotexpecttogettherequicklyeverytime.Andsotoimprovethatoutcomeconsistently it becomes amatterof first buildingup a seriesof small advantages,step by step, in a manner of well-planned positioning that will come to revealweaknesses in your opponent’s home territory. The eventual acquisition ofweaksquaresorweakpawnswillstrengthenyouroverallstrategyandarmy,renderingavictoryforyou.

Oneofthemostvitalapproachesyoucandeveloptosupportyourgameisbeingable to identify targets, or weak points, within your opponent’s formation. Thisshould become amindset where you are constantly looking to profit from yourenemy’s weaknesses. It should be an attitude that feeds into your hunger forcreating these targets and finding ways to land them, keeping ravenous in your

efforts until you havemaximized upon every potential advantage. There are twoessential ways to do this: the first is throughweak pawns, and the next is weaksquares.

WeakPawns

(WeakPawnRepresentation:Alltheblackpawnsareeitherisolatedordoubled!)

Weakpawnsaresimplythosethatareopenforattack.Theyareunprotectedeitherby being lonesome or at the base of a vulnerable pawn chain. These types ofvulnerabilitiesmay sometimesappearbecauseof anopponent’sownmistake,butyou should not count on them to give opportunities to you.You have to createtheseweaknessesforyourself,andthatisthemethodforthistypeofstrategy.

Createatargetbyidentifyingweakpawnsamongyourenemy’scamp.

Gotour-de-forcetoattackit.

Simpleright?Awell-knownandextremelyusefulmethodfordoingthisisastrategyknownasa‘minorityattack.’Theminorityattackfollowsas:

Employpawns(2)toattackapawnmajority(3),withthegoalofleavingyourenemywithweaksquaresandopeninguplines.

Anothergoodruleofthumbis:

Alwaystrytodominatethesquaredirectlyinfrontofanisolatedenemypawn.Thissupersedesanytypeofcontrolyouropponentmaytryexertwiththesaidpawnorotherpieces tomakeuseof its protection, and allows you to lay avirtualcloakofoccupiedcriticalsquareterritoryoveryouropponentandintotheirdefenses.

WeakSquares

Thesejewelsofstrategyarenotasobvioustoidentifyasweakpawnsareandcanplaywiththeheadsofsomeplayersastotheirtruenaturebutthereisnoneedtobealarmed;itsimplyboilsdowntounderstandingwhatitmeanstoclaimasquareandrecognizinghowaparticularonecanbeusedtothegoodofyourcampaign.

(f7istheweaksquare,canyoucomprehendwhy?)

Weak squares are strategicpointsof interest toward themiddleof theboard andintotheenemy’sterritorythatdooneoranumberofthings.Youcanidentifyweaksquaresas:

Thesquaresthataresafefromattackofenemypawns.

(a6,c6,andd6areallsafefromenemypawns)

Anopportunisticpointofplayforyourpiecestooccupywhetherphysicallyorbywayoftheirattackmoves.

(d5isaweaksquarebecauseit’suntouchablebyallblackpiecesminustheking)

Squares that serve as support points for any one of your other pieces,especiallyknightsthataredependentonthemfortheirownstrength.

Squaresthatarenaileddownbyseveralofyourotherpiecestopreventenemypieces from moving onto them, limiting their movement, or to provideadvancement for your other pieces that will implement a persuasion ofpressureontheenemywheninplace.

Theunderlyingprincipletobeawareofinpursuitofsuchsuperiorregionsisthatthey are called weak squares because they expose weaknesses in your opponent’sterritory and their strategy while they provide you with a significant advantage,increasingthepowerofyourpieces,makingthemquitevaluabletocontrol.

Thatbeingsaid, justasyouare looking likeabloodhoundforthesegemsinyouropponent’sdomain,theywillassuredlybedoingthesameinyours,sostayalerttoanyexposedweaksquares,quiteaptlydubbedas ‘holes’,andmakesureyouhavethemcoveredinyourownterritoryandonthefrontlineatthecenter.

Thedomineeringattitudethatcomeswiththepursuitofthesesquaresisdescribedassuchbecausetheycangiveyouafairlycompetitiveedgehowever,controlofasquarealonewillnotnecessarilyleadtotriumph,youwillneedtocombineitwithother advantages to bring your opponent down. Remember that you have all oftheseeagerpiecesatyourdisposal.Onehighandmightypiececannotdothework

aloneor theywill run into trouble in their overconfident attempts. Sowhen yougearuptoclaimtheseholesforyourself,donotjustgoinwithoneortwopieces-useeverythingyouhave.Bringasmanypiecesasyoucantobeardownonit.

Sinceyouarechoosingtoinvestinsuchasquarewithyourstrategy,itwillbecomepartofapivotalpointwell throughout themidgame.Indeed,sometimesasquarecan be the center of a big fight.One sidemaywant to control a focalizedweaksquareforattackingpurposeswhiletheothermightlooktoblockitfordefense.Invery involvedschemes like this,andalsoasan importantcohesiverule,youmusttrainyourselftolearnhowtowieldyourarmyasonemassive,scrupulousentity.

Wecanseeherethatthewhiteplayer’sc4pawnhaskeptthed5squarewarmandopen as a support piece for his knight to supplant itself nicely in the fifth rank,where it now imposes control over critical squares at b6, c7, and e7 for futureadvancement of other pieces; it is essentially impeding development of the darksquaredblackbishop.Black’slightsquaredbishopcouldnothavehadmucheffectonrebuttaloverthecontrolofd5becauseofwhite’sc4supportpawn,whichalsoblocksblack’sc5pawn,makingwhite’sc4pawnaverylucrativecentralpiece.

TerritorialDomination

After the opening game and target development begins, your next line of focusshouldfallfrontandcenter–thatjuicyhunkofopenterritoryinthemiddleoftheboard is just waiting for some exquisite gameplay to enhance its attraction. So,wouldn’tyouwanttodothehonorsofmakingyourselfavailabletoitbeforeyour

enemycaninfiltrate?Ofcourseyouwould!Generallyspeaking,themorespaceyoucommandwithyourpieces, thegreatersuperiorityyouhaveover thedirectionofthegame,which isexactlyhowyoushouldwant to lead intoafavorablyworkingmidgamestrategy.

Inaccordancewithyouropeners,pushingpawnsforwardistheleadingwaytotakeadvantageof territorial space.Don’t get tooexcited just yet though. If you focustoomuchongainingspacewithoutadequatelykeepingyour front linesprotectedand back lines defended well, you just end up opening yourself to an enemyonslaught.Anotherpointtotakeintoconsiderationisthatwhileyouareadvancingandhuggingupallthatcomfyspace,youmustexertcontroloverittopreventitsturnoverintoenemyhands.Thusitbecomesagoalandaresponsibilitytomaintainthecentralposition.

Sometipstoremember:

Extra space gives you long-range advantage. It allows a wider variety ofoptions for your pieces tomove and puts pressure on your enemy’s forces,confiningtheirownmovements.

There is no need to rush territorial acquisition. Unlike the attitude wediscussed in targeting and controlling weak squares, the strategy for specialadvancementallowsforslowerformations.

Once you have a good reach into themiddle of the board,makemoves tokeep your borders defended. Put a stranglehold on your enemy that theycannot break free from and continue to strappingly eke forward over theranks.

Open lineswhenyouwant toattackandclose themwhenyouare trying todefend.

Avoidtradingpiecesifyouwanttoensurethatthespaceyouareclaimingforyourselfstays thatway.The ideahere is tocrampyouropponent’spiecessotheyendupfumblingandtrippingoverthemselvesorgettinglockedwithoutaplace to go. From there you’ll be able to pick them off as the opportunitypresentsitself.Youropponentwillattempttotradepieces.Counterthiswithawell-defendedoffense.

Centeroftheboard=honeypot.Plainandsimple,wheneveryougetachanceto play here, do so. However if you find the center locked up in pawnsquabbles,you’llwanttoexerciseyouragilityandgoforthewings.Essentiallyandeffectively,neitheryounoryouropponenthasachoice.Soifthecenterisblocked, play the wings. Bishops and queens usually make great authoritieshere.

Converselytotheadviceabove,whenyoufindyourselfdefendingagainstanattackonthewing,youshouldalways,alwayscounterattackinthecenter.Thiswillbeyourbestbethandsdown.Withthispieceofadviceyoumaynoticethereciprocal relationship between offensive strategies and counterattacks withtheirlocationontheboard.Spendtimeplayingwiththisconceptsothatyoumaydevelopabetterunderstandingofoverallterritorialmovementandplay.Itwillmakeagreatfoundationalunderstandingofchessstrategyonwhichyoucanbuild.

Rememberhowtheconstantchangingofadvantagesfornewonesthroughoutthegamewasdiscussedearlyoninthischapter?Agreatexampleofthatliesinthecasewhenakeenopponentmanagestoderailyourspatialadvantage.Withthelossofaspatial advantage comes the exertion of a newer one if you have set yourself upwell.Someofyourcentralpawnsmayhavebeenwipedoff theboard,but ifyouhaveafewremaininginthecorffilesforexample,youcanusetheseassupportpointsforamuscularknighttoquicklygrapplecriticalsquaresandkeepthesqueezeonyouropponent.

Likewise,thelossofpawnscanbeturnedtoyouradvantagebyrealizingtherearenowopen fileswhich canbeheld in sturdy commandby centralized andwingedrooks in the back rank. If you foresee the loss of your spatial advantage at itsgradualbeginning,haveyourrookswaitinginplacetoeitherbeamtheirprowessupthrough the file as your pawn is threatened or even sacrifice that pawn for asuperiormobilityadvantageintotheendgame.

LaterinChapter4underPawnStructure,we’lltakealookattheuseofpawnstodominatethecenterandinturnhowtodefendagainstapawncenter.

MakingYourAdvantagesRelevant

Doesafoxmakeagoodhunterinthewater?I’mnotquitesure,actually.Thepointis,inordertomakestrategicadvantagesworkforyou,itisvitaltoknowwhentheybecome relevant and how they relate to the basic principles bulleted at thebeginningofthechapter;allincontextwithyouropponent’sadvantages.Thiscanbeacommonfollythatamateursmake;anyleverageyoubuildisonlygoodifyouareabletofollowthroughwithpositioningthatallowsthatleveragetobeapplied.Apply your cunning in a way that suits the environment. If you create theopportunity for aparticular advantage like a strongpawn formation for example,followthroughwithitasfarasyoucaneffectivelymakeitworkforyou.

Giving up territorial space to the enemy in result of your efforts for a supremestructure however shouldmake you reconsider whose strategy ismore useful. Itbecomes a matter of weighing out your plans and possessions over youropponent’s, determining whose may be superior, and confidently knowing whyyoursmaygainagreateradvantageifyouaretofollowthroughwiththatparticularplan.Makeanoteaswellthatthisprocessoccursconsistentlythroughoutthegame,attributingtoitsvastdynamism:players’strategieswillchangeaccordingtotheshiftof the advantage it brings them, with respect to their opponent’s changes informationaswell.

Thatgoestosaythoughthatbetterplayersareoneswhoplaythoughtfullyenoughtosetthemselvesupforanalternativestrategythatcanariseoutoftheashesofafailed one. Only when resulting exchanges with your opponent weaken yourstrategyshouldyoubeginemployingalternatives.You’llwantavoidchangingtacticsinmid-strategy,prematurelyabandoningthebuildupofaworkingone,foranotherthatmayappearmore temptingbecause itbreaksdown theeffectivenessof youroverallformation.

HelpfulStrategicGuidelines

NeverbringoutthequeentooearlyWhenyouareabeginner,youwillbetemptedtobringoutyourQueenandplayinan aggressive fashion. However, understand that this might make yourQueen avulnerablepieceandcanactuallyresult inyoulosingyourQueen.AsweallknowtheQueenisthemostimportantpieceontheboardaftertheking.Losingitearlyinto thegamecanbeaverybigadvantage foryouropponent.Henceensure that

youbringoutyourQueenonlywhenthereareenoughpiecestobackitup.

Trytoseizeopenfiles

Wheneveryoucomeacrossanopportunitytoseizeanopenfile,makesuretoseizeit.Thiscanincreaseyouradvantageinthegame.Aseizedfilecanhelpyouagreatdealindeliveringacheckmate.

Bearthistipinmindwhileyouplaybecauseitcancertainlyincreaseyourchancesofwinning.

BringthebishopandknightoutquicklyBeforeyouthinkofmovingyourotherpiecessuchas,yourqueen,rooksorking,shiftyourbishopsandknightstothemiddleofthechessboard.Toattack,youneedtogetthesepiecesoutfrombehindthepawns.Becauseyourknightscanjumpoverthepawns,youdon’thavetoremovethepawnsinfrontofyourknightstobeableto move your knights. Coming to the bishops, you can move them forward bysimplymoving thepawns thatarediagonal to them.Thinkingof justmoving thepawnsasawaytoprotectyourotherpieces,likemanyamateursdo,willonlyleadtoyoulosingyourgame!Neverbeafraidtoattack!Theonlywayyoucanwinisbyattackingyouropponents’pieces.

Play openings such as the “Ruy Lopez” or “Italian Game” to get the feel ofbringingthesepiecesoutquickly.

KeepaneyeonyourbackNeverhesitatetotrytothinklikeyouropponentduringyourturn.“Whatwasthepointofmyopponent’slastmove?Whatdoeshehaveinmind?”Thesearesomeofthequestionsyoushouldaskyourselfcontinuouslythroughoutthegame.Ishelayingtrapstocaptureyourpieces?Onceyouthinkyouhaveanideaofwhatyouropponent is up to, it is your time to decide your plan. Always look at all thepossibilities that you have. The priority should be to catch as many of youropponents’ pieces or to capture the king first. So look formoves that help youreachthesegoals.Butalwaysremembertodouble-checkoreventriple-checkyourmovesbeforeyoumakethem.Besurethatyourmovedoesn’texposeoneofyourpiecesor leave itunprotected.Youneeda soliddefenseaswell asagoodattack.Youshouldalsobewillingtosacrificesomeofyourpiecesforthegreatergood,in

this case, to capture your opponent’s king. But such decisions should never bemadeinhaste.Alwaysthinkitthroughandlookatboththeprosandcons.

Don’twastetimeTry to finish your game in as fewmoves as you can. Don’t focus on trying tocapture all your opponents’ pawns or try tomove all your pawns. This ismajorhurdleformostbeginners.Ifyouropponenthappenstobewastinghisorhertimemoving their pawns, then this is your golden opportunity to develop your highvaluepieces.Thisiswhenyoustartattackingthemandmakesureyoutakeoutasmanypiecesasyoucan.Thiswillcauseyouropponenttogettensedandtheywilltend tomakemistakes.Chess is a gameof themind, somake sure that you canpredictwhatyouropponentsplantodoandfoiltheirplans.Alwayskeepinmindhowmuchmoveandtimeaparticularoffensivestrategytakesandremember,don’twastetime.

ProtectyourkingandcastleearlyCastlingisamovethatallowsyoutoprotectyourkinganduseyourrook.Onceallthe squaresbetweenyour rookand theking are free youcanmove theking twosquaretowardthesquarewheretherookiswhiletherookmovestothesquareontheking’sotherside.Lookforanopportunitywhenyouropponentdisregards tocastle,thisiswhenyoucanlaunchanattackontheopponentsking.Thismoveistheonlywaywheremorethanasinglepiececanbemovedinasinglemove/turn.Keepinmindthatcastlingisnotalwaysafavorableinagame.Mostpeopleuseittocounter anoncomingoffensive attack, butwithpractice andpresenceofmind itcan bemade into a game changer.Castling too late is not a good strategy eitherbecauseastheboardbecomesmorespaced,thelesserdefense“castling”givesyou

Attackaftertheopening

Your“opening”endsonceyoumanagetomoveallyourbishopsandknightsintothegame.Afterthisstartsyourmiddlegame.Themiddlegameiswhenyoushouldbeonthelookoutforhowyoucancaptureyouropponent’spieces,sofocushardon any piece that your opponent doesn’t protect. But keep an eye on what willhappentoyourpiecesifyoutakeyouropponent’s—willitleadtosomepieceofyoursbeingunprotected?Alwayslookforwaysthatallowyoutopositionyourmeninsuchawaythatyoucanattackandcaptureyouropponent’sking.

OwningYourLastStand

Higher levels of chess play require you to be on your game. Even so, thepsychologicalfactorstillplaysintothegame,makingforinterestingturnaroundsatthelastmoment.Lower-rankingplayersintournamentsfeelthepressurewhentheyknowtheyareupagainsthigher-rankingones,but itdoesnotmean that theyaredoomed to defeat. Basically it comes down to novices playing a near-perfectly-designedgame(whichiswhytheall-hailedBluecomputerposessuchachallengetothe best of players). People, even the masters, still feel emotions and thosedistracting ones such as pride, frustration, anger, worry and fear which caninfluence the best of contenders.You can use this to your advantage bymakingattackstogetyouropponent’sattention.Manytimeshewillleavehisownplanstothewaysideandturncompletelytothedefensewhereyoumaymakeanapparentlosstransformintoanail-bitingvictory.

Sometimesthingswillnotbegoingyourway,especiallytowardthetransitionfromthemidgame to theendgame.Youmightbedownbya fewpiecesorblownoutdefensivelyfromaweakpawnstructureoropenfilesthatyouropponentplanstoexpose with a rook barreling into your home base. Nevertheless, you still haveoptions.Doyouchoosewithinfairreasontomakeapounceonyourenemy’sking?Doyouhavemorespaceformovementwithyourremainingpieces?

Youmay find in certain situations that by allowing your opponent to stay busyruthlesslycapturingpieces,youcansneaksomestealthypiecesofyourownbehindenemylinesforawininafewcarefullyplannedmoves.Youcanalsodrawoutyouropponent’saggressionwiththeoptiontoforcesometradesforanimbleendgame.If you are able to find some advantage, any advantage within your remainingformation,youstillholdouthopeforachancetowinoratleasttodraw,sogoforthegloryandgoontheoffensive.

Thetypeoflast-chanceattackI’mreferringtoplaysonyouropponent’spsycheandmayforcethemtomakeafatalerror.Thereisanoldchessexpressionthatcanverywellemulatereallifecircumstances,andthesayingthatgoes,“Apoorplanisbetterthannoplanatall.”Yourlastattemptsjustshyofdesperationmayendupfailinganyways,butyoucanfeelsatedknowingyougaveityourall.Knowthatyouwillbedoting upon a few realities that the tireless pursuit of game strategy perfectionseldomacknowledges:

Errorsofsomekindareseeninvirtuallyeverygame

Allchessvictoriesarearesultoftheloser’smistakesandthewinner’sabilitytotakeadvantageofthem(weakpawns,failuretooccupyspace,forfeitofcriticalsquares,etc.)

Anothersayinginchesstothetuneof,“Thewinneristheplayerwhomakesthenext-to-lastmistake.”

There’snotellingwhereyouropponentwillmoveonthesideoferror,butwhenyouattackoutofnecessity,youstillstandtochancethatyouropponentwillhavecertainadvantagesinoneareawhileyouholdsomeinanother.Thekeyistokeepacalmframeofmindoveryouropponentandplaywhereyourstrategicadvantagesreside.

CHAPTER3

EndgameStrategies

Playing for the lucky win, though infrequently discovered, definitely has areputation in the chess community. The situation is referred to as ‘playing for acheapshot,’or‘cheapo’forshort.I’msureaplaceawaitsthetitanunderdogplayerwhocanlearntomasterevenatechniquesuchasthistobenicknamedassuch,butIdigress.

To ensure consistency for a winning endgame there are a few quintessentialprinciplestoliveby:

Whenyouareaheadbymaterialforce(numberofpieces),youmusttradelikethehawkerataChinesefleamarket.

Avoidmakinglast-minuteblundersbytamingyouregoandplayingitsafe.

Ifyouhaveasecureadvantage,takeyourtimetostopanyofyouropponent’spotentialcounterplay.

Trading pieces makes for a particularly useful idea if you can be sure to findyourselfintheendgamewithamaterialadvantageofapawnormore.Really?Justapawnyousay?Ifyouhavemanagedtostripyouropponentofallhispieces,savethe king and a couple pawns or one mobile piece, remind yourself that youprobablyhavepassedpawns(onesthathavecrossedintoenemyterritory)thatmaycomeinhandyforapromotiontoaqueenorlesserpiece.Thenwithnodefense,youropponentwillshudderknowingtheyareinforit.

Just keep in mind while you are going after all the finger-snapping trades thatmaterialadvantage,whilebeingthemostobviousleadintoanoverallvictory,doesnot own sole-proprietorship in chess strategy. If you fail to keep developing the

sweeping force of your army, you may be caught off-guard by your opponent’ssuperior pawn structure or their level of mobilization. You should try to find agoodbalancebetweendefenseandapressingimpedimentthatadvancesyourownplans.

Remember not to neglect your positional development, enforce your materialadvantageifyoualreadyhaveone,andfinallynipanylasthopeofyouropponent’schances in thebudby eliminatinghis remaining threatsbeforehe finds away tomakeyousorryyoudidn’t.

Here you can understand the basic endgame strategies in chess. A commonproblem with chess players is that they can create effective strategies for theopeningandthemiddleofthegamebutcannotdothesamefortheend.

Insayingthis,wethoughtwe’dcompilealistofgeneraltipstohelpyouespeciallytowardsthelatterstagesofthegame.

14TipsForTheEndGame

1.BringingOutTheking

Ifthepiecesontheboardhavedwindleddowntoallpawnsandmaybeoneortwootherpieces,yourkingmaybethebestpiecetoattackyouropponent’spawnsanddefendyourown.Towinagameinlatterstagesofthegame,youshouldhaveanactiveandcentralizedking.

However,ifyoustillhavealargenumberofpiecesontheboardthatcanbeusedtomountadefense,movingyourkingmightnotbethebestidea.Neartheendofthegame,ifyouhaveenoughpiecestowardoffanyattacksfromyouropponentthenyou don’t have to utilize your king and in this case, let your king remain in hispositionandfocusonattackingyouropponentusingyourotherpieces.

2.Workoutyournextmove

Most players, both amateurs and professionals alike, believe that tactics andcalculation play a role only in the middle game. But particularly with theinsignificantpieces,youneedtoaccuratelyanalyzeyourmoves.Thiscanbeamere

simple calculation, such as counting a passed pawn race in a king and pawnendgame,whichisafrequentsituation.Thiscanalsobesomeofthemorecomplexvariations, which need more complicated calculations. When the pieces on theboarddwindledownbit, it is imperativetodevelopaknacktocalculateat least5stepsaheadofthecurrentpositioning,learntocultivatethisskillasyouplaymoregames.Neverunderestimatetheimportanceofanyofyourpieces,eachoneisjustas important as the other, especially in endgame scenarios. If your opponentcapturesoneofyourimportantpiecesearlieronthenyouwillbeintrouble.Don’tthinkyoucanmoveyourpawnswithoutcalculatingtherepercussions;everymovematters.Whatifyoumoveawayallthepawnsinfrontofthekingandhavenonetodefendtheking?Remember,skillfullycalculateeachandeverymovebeforemakingit.

3.TradeOff-BishoporKnight?

In an open position (less board pieces), the bishop serves as the stronger piecewhileinclosedpositions(moreboardpieces)theknightservesasthebetterchoice.Abishopcanmovewitheaseifthereareopendiagonalsandtheknightscanjumpover a trap of locked pawns so it depends onwhat stage thematch be atwhendeterminingtotradethesetwopieces.

4.Thepawnsstaytogether

Alwaysremembertoavoidisolatingyourpawnsbecauseitishardtoprotectthemfromyouropponent;youdon’twanttowasteprecioustimereachingouttoprotectyour pawns but you also don’t want to lose them. Doubled pawns are alsoproblematicasitmayrestrictmobility.Toavoidtheselategamepawnissues,wellcalculatedopeningsandmidgame’sarerequired.

5.RightTimetoExchangePieces

It is one of the best endgame tactics to exchange your pieces if you can gain amaterialadvantagefromtheprocessorifyouhavethecurrentmaterialadvantageontheboard.However,becautiousofexchangingpawnsiftheyarecrucialtoyourendgamestrategy.

6.TakeCareWhileMovingYourPawns

Devise yourmoves to the eighth rank properly if it is crucial to promote into aqueen.Useyourkingandletitbethefront-runner.Movethepiecetothefarthestpointpossibleontheboard.Meanwhiledonotforgettoadvancethepawnsaswell.Pawnsaregame-changers;donotlosethemwithoutanypurpose.However,iftheirsacrificeservesthegreatergood(allowinganotherpawntodevelopintoaqueen),sacrificeasmanypawnsaspossible.

7.PawnsandMomentum

Chess is full of strategy and you often might need an extra move to gain theadvantage;thisextramovemightnotappeartobesobeneficialbutwhenitboilstotheendofagame, it couldmeaneverything.Anexampleof thiswouldbewhentwokingpiecescomefacetoface.Insuchacase,whicheverpiecemovesfirstlosesterritoryandcanbesqueezedintoacorner.Keepingapawnnearbyinsuchcaseswillcomehandyasyoucanplay‘dead’moveswiththem.

8.TwoProngedStrikes–PawnPromotion

Whenyouapproachtheendgame,oftenyouropponentisleftwithlimitedpieces.Thesepiecesmayprovetobeinsufficientindefendingtheboardonbothendssoifthe situation favors this strategy, utilizepawnsonboth the endsof theboard sothatyoucanpromoteatleastoneofthem.Doaquickcarefulanalysisfirsttoseeifat leastoneof yourpawns theoretically canbepromoted, as youdonotwant tosendthemonasuicidemission.

9.CentralizationoftheKingandthePieces

Akingachievesa significant rolewhenyou reach theendgame,as itbecomesanoffensive piece. Moving your king to the center of the board becomesadvantageousasitcanthensupportyourotherpiecesinaquickerfashion.

Play whatever moves you can to get your king in the center position, and thencompetetomaintaintheposition.Whenthekingisputinthecenter,itcanmovetothequeensideoritsonesideaccordingtothesituation.Centralizationofthekingalsoreducesthemovementoftheopposingkingsodonotlettheopponentkinggetthecenterposition.Otherpiecestoowillbecomeweightyifyoucentralizethemandhencemovingmostofyourpiecesinthecenterwillgiveyouupperhandinthe

gameespeciallyinendgamescenarios.

10.AggressiveRookPlacements

Remember that in exception to the king and queen, the rook is the subsequentmostvaluedpieceon theboard.Advance your rook into an attackpose.Awell-placedrookcanchangethedirectionofthegameandcanhelpyoutowinthegameas well. By placing your rooks in an aggressive manner, you can restrict themovementsofyouropponents.Ifyouhavemisplacedarook,loseanypawnsothatyourrookgainsanactiveposition.However,thisshouldbedoneonlywhenyourrookwill get a good aggressive stance, donotwaste yourpawns for some trivialposition.

11.SynchronizationOfAllPieces

Atthecommencementofeverygame,youaregivenavarietyofpiecesforareason.Don’tjustsingle-mindedlyfocusondevelopingafewpieces;youmustdevelopallof themfor themgain themostadvantagepossible. In the lategame,don’t leaveanypieces lingeringdoingzilch,youmustorganizeallyourpiecesandhavethemcomplementeachother.Thisgoeswiththepopularsayingthat,“It’snotwhatcardsyouhave,it’showyouusethem.”

12.KeeptheMilitiabanded

Yourpiecesarelikeanarmyformationandtheymustmovelikeonetogether.Donotseparatethem.Planyourstrategyinsuchawaythattheopponentwillhaveadifficult time attacking you.You should devise away tomove your entire groupwithout sacrificing any of the pieces; make a mental note of this and practicemoving yourpieces togetherwhileholding a strongdefensive formation.Donotleaveafewpiecesstrandedandhaveyouropponentslowlypickthemoff;youwilllosethegamesoonifyoudothis.

13.RookFilesandRanks

Doyourbesttoattainamaterialadvantageontherookfilesandtherankswhereyour active rook is currently placed. Exchange your pawns to weaken your

opponent’s pawn strategy. This will force the enemy to adopt a defensive andpassivestancethatwillbenefityouimmensely.Inordertodothishowever,developthe instinct to effectively and aggressivelyposition rooks in the late stagesof thegame;analyzeyourgamesandseeifasuperiorpositionmayhavebeenopen.

14.ThinkDefensivelyIfYouAreWinning

It iseasier tomanageyourpieces towardsendgamesituationsbecause therearealot fewer. In saying that, if your material outnumber your opponents, take adefensive approach and don’t make reckless moves because lets face it, you’realreadywinningandthere’snorisktogamblewithstrategieswheretheoutcomeisunclear.Takecalculatedroutesintheseperiodsoftimetoensureyourwin.

We’re now confident that with these tips and your experience through practice,you’ll have developed a much more thorough understanding of how to play asoundendgame.Don’tdiscontinueyoureducationherehowever, there’smore tolearnonthesubsequentchapter.

CHAPTER4

KeyPrinciplesBehindChessStrategies

Ifyouareluckyenough,allyouwouldneedisastrongopeningandanopponentwhodoesn’tseethroughyouropeningtobedonewiththegameinajiffy.Fortherestof theunluckypeople, theywillhave toplay till theendof thegame. Ifyouaspiretofinishthegameonavictoriousnote,thenyouneedaproperstrategytoback your motive. In this chapter, I have identified the key principles based onwhichvariouschessstrategiesaredevised.Sinceitisnotfeasibleforalltheplayersto follow each strategy completely, it makes it redundant to go over them.However, ifyouidentifythekeyprinciplesbehindthemainstrategies,youwillbeable to not only prepare awell-structured offensive but identify your opponent’stacticsaswell.

There are four key principles based on which all chess strategies are developed.Otherstrategiesforeachpiecewillbedetailedinthefollowingtextaswell,howeverthefourtofocusonfornoware:

(i) Piecequalityanddevelopment(ii) Centercontrol(iii) Kingsafety(iv) Pawnformation

Letuslookateachoftheseprinciplesindetailnow:

Piecequalityanddevelopment

Asyoumaybeaware,therearedifferentkindsofpiecesinthegameofchessandeach piece has its own value. The various pieces along with their values are asbelow:

Queen–9

Rook–5

Bishop–3

Knight–3

Pawn–1

However, these values are not to be taken as static because the truth is, everypiece’struevaluecontinuouslychangesasthegamedevelops.

Piece development refers to the ability of the piece to move effectively andcomplement the other pieces on the board,which can increase the true value ofitself.

Theattributesthatdeterminetheflexibilityofapieceareasfollows:

(i) Flexibility:Flexibility is the abilityof apiece to change its role. Inotherwords, it istheir ability to change their role from being a passive piece to an activepiece.Usuallypiecessituatednearthecenteroftheboardaremoreflexiblewhencomparedtotheonespresentatthecorneroftheboard.

(ii) Stability:Apieceisvaluableaslongasitisontheboard.Aqueenisofnovalueifitis alreadyoff theboard.Henceensure thatyouhaveall thestrongpieceswell defended. Never put them in vulnerable positions or leave themunprotected.

(iii)Mobility:Nopiececandoitsbitifitisnotgivenenoughspacetomove,noteventhequeen.Henceensure that there isalwaysenoughspace foryourpieces tomove.

(iv) Suitability:Understand the capacity of every piece. Some pieces are well suited for

aggressive attacks while some pieces are the best when it comes todefensive strategies. Understand the suitability of each piece before youemploythemasapartofyourstrategy.

Somepointerstoimprovepiecedevelopmentareasfollows:

Donotletgoofspaceadvantage.Spaceadvantage(a.k.a.territorialadvantage)is nothingbut controllingmajority of the squares on theboard.Basically asyou move your pawns forward, you create territory for yourself. All thesquaresbehindyour lineofpawnsaresafeterritoryforthemostpartduringtheearlystagesofthegameasyourotherpiecesarepositionedbehindthemreadyformovementandadvancement.Whenyouhavemorespaceadvantage,you will be able to move your pieces accordingly to realize their fullestpotential.

Do not refrain from giving threats. When you stop giving threats, you areindirectlygivingyouropponentsometimetothinkandretort,whichshouldnotbethecase.Sothenthisgoestosaythatbyattacking,youwillhelpdirectyour opponent’s attention and make him worry. Oftentimes this will causehimtoforgetgoingafterhisownplansandturncompletelytodefense.Thisgivescredittotheadage,“Thebestdefenseisagoodoffense.”

Donotallowyourselftobedistractedordissuadedfromenemythreats.Ifyoubegin to give in to thepressure your opponent is trying to impose and youreact, youaremore likely tomakea fatal erroryourself andyourdefeatwillneverbetoofaroff.

Do not let any piece remain inactive. Advance these pieces and use themeffectively.Oftentimes,beginnerswill leavehalftheirmajorpieces inpassivepositions,memorize the various openings and understand how they can beusedtonotonlyadvancethepawns,butthearmybehindthemaswell.

Sometimes, therecanbemore thanonegoodmove. It is important thatweanalyzeeverymoveindetailbeforeweproceed.Thistypeofanalysiswillhelpus use our pieces in the most effective manner. Remember to record yourgamessoyoucanreturnbacktoseeifanalternativemovemayhaveyieldedmorefruitfulresults.

Trytomoveyourpiecesasmuchasyoucanandtrytogetontotheotherhalfoftheboard.Atthesametime,neverlettheopponent’spieceenteryourhalfoftheboard.

Never give your opponent the opportunity to place his pieces on goodsquares.Theprocessofdenyingyouropponenttopositionhispiecesongoodsquares is called prophylaxis, meaning ‘suffocation’ in medical terminology.AaronNimzovich ofRussia originated this technique in the early 1900s. Sorevolutionarywasthisconceptduringhistimethatmanyofhisfellowplayersinitiallymockedhimforit.Unfortunatelyforthem,Nimzovichsoonchangedtheirtune,winninggameaftergameandearningthetitleofoneoftheworld’stopfiveplayers.Nowadaysalltopplayersofchessusethisidea.

In the above example, theWhite player here hasmade great use of prophylaxispositioning,whichmosteffectivelydrawsafrustratedemotionalresponsefromtheblackplayer.Wecanseewhite’ssuperiorpawnandknightformation,alongwithhisf2andd2,immobilizesblack’sknightadvancementatb3,d3,d4,e3,e4,g3andh4.Black’s queen is also restricted from white territory all along the open lane ofdiagonallight-coloredsquaresitsohopestocapitalizeupon.

Throughsettingupa“suffocating”defensetopreventyouropponentfromtakinganyofcriticalsquares,younotonlydefendyourselfbutyouallowyouropponenttowastevaluableturnsaswell.

Thesearemorestrategiesthatformthebasisofanychessstrategy.

Centercontrol

(WhiteCenterControl)

It is highly important that youhave control over the center.Having a commandoverthecenterisrequiredformanyreasons;kingsafetyandpiecedevelopmentarethemostprominent.Henceitisevidentthatthisprincipleislinkedwithtwootherprinciplesbehind chess strategies, and that byplayingone good strategy, you areefficaciouslylayingthefoundationfortheotherstrategiesaswell.Beforeyougaincontrol over the center, it is important that you understand the current status ofyourcenter.Thiswillgiveyouenoughopportunitytoplanyournextmoves.Ideallyyourcentercanfallunderoneofthecategories:

Blockedcenter:

Ablockedcenterisasituationwhereitisimpossibletoopenthecenter.Theideabehind instigating a blocked center is to take away any chance of opponentdominanceover it anddeprive themof central squares.Back in the1800s itwasbelieved that this was an indestructible idea and the best way to counter if youropponentistryingtogetacommandofthecenter.

Sincethen,amodernistviewhasearnedstrengthinbeliefthatcentralpawnscanbetreated as weaknesses.We can see this proven true with Black’s position in theGrünfeldDefense,whichallowstheWhiteplayertotakecontrolofthecenterfirst,onlythentohaveBlackbypassiteffectively.

(GriinfeldDefense–Blackbypassingblockedcenter)

Afewtipstodealwithblockedcentersareasfollows:

Learn to organize your pieces properly.Using pawns to take control of thecentergainsyouspaceinyourterritory.

Ifyouintendtocreateone,aimtoprovideyourselfwithcontrolovercriticalsquares by way of those advanced pawns so they provide a nice home forotherpiecestoadvanceupon.

Ifyouropponenthasstuckyouwithone,concentrateyourpawnsandpiecestochipawayatit.

Onceyouorganizeyourpieces,proceedtobuildthemalongtheflanksoftheboard.

Be ready to position your pieces in any file thatmight open up during thecourseofthegame.

Opencenter:

Anopencenteristheoppositeoftheblockedcenter.Itgivesboththeplayersanequalopportunitytobuildaroundthecenter.Henceitisimportantthatyoumakebest useof theopen center situation.A few tips todealwithopen center are asfollows:

Forwardallyouractivepiecestothecenter.Placingyouractivepiecesinthecenter will not only assist in taking control over it but will also help inlaunchinganaggressiveattackagainstyouropponent.

Whenyour focus isonbuildingastrongcenter,donotwasteany timeovertrivialthingssuchasanisolatedpawn.Sometimes,itisfinetoloseapawntogaincontroloverthecenter.

Dynamiccenter:

A dynamic center is a situation where both the players are not sure about whoholds the center. This confusion can make the game take unprecedented andundesired turns. To avoid this confusion, the following pointers have to befollowed:

Clarifyfirst.Understandwhoholdsmoreofanadvantageinthecenter.Thisknowledgewill help you plan your nextmoves accordingly. For instance, ifyou know that your opponent holds the upper hand, you will have to becarefulandplaymoreonthedefensiveside.Ontheotherhand,ifyourealizethatyouholdthecenter,looktolaunchanaggressiveattack.

Look topointcounts,piecemobility,material advantage, andsuperiorpawnstructure to help determine who has a greater control. When it becomesconfusingyoumustconsiderthesubtleradvantagesthateachplayerhas.Forexampleifyouhaveasuperiorpawnstructureandyouropponenthasagaininpiecemobility(takeintoaccountthosemobilepiecesintheirbackterritory)and material advantage, even by one piece, it is your opponent who hascontrol. Their ample mobility of pieces means they can strike at any time,while it still may take you a few turns to get your pieces into a strategicposition.

Never make an aggressive move without clarifying. If it is indeed youropponentwhoholdsthecenter,thenanaggressivemovewillresultinahighchanceofyoulosingavaluablepiece.Hencerefrainfromdoingso.

When your opponent has a firm grasp on the center of the board andcontinuesadvancementthere,sweepyourpiecesouttothewingstocounter.

Kingsafety

Everychessplayerpurportstoprotecthiskingandwinthegame.Compromisingonthesafetyofthekingcanensureyourfailureinthegameandhence,thesafetyofthekingisdefinitelyourprerogativeatanypointoftime.Afewpointerstokeepinmindtoensurethesafetyofyourkingislistedbelowforyourreference:

Alwaysensure that there is a shieldofpawns in frontofyourking.Lackofpawnsoraweakpawnshieldwilldefinitelymakeyourkinganeasytarget.

Arrangeenoughpiecesnearyourkingtodefendanyaggressiveattacksbytheopponent.

Makesurethatyouholdthecenter.Astrongholdoverthecenterisimportantnot only to ensure the safety of your king but also to launch an aggressiveattackagainstyouropponent’sking.

Learn to castle your king at the beginning of the game itself. Castling is aneffective way to ensure the safety of your king. This again comes tomemorizingthevariousopeningsthatwillallowyoutostrategicallymoveyour

pieceswhilepermittingyourkingtocastlewitharook.

If the capture of the king didn’t mean a loss of the game, the dynamic of thispiece’stacticalmovementswouldappraiseitinawholenewlight.Thismaysoundirrelevantandevensillyatfirst,soallowmetoexplain.Sincetheadaptationofthegameasweknowittoday,thekinghasalwaysbeenallowedtomoveonesquareinany direction. It essentially enacts a force field around itself to protect againstimpedingoppositionsothegallantandevenunrulybishops,queensandrooksmaynotinvadehispersonalspacewithouthavingbackuptoprotectthemselves.

During the late courses of the game however, a centralized position, the king’shiddenpowercantakeadvantageofthisfacttoconstrainyouropponent’sstrategyandturnwhatmayappeartobeaweakdispositiontoyourownadvantage.

It’scalledtakingthekingforawalk,andlikeallotherpiecesonthechessboard,theking must be put to use if you intend to develop a well-refined and effectivestrategytothegame.Theendgame,thatis,iswheretheking’squalitytrulyshines,sogethimreadytodonhiswalkingshoesandgoforastroll.

Inthepictureabovewecanseethewhitekinghasmadehiswayupthecenteroftheboardandismovingintopositiontothreatenblack’sbishop.Black’sbishopisvirtuallyuselesswhilethewhitekingremainsonthedark-coloredsquares.White’spawnmajoritymakesagreatcontentionagainsttheblackplayer’sremainingforcesand if played correctly, will have the chance for promotion on the queenside.White’s bishop is also still very effective and will be able to pick off black’s

remainingpawns.

Attheendgamewhenthethreatofmanyforciblepieceshasdissipated,theclimatebecomesfavorabletomovethekingtoamorecentralizedlocation.Forthemostpartwhenbothsidesonlyhaveafewpiecesleft,advancingthekingtothecenterallowshim tododge around theprotectionof individual pawnsworking for himwhile providing the opportunity for him to capture the enemy’s pawns that stillpose a threat, especially if they are making their way into his domain for apromotion.Thisalsosavesyourremainingmobilepieces theexhaustionof tryingtoplaydefenseandoffensesimultaneously.

Inamorecentralizedlocation,theking’sforcefieldallowshimtooccupyalargerareaofcriticalsquaresthatwillmakeitmoredifficultfortheopponent’spiecestoattackupcloseandpersonal.

DualityoftheQueen

Amateur players quickly become enamored with the queen’s power in all hertemptingploys.She isby far themostcommandingpieceon theboard,which iswhy her piece value is ranked at 9. The queen can move in files, ranks, anddiagonallyatanylengthshepleasesaslongasherpathisnotblocked.Infact,theonlytrickshehasnotbeengiftedisthatfunkyswooptheknightisabletopulloff.Interestinglyenoughhowever,until1475thequeenwasonlyvaluedone-upbeforethepawns,limitedtoaone-stepmovementtoanydiagonallyadjacentsquare.

Her newfound powers after which she was granted transformed her into ademolitionexpertthatmakesquiteanintimidatingdistractionontheboard.Thisiswhyamateursdevelopsuchanattachmenttoher,whichcancostthemthegame.They become so infatuated with her positioning and protection, investing thestrengthoftheirstrategyinthisonepiecethattheyoftenforgetabouttheirotherpieces,uponwhichamoreexperiencedplayerwillbesuretocapitalize.Havinglostwhat they consider their most valuable piece, an amateur will immediately loseconfidence and their gameplaywill suffer for it. Studying other chess books andplayerswillshowthatprofessionalplayersdon’tmindtradingthispieceuptoplayamoredocilegame.

Sothen,thequeen’sreigningfortitudealsobecomesherweakness.Rushingherout

tooearlyinthegamecansealherfateandcrampthetruestrengthofone’sstrategy.Consider as a general rule to firstof all avoidplacing yourqueen in avulnerablepositionthroughrecklessunplannedactions,andmoretothepoint,makeheroneofthelastpiecesthatyoubringout.

Thesafestwaytoeffectivelyusethequeen’sprominenceistopositionyourminorpiecesfirstandkeepthequeendeepinsideyourownterritoryonanadvantageoussquare for support.When you finallydo choose tomoveher into aposition shegoesgutsandgloryfor,makesuresheiswellprotectedbyyourotherminorpieces.Withyourqueenasthestrongarmofaleadingattack,you’llwanttohavetherestofyourpiecesreadytoplayapartintheaction.Thisishowyoucanmaximizethefullextentofthequeen’sferocity.

Rook-TheEnforcerThisisafittingtitleforthesecondmostpowerfulpiecethatissooftenforgottenaboutbecauseofthepowerofthequeenandbecauseofit’sbeginningplacement.Manytimesarookwillnotbebroughtoutuntil theendgame,oratall,or luckilyfinditselfinactionafteraclamorouspawnbeforeitissweptaway.Itisimportanttounderstandthevaluethispieceplaysandthatbycommandinganopenfile,thelongarmoftherookactsasamightysupportsystemfortherestofitscrew.

Beforethequeenwaspromotedtoroyalstatusinthe15thcentury,therookwasthemostpowerfulpieceinthegame.Wecanseethisinitspointvalueof5,nextinlinebehindthequeen.Infact,thisisanidealphysicalplacefortherookontheboard.Whenever it ispossible, get your rooks intoopen files, especiallyduringmidandendgamesituationswhereitcaneasilyreachthebackoftheopponent’sbase.

Thismeansthatyoumustleadwithyourminorpiecesafteropeningtoclearsomemoving room for the rooks behind the lines.Visualize placementswhere one ofyourpawnsmayeffectivelysacrifice itselforcaptureanopponent’spiecetoopenup that file and have your rook ready andwaiting behind it. Performing a castlemovewillhelpfindarookaniceactionspotinthecenterofplayaswellasprotectyourking.Ifyoudothis,moveyourqueentoastrategicsquaresothattherooksbecomeconnectedandthattheyreinforceeachother.

Whenyouplacearookinanopenfile,youcandoubleoreventripleonthatfilebyplacing the queenor otherminor pieces onto it to take full advantage over youropponentwithabatteringramforce.Inthelaterstagesofthemidgameandtowardtheendgame,plowingthroughenemylinestohomerankswiththerookinanopenfile spells certain disaster for your opponent. The rooks’ reach, especially sittingtogetherinadjacentranksorfiles,actsasanelectrifiedfencetocorraltheopposingking’smovements and zap anypresumptuouspiece standing in theway.Aswithany cognitive strategy, assure the enduring force of your rook by keeping itprotectedwithanotherpiecewheneverpossible.

TheWilyKnight

Love them or hate them, this tricky stickler usually gathers some kind ofpronounced emotion from professional players to amateurs, even if it is blatantconfusion for not knowing what to do with the thing. Knights have the mostuniquemovingabilityofallthechesspieces,bothinpatternandtheabilitytojumpoverotherpieces,whichattributestotheircenturies-oldlureandthedifficultythatcomesinharnessingtheirfullstrategicpotential.

Firstyoumustdecidewithinyouroverallstrategywhichpiecesyouwilladvancetoattack and which you will keep behind to maintain a strong defense. Throughpracticing,withintheopeningmovesandtowardthemidgame,youshouldsoonbeproficientinidentifyingwhichsquarespresentthemselvesascriticalforbothsides.Youwillrememberfromthesectiononpiecequalitythatweakorcriticalsquaresarevery important to thecontextof theentiregame, so important in fact that in

futuregamesyou’llwanttospendamajorityofthetimeyouhave indeterminingwhich squares present themselves this way early on. Then play into them wellthroughoutthemidgame.Ontopofthat,youwillneedtofigureouthowtoeitheroccupy those squares yourself for pivotal advancement or exert prophylaxis,blockingthemtopreventyouropponentfromtakingthemover.

Nowthatyouhaveequippedyourmidgamestrategyanddeterminedwhichsquaresarecritical,youmaydecidetodriveyourknight intothethickofbattleorkeepitreared toprotect your king.Youmust train yourself to see everypossible squarethataknightmaymoveto,whetheritisoccupiedornot.Practicethisonbothsidesof play in every move of every game you play and observe. This will help yougreatly tounderstand thenatureof theknightbetter andpreventundesiredplaysfrom taking youby surprise.Manyplayers at thebeginner and even intermediatelevelsdonottakethis intoconsideration,which iswhytheymistrustandhavesodiminutiveafaithinthisguy.

Whenyoucansee thepotentialmovementsof theknights,youwillnoticewherethey cannot move (game border restrictions, squares occupied by your pieces),where they typically should notmove unless to some tactical advantage (blockedsquares or enemy-occupied squares that are also protected), and where they canmove (squares occupied by an unprotected enemy piece and all other opensquares). In a centralized position, in at least the third rank, knights have amaximumpotentialofeightsquaresthattheycancover.Mostofthetimehowever,a few or more of these potential squares are blocked by one of the instancesdescribedabove.

Aknightpositionedinthefirstandsecondranksis limitedinpotentialsquares; itdoesn’tallowforthepullpotentialbutwhichmakesthispositioningfeeblyeffectiveandpurelydefensive.So then,keep this inmind if youaregoing to reserveyourknightforadefensivestrategytoblockyouropponentfrommovingtoanycriticalsquares covered by the knight. This strategy can be useful however it still limitstheirpotential.

(TheWilyKnightcanbeusedtoit’sfullpotentialwhenpositionedbetweenthe3nd

and6thranksandbetweenC&Fasshowninthediagram)

Whenyoudecidetochargewithaknightintoattackingposition,youmustrealizethat knights need advanced support points to be effective. They are joggers, notrunners,soitwilltakethemsometimetoadvance.Ifyoumusterthemupthefieldbytheir lonesomeselvesyouleavethemvulnerableandpronetoaneasycapture.Thesquaresyouwillbelookingforcanonlybeconsideredasupportpointiftheycannot be attacked by your opponent’s pawn or if attackingwith a pawnwouldleaveyouopen.

Bymoving a knight up to the third rank and beyond, you are now entering thebattlefieldandpreparingyourselftosetupatastyschemewhilestillprovidingyourbacklinessomedefense.Aknightinthefifthandsixthranksisenteringdeepintoenemyterritory,andbythistimewiththepropersupport, itactslikeachokeholdonyourenemyandtrulystartstocramptheirstyle.

The fifth and sixth ranked positions allow the knight to begin locking on youropponentspawns,effectivelyweakeningtheirpawnstructurea.k.a.thefirstlineofdefense,aswellasprovidealead-inforyourotherpiecestocontrolthecenterandpropel an advanced attack, tightening play into endgamematerial.Note too thatthesepositions(5thand6thranks)allowtheknighttoclaimcriticalsquaresovertheenemy. It is for this reason that knights are known for being excellent blockers.Keep this inmindwhen encountering locked pawns, known as closed positions,wherebysuchajammightinhibitotherpieces’movements.Itbecomesabreezefor

therowdyknighttosimplyjumpoverthem.

Color-blindBishopsThoughnearlyeverychesspieceonlyeverhasanoptionbetweenlandingonlightanddarksquares,bishopsarelimitedinthiscasetoremainingontheirowncolorfromthebeginningofthegame.Eachplayerhasalight-squaredbishopandadark-squaredbishop,whichmakesaconsiderabledifferenceatmanypointsingameplay.Thisdoesnotnecessarilydefineaweaknessforthebishoppiece.

Tothecontrary, theycansupplyexcellent long-rangeblocks,attacks,andsupportforothermobilepieces inadiagonalposition–difficult to see throughpillarsofpawnsandotherpieces–whilestill remaininghidden in theirownterritory.Thisprovides them the stealth of the queen and rooks that cause them to appear assuperiorpieces;however thecombinationof theirqualities in total stillputs theirpiecevalueata3.

Thebottomlineistounderstandthattohaveaneffectivecommandovertheroleof the bishops you must be able to determine them in three different types ofclassifications–good,bad,andactive.

GoodBishops

Consideringthenatureofthebishops’qualities,oneisdeterminedtobegoodwhenitspathisunobstructedfromcentralpawns.Itmeansthatallofyourcentralpawnsareonsquaresofoppositecolortothatofyourbishop’spath.Ifyouhaveapawn,orifanenemyhasapawnchainonyourbishop’scolor,itslong-rangecapabilitiesareneutralized.

BadBishops

Abishopisbad if thepreviouslymentionedconditionexistswherecentralpawnsare on its color to block any effect it might have. Between the midgame andendgame,thissituationcangetmessyforabishop,especiallyifonlyoneofitskindremainsonyourteam.Closedpositionsintheformoflockedpawns,especiallyinclusters, canbeas frustratingas long-windingdetours inheavy traffic.When fewpiecesareleftintheendgameandonebishopremainswithyou,orviceversa,theopposingplayercaneasilymovetheirkingtoasquareofoppositecolorthanthat

ofthecontendingbishop,leavingitpowerless.

ActiveBishops

In the diagram above, Black’s bishops are both active but bad, and while blackcouldadvancehisb7pawntob6pawntoclearc8’spathandmovetoeitherb7ora6,itwouldstillbeconfinedbythenicelanewhite’spawnsandbishophascreated.Thesamegoesforblack’sg7bishopmovingtoh6becauseofwhite’seffectiveuseofthec1bishop.Notethedynamiccentralcontrolbybothplayers.Still,whitecanbe considered to have control over the center because of his well-developedpositioning of good active bishops. White is working with an effective strategybasedonsuperiorpiecemobility.

Anactivebishopcanbegoodorbad,whatbrandsthemasactiveisiftheyareinaposition with many different agile options; the opposite holds true, an inactivebishopisonewhereitsmobilitychoicesareverylimitedor0,similartohowtheybegin thegame.Whileabadbishophasvirtuallynooptionsbeyond their limitedmovement,anactivebishophasmanyoptionsthatcanflipthemomentumtogiveits team an advantage.Active bishops that are considered goodmay be good bydefinition(alltheircentralpawnsrestonopposite-coloredsquares),althoughtheirmovementmay still be limited by the opposing player’s pieces and theremay belittletheycandoaboutthat.Activebishopsthatareconsideredbadwillhavepiecesrestingon the samecolored squares as thatparticularbishop, although the activebad bishop will most probable be on the side of attack in the enemy’s territoryrather than stuck behind their own lines. Furthermore, making a few calculated

changes intheirobstructivepawnformationbyeitheradvancingortradingpiecesmayliberatethisbishop’smovement.

Theimportantthingtorememberinanycaseisthatbadbishopscanmakestrongpieces if you are able tomove them to an active position. Possible strategies toachievethisareasfollows:

You may attempt to free the bishop’s diagonals by moving your pawns toanothercolor.

Youcantrytogetthebishopoutsideofthepawnchain–doeverythingyoucantogetitbackintothegameifhasbeeninactiveforaperiodoftime.

Ifneitheroftheaboveworks,youmaytrygivingupyourbishopforanotherpieceofequalorgreatervalue.

BishopversusKnightDynamics

Let’stakeabriefmomenttostepawayfromindividualpiecestrategiestoobserveanongoingscrutinyamongthemastersthatpitsfavorofoneoveranother intherelationship of bishop versus knight dynamics. Both pieces are valued at a 3,althoughsomewouldanddoconsiderthebishoptoholdabrightercandletotheknight invalueof3½.This seriousness is taken intosuchconsideration that thedifferenceisevendocumentedinsomechessinstructionmanuscripts,althoughintournamentandmatchplaytheyarestillvaluedequally.

So then, if youare to chooseoneover theother inprocuringdominanceon theboard and in battlewhen theymeet eye to eye (or staff tomuzzle), you have toknow how to formulate such conditions that favor your preference.Knights aremorefavoredinearlierstagesofthegamewhilebishopsaremorefavoredinlatterstages.

If you own a knight, youwillwant to set up a closed position. That is, create afavorablepawnblockinthecenteroftheboardthatyourknightcanrallybehindanddriveyouropponentinsuchforciblewaysthatitclaimscontrolovermultiplecriticalsquares incentralplay.Thepawnswillalsodotheir jobbycongestingthebishops’preciouschannels.Ifyoufallunderthecharmsofyourbishop’swit,you

mustclearthelanesforhimtoextendapervasivereachintoenemyterritories.

BusinessinBishops:MidgameHaving come this far, you should now be aware of each piece’s strengths andweakness. So let’s put that knowledge to practical use in seizing the ground outfrom under the other. Knights, for example, require support pieces and criticalsquares to gain a tactical lead in attacking. What does your holy wisdomrecommend bishop bearers? If you suggest to block all possible advancementsquaresthattheknightmightattempt,thenyouhavegainedfavorintheeyesofthechesslords.

Youropponent’sknightswillhave tossed their riders inascreechinghaltwithouthaving anyplace togo.Don’t let thatbe the endof it though! If youropponentrears their knight to attempt another advance from a different position, counterthemagain.Thisishowtherobedwarriorsexacttheirsuperiority.Areanyofyourpawnsblockingthistacticalstrategyfromtakingplace?Youmustremovethemandallowthebishoptogoabouthisbusiness.Stiflingaknight’sattemptsatinfiltratingyourdefenseswillkeepyourterritoryclearforthecomfortablemovementofotherpiecesandassureprotectionforagratefulking.

Above we can observe a few noteworthy strategies that the white player isimpressively employing. First of all he has all-supreme dominance of the center,chokingblack’spieceswithunnervingrestlessnessfromthequeensideandlockingblack’s queen in the backdrop with the help of the white queen at a6. White’ssuperior, hard-working pawn formation is cutting out most of the work for his

bishops in stifling any effective advancement fromblack’s knights.And althoughwecanconsiderthatb3isabadbishopbecauseofthe light-coloredsquarepawnchainincentralplay,itisreinforcingd5andstrengtheningcentercontrol.

BusinessinBishops:EndgameEndgamesareusuallyequivalenttofewpiecesleftontheboard,andforaresilientbishop this means good news: there are plenty of open spaces on the board tomakeuseofhiswide-sweepingskills. Ifyoufindyourself inaparticularendgamewheretheremainingsurvivorsarecomprisedofahandfulofpawnsoneachsideoftheboardwhileyourbishopfacesoffwithyouropponent’sknight,resteasy.Thebishopwillhavetheadvantagetoquicklysweepupyouropponent’spassedpawns(those last foot soldiers that are wishfully eking their way to a promotion) andevade any remaining threat. On the other hand, in order to do the same, youropponent’sknightwillhavetoexhaustivelygalloptowardyourhopefulpawnsandwhinnywhen it finds ithascomeupshort,watchinghopelesslywhileyou’ve justpromotedyourwaytoanewqueenandasurewin.

Thingstorememberinsuchascenario:

Open positionsmost often support bishops and puts them at an advantageversusknights

Endgamepawnmajoritiesusuallyhavemanypassedpawns(apassedpawniswherethereisnoobstructingenemypawnsthatpreventitfromreachingthe8thrank),andscenarioswithpassedpawnsonbothsidesalmostalwaysbenefitthesideofthebishopovertheknight.

An opponent’s passed pawns, should they have any hope of continuedgameplay must advance toward potential promotion. In doing so, they willinevitablylandoncoloredsquares,favoringthebishop’sopportunitytoseizethem.

AKnight’sStrike:MidgameInorder toeffectively set aknightup foran imposingpositionover theenemy’sbishop,therearefewthingstotakeintoaccount,drawinguponthepreviouslylaidoutpointsofknight-piecestrategy:

Closeoutacriticalpositionatthecenteroftheboardwith locked-inpawns.Thiswillblockthebishop’sspeedydiagonallineattacks.Knightswillbeabletojumparoundtheseblockades.

Setyourknightuponanadvancedsupportpoint.

Secure yourknight’sposition at an attack-oriented rank, suchas the fifthorsixthrank.Thiswilloptimizetheknight’sattackpowerwithmultiplesquarescovered,includingcriticalones.

Aimtodepriveyouropponentofmaintainingtwobishopsontheboard.Thiswillleaveonlyonesquare-coloredbishop(slightly)operable.

Remember thatwhenyoucanworkyourknightup toasecure,5thor6th rankedsquare, itbecomesanextremelypowerfulpiececoveringmultiple critical squares.Theknight’sadvantageoveranopposingbishop inthissense is that itcanattackcriticalareasevenwhentheopponenthasaclosedformationwhereas thebishopcanonlyslamagainstthedefensivewalls.

The necessary appointment of closed positions (again, locked pawns) double asfurther confinement for the bishops and support points for the knight.Again, ifyouraimistomasterknightcombatwiththeenemy,don’tallowthemtoowntwobishopsbecausethey’llcontrolbothcoloredsquares.Knightscangoonanycolorand therefore control a wider variety of spaces, essentially making them moreversatile.Usethemtocorruptyourenemy’spiecesbyconvertingtheirbishopsintobadones!

Here we have another beautiful pawn formation strategy working for the whiteplayer, whose pieces have just exploded from the queen’s side in territorialdomination.Takenoteofall theclosedpositionsat a6:a7, c6:c7,d5:d6and f4:f5.They work to keep a constraint on black’s forces, and at the moment white’ssuperior pawn structure, territorial domination, and superior piece mobilitystrategiesareathisadvantage.Therearehowevercertainlysomeholeshehas leftopen,suchastheentirebfileaswellasaweaksquareonf6.

Let’stakealookthoughathisknight’sadvantageoverblack’sbishop.Essentiallyinthisformation,f6istheonlyworkablepositionbecauseoftheeffectivepawnchaincovering the rest of black’s king side sweep. The crucial square that white hasmaximized upon is d5.Not only has he employed his pawn here to a righteousenemy-territory pawn lock, preventing any bishop movement in the queensidedirection, itactsasasupportpositionandprotectorateofhisheavyweightknight.The knight’s j-hooks have the black king pinched in the corner, andhis physicalpositionalongwiththelockedinpawnsontheffileblocksupanyimmediateandhopefuladvancementfromblack’squeen.

Pawnstructure

In 1749, a fellow named André Philidor claimed that pawns were the “soul ofchess.” This comment went largely unappreciated until about 1909 when thefamous chess player Emanuel Lasker explained this further so that now everymasterofchesstakesitintoconsiderationwithgreatsincerity.

Itshouldbeunderstoodthatthestrategicplacementofpawnshelpstodeterminethe restofyourmovesandyourplan’sentiretyat large.Theyare indeed the firstpieces to bemoved (aside from an occasionally willy-nilly filly that is the piece-hopping knight), so take great care in the purposeful placement of each of yourpawnsthroughout thegame, for theyareonly tobeunderestimatedatone’sownexpense.

A few of the pawn’s strengths in quality are its blocking and restrictive powers.Although they move quite slowly, one step at a time, they are ultimately theconcealeddirectorsofthegame.Pawnscreateroadblocks,stoppingshort infrontofanopponent’spawnsothattheopponentmustpushtheireffortsandschemestoanotherareaoftheboard.

Theyalsopreventanopponent’smoremobilepiecesfromclaimingcrucialsquaresin the center of the board. Furthermore, the careful extension of one’s line ofpawnsgovernstheamountofterritoryaplayermayclaimovertheboard,whichisanimportantpartofmidgamestrategy.

Itisimportantthatyouhaveastrongpawnstructure.Astrongpawnstructurewillhelp agreatdeal inplayingout your strategies.Somepointers to strengthenyourpawnstructureareasfollows:

Donot let yourpawnsbecome isolated. Isolatedpawnsareeasy targets andaretoomuchofanefforttosave.

Make sure that youhave adynamicpawn structure. It is essential tohave adynamic pawn structure if you want to give your opponent a run for hismoney.

Remember that yourpawns shouldcomplement themovementof theotherpiecesandaidthemintheirroles.Neverletyourpawnblockanactivepiece,asitcanbequitedetrimentaltoyourstrategy.Thisgoesespeciallyforthelanesofyourbishops.

Agoodruleof thumbtogoby is touseyourpawnstofixyouropponent’spawnswhereverpossible.Thisforcesthelanesofthemoremobilepiecesintoconcentrated avenues that you may take advantage of by having the rightpiecesinplace.

Avoid pawn islands. When you have a lone pawn or an isolated group ofpawnstowardthemiddleoftheboard,youcreateweaknessesinyourdefense.Pawnchainsontheotherhand(adiagonallineofconnectedpawns)areonlyweakattheirbase–theonlyplacenotprotectedbyapawn.Themorepawnislandsyouhave,themorepointsofattackyouropponenthas.Sowhileyouwanttoavoidpawnislandsthatinvitegapsinyourdefenses,you’llalsowanttokeepinmindtoalwaysattackyouropponent’spawnchainatitsbase.

Advancingpawnshave their allure and theirdrawbacks. If youhaveapawnthatisblockingthemobilityofseveralotherofyourpieces,itmightbeagoodideatomoveitforward,evenifitmeanssacrificingitfortheadvancementofyourheavier-hittingpieces.Advancingpawnsalsomeansopeningupfilesanddiagonalsforpreviouslyinactivepiecestotakecharge.Bytheendgame,ifyouhaveapawnthat is inthesweetreachofyouropponent’shomerank,byallmeansyouwillwanttopushittopromotionsothatitmaybecomeaQueenorlesserpieceandchangethedynamicofthegamedrastically.

One tip to remember is that in midgame play, pawns also prevent anopponent’spiecesfrommovingintocriticalsquares.Paykeenattentiontothesquaresthatarenotoccupied,becausesomeoftheseholdimmensestrategicpower for theplayer that is able to takeadvantageof them.Every timeyoumoveapawnforward,makesurethatyouarenotgivinguponeofthesegreatfootholds.

If you find that by the endgame you and your opponent have only a fewremaining mobile pieces (like in the diagram below) while there areconsiderable number of pawns left on the board, considermaking trades tosimplifythepositionsothatwithafewofthebiggerplayersoutofthepicture,youmayadvancethemajorityofyourpawnsforwardtoputasqueezeonyouropponent’sdefensesthenmoveinforthekillwithyourremainingpieces.

Canyou identifywhichpawntradeswouldbeadvantageoustobothsides inthediagrambelow?

CHAPTER5

ChessTactics

Inthischapter,Ibringtoyoucertainexcitingchesstacticsthatcanhelpyouturnthetables.Chesstacticsarenothingbutshort-termmeasurestochangethefateofyourgame.Letuslookatthemonebyone.

EnPassant

This is an obscure move that not many novice players are aware of. Generally,pawnscanonlyattackanotherpieceifit’sdiagonallyinfrontofthemtotheleftorright. In an En Passant however, a pawn on the 5th rank by attack even if theopposingpawndoesadoublestep.

(Whenthewhitepawnisinthe5thrank,theblackpawndoublesteppedtoe5.Inthis situation, theWhiteplayermayuseEnPassantandattack theblackpawnasshownintheabovediagrams)

Castling

Thisistheonlymoveinthegamewhereyoucanmovemorethanonepieceatatimeandisgenerallyusedtoprotectthekingbyexchangingsideswiththerook.

Thismovehoweverdoeshaveafewrestrictions:

(1) Therearenopiecesin-betweenthekingandrook.

(2) Boththekingandthecastlingrookhavenotyetmoved.

(3) Thekingisnotcurrentlyin“check”.

KnightFork

Aknightforkisnothingbutatacticthatinvolvesthreateningtwodifferentpiecesoftheopponentwithyourknight.Thistacticispowerfulbecausetheknightdoesnot move in a straight fashion like the other pieces. Another advantage ofemployingthistacticisthatyoucangetamorevaluablepiecelikearookorqueenbyusingtheknight.However,ensurethatoneofthetargetsintheforkisnottheopponent’sknight,asitwillresultinyoulosingyourknight.Learntolookforthesesituations all throughout a game – this could be the one move that shifts themomentumofthegameovertoyourfavor.

Queenfork

Aqueenforkisnothingbutthreateningtwodifferentpiecesoftheopponentwithyour queen. The queen is the most valuable piece on the board after the King.

HenceitisimportantthatyouemploytheQueenforkwithcare,asitisnotprudenttoloseavaluablepiecesuchastheQueenoveralesservaluablepiecesuchasthebishop or knight. The ideal targets should either be two unprotected pieces or aking and an unprotected piece. Targeting a protected piece will bring about thedeath of your queen, which can be quite advantageous to your opponent. Ifemployedwithcare,thequeenforkiscapableofbringingaboutacheckmatesoonaftertheexchange.

Bishopfork

A bishop fork, as the name suggests, is threatening two different pieces of theopponentusingyourbishop.Thisisyetanotherpowerfulthatcanhelpyougainapiece of the opponent easily.However, ensure that one of the targets is not theopponent’s bishop or queen as it can result in you losing your bishop. Henceemploythistacticwithcaretoyieldbetterresults.

Rookfork

Therookforkisusingtherooktothreatentwodifferentpiecesoftheopponent.Ideally,therookforkshouldbeusedtotargettwounprotectedpiecesorthekingandanunprotectedpiece.Therookforkisaneffectivetacticastherookisexposedtotheentireline.However,ensurethatoneofthetargetsintherookforkisnottheopponent’srookorqueenasthiscanbedetrimental tothesurvivalofyourrook.Henceemploythistacticwithcare,astherookisalsoapieceofhighervalue.

Arrangingapin

Ideallywhenanopponent’spieceisthreatened,heismetwithtwooptions:

Tomovethethreatenedpiece(or)

Tobringanotherpieceinbetweenthethreatenedpieceandyourpiece.

Bringinganotherpieceinbetweenyourpieceandthethreatenedpieceisreferredtoaspinning.Thoughpinningmightneutralizetheeffectofthethreat,itcomeswithahugedisadvantage.Theplayerwillnotbeabletomovethepinnedpieceaslongasthe threat remains. In otherwords, the player is rendering a certain piece of his,inactivebytheprocesscalledpinning.

Therearetwokindsofpins,namely:

Absolutepin

Relativepin

Letuslookatthesetypesindetail:

Absolutepin

Anabsolutepinisthescenarioarisingoutofthefollowingsteps:

Youthreatentheopponent’skingwithacertainpieceofyours.

Theopponentpositionsacertainpiecebetweenyourpieceandhisking.

Bydoingso,theopponentwillbeforcedtokeepthepinnedpieceinplaceasitwillresult in an open check.When the threatened piece is the opponent’s king, it isreferredtoastheabsolutepin.Notetheexampleintheabovediagram.Theblackplayer’sbishoponf8mustactasanabsolutepinintheeighthranktopreventhisking from check by white’s queen. For a better understanding how effective anabsolutepincanbe,thinkofwhatwouldhappenifthewhiteknightonc6weretopositionitselfontoe7?

Relativepin

Arelativepin issimilar to theabsolutepin in termsoffunction.However, in thecaseofarelativepin,thethreatenedpieceisnottheopponent’sking.Thissituationarisesoutofthefollowingsteps:

Youthreatentheopponent’spieceofhighvaluesuchasaqueenorrookwithacertainpieceofyours.(Seeaboveexample)

Theopponentpositions a certainpiecebetween yourpiece andhis valuablepiece.

The consequences of a relative pin are similar to that of an absolute pin. Youropponent will be unable tomove the pinned piece. However, themagnitude ofseriousness is relatively lesswhen compared to the absolute pin as the opponentmightdecidetosacrificethethreatenedpieceandmovethepinnedpieceaside.

These are some of the commonly used chess tactics. I am sure that using thesetacticswiselywillmostcertainlyhelpyoutilttheoddsofthegameinyourfavor.

CHAPTER6

QuickCheckmateStrategies

I’msure therehavebeenseveral instanceswhenyouhavebeendefeatedwithinamatterofminutesandwondered,“Whattheheckjusthappenedhere?”Well,youropponentfooledyou!

They may have used a technique known as the “fool’s mate”, which allows theopponenttotrapyourkingwithin2moves!Soitisimportantthatyounotfallforthese little traps. The best way to do so is by understanding the different quickgamestrategiesthatarepopularlyemployedtoensnarenovices.

Hereare5thatarequitecommonandyoucanmakeuseofthemtofinishthegamefastorcounteractyouropponent’sscheme.

Fool’smateThisistheoldestandmostpopularquickgamestrategythatisemployedregularly.Thefool’smateallowsyou to finish thegamewithin2moves!Evenbeforeyouropponentrealizesit,youwouldhavefinishedthegame!

1.g4e5

Thegamestartswiththewhitepawn(Opponent)movinghispawnfromg2tog4.Whenthishappens,youmustoveryourownpawnfrome7toe5.Thiswillallowyoutocaptureoneofthecentersquaresandwillmakeyourfirstmove.

2.f3Qh4#0-1Next, your opponent will move his pawn from f2 to f3. This will open up thediagonalthatleadstotheking.Yournextmoveistomovethequeentoh4andthegameisover.Youwillsuccessfullytrapyouropponentthatway.

Here,youmustunderstandthatyouropponentmustbefoolishenoughtofallforyourtrick.Ifyouarecaughtthenthistrickwillnotwork.Thebasicideaistotrapyouropponentbycapitalizingontheirstrategyofnotleavingspaceforthekingtoescape.

Smotheredmate(king’spawn)This is a trick where the opponent’s king is taken down in 4 moves. This alsocapitalizesontheopponent’sking’sinabilitytoescape.

1.e4e5

Thegamestartswithwhite(opponent)movingherpawnfrome2toe4.Blackthenadvancesherownpawnfrome7toe5.

2.Ne2Nc6

Inthenextmove,whitemovesherking’ssideknightfromg1toe2.Inresponsetothis,blackmovesherqueen’ssideknightfromb8toc6.

3.Nc3Nd4

Inthethirdmove,whitemovesthequeen’ssideknightfromb1toc3.Now,blacktrapsthekingbymovingtheactiveknightfromc6tod4.

4.g3Nf3#0-1Asa lastmove,theopponentwillchoosetomovetheg2pawntog3asasimplegame development. This will mean the end of the game as you can move yourknightfromd4tof3anditwillcapturethekingforyou.

Scholarsmate

Thenextgameisknownasthescholar’smate.Thismovealsomakesuseofjust4movestodefeattheopponent.

1.e4e5

Thefirstmoveshouldbethewhiteking’spawnmovingfrome2toe4.Blackwill

dothesameandmovetheking’spawnfrome7toe5.

2.Bc4Bc5

In the next move, white’s king side bishop moves from f1 to c4 and black’skingsidebishopmovesf8toc5.

3.Qh5Nf6

Asathirdmove,white’squeenmovesfromd1toh5.Blackthenmovestheking’sknighttofromg8tof6.

4.Qxf7#1-0

Thisprovestobeagreatlurelaidoutbywhiteasblacktriestoattackthequeenandpawn.White’squeenthencapturesblack’sf7pawnanditisnowcheckmate.

Hippopotamusmate

Thehippopotamusmateisonewhereyoucanendthegamein6moves.

1.e4e5

The game starts with white moving the king’s pawn from e2 to e4 and blackmovinghisking’spawntoe5.

2.Ne2Qh4

Then,whitemovesherking’ssideknighttoe2andblackbringshisqueentoh4.

3.Nc3Nc6

Next,whitedecidestobringherqueen’ssideknighttoc3.Blackdoesthesameandbringshisknightfromb8toc6.

4.g3Qg5

Next,whitemovestheg2pawntog3andblackmovesthequeenfromh4tog5.Asyoucansee,nobodyhastakenoutanypiecesasyet.

5.d4

Now,whitemovesherpawnfromd2tod4.

5.…Nxd4

Blackthenuseshisknighttocapturethepawn,attackingfromc6tod4.Thisisagreatsacrificialtraplaidbyblackasitmakeswhitebelievethatagreatopportunityliesahead.

6.Bxg5

Whitenowthengoesforthebaitandattackswithherbishoptocapturetheblackqueenong5.

6.…Nf3#0-1Thishelpsblackmovetheknighttof3.Nowthewhitekingcannotescapeanditisacheckmate.

Legal’smateThelegal’smateisonewhereyoucanfinishthegamein7moves.

1.e4e5

Thegamestartsbywhitemovingking’spawntoe4.Blackmoveshise7pawntoe5.

2.Bc4d6

Inthenextmove,white’skingsidebishopmovestoc4.Blackthenmoveshispawntod6.

3.Nf3Bg4

Next,whitemoveshisking’ssideknighttof3.Blackmoveshisbishopfromc8tog4.

4.Nc3g6

Whitethenmoveshisqueen’ssideknighttoc3.Blackmoveshispawnfromg7tog6.

5.Nxe5Bxd1

Now,whitequicklymovesking’sknight toe5 (This is thebig trap setbywhite).Blackthenuseshisbishoptocapturewhite’squeen.

6.Bxf7+

Now,whitemoveshisbishoptof7andputstheblackkingincheck.

6.…Ke7

Thisforcesblacktomovehiskingtoe7

7.Nd5#1-0Nowwhitemovestheknightonc3tod5andit’scheckmate!

Thesearesomeofthetopstrategiesthatyoucanemploytofinishachessgamefastbutrememberthatyouropponentneedstoplay justasyouwishthemto.Iftheyhaveidentifiedthetrickyouaretryingtoplayonthem,itmaybedisadvantageoustoyousobepreparedtohaveaplanB!

Understandthesetrickeriessoyoumayappeartobeachessmasterintheeyesofnovices,andalsosothatyoudonotfallintotrapslaidoutbysuperiorcompetitors.As you observed in the last two instances, ingenious traps were laid out bysacrificingthequeen,soifyoueverseeaqueenlyingaroundforfree,thinktwicepriortomakingyourmove,foritmaybeyourlast.

CHAPTER7

DrawsInChess

Justlikehowitisimportantforyoutobeawareofthevariouschessstrategiesandtactics,itisimportantthatyouareawareaboutthevariouswaysbywhichyoucanend the match in a draw. It is vital that you know about these draw situationsespecially if youwant to avoid them.Otherwise, youwouldnot even realize thatyour opponent is trying to push the game towards a drawwhen you had all thepotentialtowin.Letuslookatthetypicaldrawsituations.

Drawbyagreement

Thisisoneofthesimplestwaystoendthegameinadraw.Bythismethod,bothplayerschoosetodrawthegamebymutualconsent.Thissituationariseswhentheprobabilityofwinningisslimforbothparties.Ideallywhentheplayersrealizethatthey have very small chances of winning, they agree to end the game in a drawespeciallywhenthere isacashprize.Thesearesituationswhere thepossibilityofwinningishighlydependentonaplayermakingabadmove.Asweallknowthatthechancesofaprofessionalplayermakingasillymistakeatacrucialpointinthegameisveryslim,sothewiseoptionwouldbetoendthegameinadraw.Thiswayboththeplayersgetapointeach.

Therehavebeenseveralinstanceswheretheplayershaveagreedtoendthegameina drawbecause of a tidy cashprize involved.There are certain tournaments thatofferboththeplayersacashprize,evenifthegameendsinadraw,henceyoucansee lots of games in such tournaments that end in this manner, as it’s mutuallybeneficial.Onenotehoweverbeing,itisnotallowedforboththeplayerstocallitadrawevenwithoutbeginningthegame.

Stalemate

Mostofuswouldcertainlybeawareofwhatastalemateis.Underastalemate,theopponent’s king is not under threat but has no other legalmoves tomake. It ismostly the beginners who resort to stalemate to end the game in a draw.Mostprofessionalplayerssteerawayfromthisbecause theyseldommakesillymistakesthat would end up in a stalemate situation. However, there are several notablegamesinvolvinggrandmastersthatevenendedinstalematesodon’tbefrustratedifyour opponent always puts the game in stalemate even when you had theadvantage.

Threefoldrepetition

This is another scenario that ends the game in adraw.Though thename is self-explanatory,Iwillrunyouthroughthestepsthatculminateinthissituation.Whenaplayer repeats the samemove thrice, theotherplayerhas theoption toclaimadraw. The procedure to claim this draw differs from one rule set to another tosome extent. However, the underlying principle across all the rule sets when itcomestothisdrawisthesame.

Though letmestate that thisrulecannotbeapplied incaseofaperpetualcheck.You cannotmake a claim to draw the game because your opponent gives you acheck three times at a stretch using different pieces but if the opponent keepsgivingacheckinthesamefashionthreetimesinarow,thenyoucanusethisruletomakeaclaimforendingthegameinadraw.

Thefiftymoverule

Notmanyplayersreallyunderstandhowthisruleofclaimingadrawworks.Goingby this rule, if a certain game showsno signsof “Progress” for both theplayersevenattheendoffiftymoveseach,theneitheroftheplayerscanmaketheclaimtoendthegameinadraw.“Progress”,inthiscaseissignifiedbythemovementofapawnorthelossofapiecefortheopponent.Ifthegamegoesonwithoutanysignsof such aprogress, the gamecanbe ended in adraw.However, this situationofdraw rarely arises, as no professional player would make fifty empty moves.Undoubtedly,thissituationmayarisemorefrequentlyinagamewithbeginners.

Insufficientmatingmaterial

Thissituationofendingthegameinadrawariseswhenbothplayersareleftwithveryfewpiecesthatarenotcapableofdeliveringacheckmate.Inotherwords,theabsenceofsufficientmatingmaterialwarrants foradraw.Althoughthis rulemaylooksimpleattheoutset,thisisnotpermissibleundercertainrulesets.Undersuchsets,thisrulecanbeinvokedonlyifitisnotpossibletocheckmatetheopponentatall,evenafterabunchoflegalmoves;thisisbecausethedefinitionofinsufficientmating material is very subjective as it is extremely difficult to prove that bothplayershaveinsufficientmatingmaterial.

Thesearethevariouscommonscenariosthatendupinadraw.

Etiquettesfordrawing:Nowthatwehaveseenthedifferentscenariosthatmayresultinadraw,letuslookat some basic tips associated with these draws. These tips will help youmake aclaim to end the game in a draw without offending the sentiments of youropponent.Attheendoftheday,itisuptoyoutoacceptorrejecttheoffertoendthe game in a draw. Youmight as well do it with some grace and tact withoutoffendingyouropponent.Thesepointerswillmostcertainlyhelpyouachievethat.

Onlyonyourmove:Rememberthatyoushouldmakeaclaimtoendthegameinadrawonlywhenitisyourturn.Therearetworeasonsastowhyyoushouldnotmaketheoffertoendthegameinadrawwhenitisnotyourturn.Theyareasfollows:

(i) Whenyoumakeanoffertodrawthegamewhenitisyouropponent’sturn,it will be considered as a rude gesture. A theory behind this is becausewhenyouoffertoendthegameinadraw,youropponentwillbedistractedbythissuddenturnofevents.Hemightthinkthatyoumadetheofferwitha view to take advantage of this momentary distraction. Since mostprofessionalgamesareclocked,everysecondisvitalforbothplayers.Anytime spent on distractions by one player can be the much-neededadvantagefortheotherplayer.

(ii) Whenyoumaketheoffertodrawthegamewhenyouropponentistryingtomakeamove,hewill startanalyzing the reasonbehindyouroffer.Hewillstart lookingforyourweakspotswithaviewtotakeadvantage.Thiswill definitely worsen your situation in the game should your opponentmakeitapointtolaunchanaggressiveattack.

Seethemovefirst:

Notmanypeopleunderstandhowtheseofferstodrawthegamecomeaboutandforgettostopthetimer.This ispreciselywhymostbeginners losethegameevenbeforetheiropponentcouldacceptorrejectthedraw.Theoptimalwaytogoabouta draw is to make the offer first followed by clicking the clock and giving theopponentachancetoacceptorrejecttheoffer.Whenyoudothis,theopponentisforcedtomakeadecision inhis timeandnotwhenyours is running.Whenyouropponentmakesamoveafteryoumadeanoffertodrawthegame,withoutsayinganything,itisconsideredasanimpliedrejectionofyouroffer.

Neverofferadrawtoastrongopponent:

Rememberthatitisconsideredasaveryimpolitegesturetomakeaclaimtodrawthegamewhenyouropponentisamuchstrongerplayerthanyouare.Youroffermightactuallyoffendyouropponent.Youmaywonderastowhoisconsideredastrongplayer.Alookattheirratingswilltellyouifyoucanregardthemasastrongenoughplayerwheredrawsmaybe impolite (Whenyouropponent is ratedmorethanyoubyatleastfourhundredtofivehundredpoints,thisisagoodindication).Though the primary reason to not offer a draw to a strong player is to avoidoffendingthem,thereareseveralotherreasonsaswell.Theyareasfollows:

Sinceyouropponentisastrongplayer,hewillmostcertainlyunderstandthatthis offer to draw the game will benefit you the most. As he loses theopportunity to win the game, he will not accept your offer. He will startlooking foryourweaknesses, asmentionedbefore, andmakeamovewithaviewtoattackyou.

Whenyouproposetoendagameinadraw,especiallywhenyouropponentisaprofessionalplayer,you lose theopportunity to learnsomanythingsfromyouropponent.Winning thegame isoneaspect.Yourpersonalgrowthas aplayerisequallyimportant.Youwillnotgrowasaplayerifyoudonotlearnfromotherstrongplayers.

Don’tofferdrawsrepeatedly:Neveroffertoendthegameinadrawrepeatedly.Makeanoffertoendthegamein

adrawonceandifyouropponentdoesnotacceptit,refrainfrommakingrepeatedoffers.Whathappenswhenyoumakerepeatedofferstoendthegameinadraw,isthatyouropponentmayfeel threatenedorharassed.Since time isof theessence,yourconstantofferstodrawthegamecanresult inyouropponentlosingalotoftime.Whenyouharassyouropponentmentally,itwillberegardedasaseriousissueinmosttournaments.Youstandeventhechanceofgettingbarredfromthegame.Hencemakeitapointtonotmakedrawsrepeatedly.

Rejectdrawofferspolitely:When your opponent makes an offer to draw the game and if you have nointentionsofaccepting it, learntoreject it inapolitefashion.Nevercreateafussaboutyouropponent’soffertodrawthegame.Hemaynothavemadetheoffertodistract you in the first place.Hence ensure that you do not react in a negativefashiontoyouropponent’soffertodrawthegame.Ifyoufeelthatyouropponentis constantly threateningyouwithoffers todraw thegame,get in touchwith thetournament director to resolve this issue instead of responding in a negativemanner.

Thesetipswillmostcertainlyhelpyoudealwithdrawsinaverydiplomaticfashion.Henceensurethatyoufollowthemwhetheryouwishtomakeoracceptanoffertodraw.Thesesmalletiquettessendoutthemessagethatyoudon’tletyourpersonalemotionscloudyourjudgmentandsettingthistoneisveryimportant,especiallyininternationaltournaments.

CHAPTER8

TournamentRules

What is thepointofknowingabout thevariousdeployment strategies inchess ifyouarenotawareabouttherulesofthetournament?Thechancesofyoulosingthegameareveryprobableifyouareleftinthedarkregardingtournamentrules.Thisis precisely why I have listed the important tournament rules in this chapter foryour understanding.Allow us gaze at them one at a time and by the timewe’refinished,Iamsureyouwouldbeallsetforarealgameofchess.

Whenindoubt,askThere isnothingwrong inclarifyingyourdoubtswiththetournamentdirector.Ifyou arenot really sure about a certain tournament rule, ensure that you get yourdoubtsclarifiedbythetournamentdirectorbeforethegamebegins.Thisway,youcansave the time thatmaygetwasted ifyoudecide toask thesequestions in themiddleofagame.

Similarly,when thegame is inprogress, ifyouandyouropponentdisagreeaboutsomethingorsomerule, thewisethingtodowouldbetostoptheclockandcallforthetournamentdirectortoclarifyitforthetwoofyou.Thisway,youandyouropponentwillnotwastetimebyindulginginpointlessconversations.

YouhavetomovethepieceyoutouchThisisotherwiseknownasthetouchmoverule.Goingbythisrule,youwillhavetomovethepieceyouactuallytouch.Thisisaruletolookoutfor,especiallyifyouare a beginner. You cannot keep fiddling with your pieces and moves in atournament.Hence,thereisnoundoingacarelessmovesobecarefulwhichpieceyoutouch.

However,ifyoutouchapiecebymistakewhilereachingoutforanotherpiece,youropponent cannot instigate this rule.You are not required tomove that piece for

touchingitaccidentally.Ifyouthinkthatyouneedtoadjustacertainpiecebecauseitisnotplacedcorrectlyontheboard,youmaydosobysaying,“Iadjust”beforetouchingthepiece.Thisway,youropponentcannotinvokethisruleandmakeyoumovethepieceyoujusttouched.Whenyousaythis,youaremakingitclearthatitisnotyourintentiontotouchthepiecetomoveit.

Recordingthemoves

This is another common rule across most of tournaments and very fewtournamentsdonothavethisregulation.Playersareexpectedtowritedowntheirmovesinmostcompetitionsandthepurposeofthisisthatitwillserveasawrittenrecordofwhathappenedduringthecourseofthegame.Thiscanbereferredbacktoincaseofthenecessitytosolveanydisputethatmayariselater.Hence,recordingyourmovesshouldbedonewithutmostconcentration.Learnhowtowrite themdown.Ifyoudoabadjobofrecordingyourmoves,youwillnotbeabletouseittoyouradvantagewhenadisputearisesduringthecourseofthegame.

DonotinterferewithagamePlayerswhodonothaveamatchscheduledareusuallypermittedtowalkaroundandobservehowtheothergamesaregoing.Rememberthatyourroleisrestrictedto that of an observer. In other words, you cannot interfere in the game at anypointoftime,nomatterwhatthereasonis.Forinstance,ifyoufindacertainplayermakinganillegalmove,itisnotyourresponsibilitytoreportit.Lettheplayersplaythegametheirwayanddonotmeddlewithit.

Similarly,youarenotsupposedtooffersuggestionsorhintsortipstoanyplayer.You cannot help any player when the game is going on. You may even getdisqualifiedfromthetournamentfordoingso.Henceforthneverinterferewithanongoinggameforanyreason.

RemembertoturnoffyourcellphoneNothingcanbesoannoyinglydistractinglikeacellphonethatisringingloudlyinthemiddleof a game.Aswe all know,mostof these games are clocked.Hence,theseloudphonescaneasilydistractplayersandwastetheirprecioustime.Thisiswhytournamentruleshavebeenamendedtoprohibittheusageofcellularphoneswhen the games are going on.According to this rule, if your phone rings in themiddleofagame,youwillbechargedwithapenalty.Andifyouthoughtthatwas

theworstcase,thenyouarewrong.Usageofcellphonesmayevenresult inyourgamegetting forfeited.Consequently ensure that you turnoff yourphonebeforethetournamentbegins.

LearntousethechessclockAsIsaidbefore,thesetournamentsareboundbytimelimitsandyouarerequiredtofinishthesegameswithinastipulatedtimelimit.Itmightbeachallengetousetheseclockswhenyouareabeginnerbutwithenoughpracticeandtime,youwillfinditeasiertoplaythegamewiththehelpoftheclock.Youwillrealizethatyourbrainwill startworking in linewith the timer.Hit the clock as soonas youhavemadeyourmoveasthisistoensurethatyoudonotwasteyourlimitedtimeovernothing.Rememberthatyouhavetohittheclockwiththesamehandyouusetomove the pieces. Hence ensure that you make it a point to practice this handcoordinationafewtimesbeforethetournament.

Recordyourresult

Assoonasthegameisover,makesureyourecordtheresultofthegame.Itisthedutyofboththeplayerstorecordtheresultsofthegame.Ifyouarenotsureaboutthe correct way to record your results, then get in touch with your tournamentdirectortoassistyouwithit.

These are some of the important rules in most of the tournaments. Sometournaments have additional rules as well so ensure that you familiar with thedifferent rulesof the tournamentbefore it begins. If you fail todo this, youwillfindyourselfatagreatdisadvantageand inaconfusedstateby themultiple rulesannouncedbeforeyourgamecommences.

CHAPTER9

LetsPlayChess

Therewillcomeatimewhenyouwillhavetoputeverythingyouhavelearnedintoanactualgame.Justlikeanysport,youcanhaveagameplanandknoweverytrickin thegame,butwhenyouare inanactualmatch,youwillhave tofocusanddoyourbesttowinthegameutilizingeverythingyouhavestudiedandpracticed.Letus guide you through a game that employs many of the aspects taught in theprecedingchapters.Whenyouarefollowingalong,askyourselfwhateachplayeristryingtoaimforandtrytopinpointiftherecouldbeasuperiormove.

MATCH:ExpertversusIntermediateThefollowingmatchisbetweenanadvancedplayerandanintermediateplayer;understandthatwithenoughpracticeandstudy,youtoocanbecomeanexpertatchessandamazeyourfamilyandfriends.Thereisnothingholdingyouback,enjoythe

match!

1.e4Nc6

Thegamestartsoffwithwhitemovinghispawnuptoe4position.Black,insteadoftryingtoimprovepawnformation,decidestodevelophisknightfirst,movingittothec6position.

2.Nf3d5

Fromhere,whiteadvanceshisknightuptof3andblackjumpshispawntwostepsuptod5.

3.Bd3Nf6

White thenmoves his bishop up to d3 to reinforce his pawn while black startsdevelopinghissecondknightmovingittof6.Noticehowwhitecouldhaveinsteadmovedhisbishoptob5(RuyLopezOpening),whichcouldhaveessentiallypinneddowntheblackknight?Regardless,whitedidafantasticjobmovinghisknightandbishopoutwhichalsosetshimupforanearlyopportunitytocastle.

4.xe5Qxe5

Whitecouldnotresistanddecidestoattacktheblackpawnone5.Thisleadstoonecrucialmistakeasitallowstheblackqueenanopenlanetodevelopintothegame.Here is a lesson; an effective method of jumping your queen into action is bysacrificingyourqueen’spawn.

5.Nc3Qh5

Whitethenmoveshisqueen’ssideknighttoc3,attackingtheblackqueenwhojustshiftsallthewaytothesideath5.

6.0-0Bg4

Whiteinthiscasefeelsanattackcomingandcastleswiththeking’ssiderook.Blackthenmoveshisbishopdownandputsa“relativepin”onthewhitequeen.

7.h3Ne5

Whitecountersthebishopbymovinghispawntoh3.Blackretortsbypositioningofhisknightstoe5.

8.xg4Nxg4

Whitegoesforthebaitandeatsthebishopong4,onlytogetattackedbyblack’sknight.

9.Re1Nxf3

Whiteheremoveshisrooktoe1.Blackthenattacksthewhitehorseonf3.

10.xe3Qh2+

White sees another free piece and attacks the horse on f3. This is his ultimatemistakeasblack’squeencomestocheckthewhitekingbymovingtoh2.

11.Kf1Qxf2#

Thewhitekingtriestoescapethegraspoftheblackqueen,movingtof1,buttheblackqueenclosesonthewinbypositioningitselfontof2.

0-1

Wereyouabletoidentifythestrategicmovesofblackortheblundersofwhite?

Were you able to appreciate the importance of developing pieces tomake themmoreadvantageousratherthanhavingthemsitonthebleachers?

Atthispointyoushouldnowbewellfamiliarizedwiththedifferentchessopeningsyoucan start thematchoffwith.As thegameprogresses,move strategically andusethedifferenttacticswhenapplicable.Whenthegameadvancestolatterstages,usetheendgametipspresentedearlier.

Inthenextchapter,sometipsongettingstartedwillbepresented; then itwillbetimeforyoutotestanddevelopyourownchesstalents.

CHAPTER10

ChessPuzzles

In training for Chess, asides from practicing games and testing out the differentstrategies,anothereffectiveapproachtoadvanceyourproficienciesisbypracticingchesspuzzles.

What is a chesspuzzle? It canbeoneof two things, a case study taken fromanactual game or an artificially set up arrangement. In either case, the objective isidentical,whichistomatureyourcapabilitytoperceiveopportunitiesandwhatcanbedone.Somearequiteeasyandsomeareabitmorechallengingbutnonetheless,theyareallalearningopportunityandafunbrainteaser.

Wehaveprovidedhereafewcasesthatarepleasurableanddynamic.Theanswerswillbeprovidedattheendofthischapter.

Beforewestarthere,thereisalittlestorythatmustbeshared.

Once upon a time in a classroom, there were two students and a teacher. Onestudentwasexceptionallyremarkableandtheotherwasn’tentirelybright.Onedaya teacher handed out a quiz with 100 questions, and to her great surprise, bothstudentsgot99questionscorrect.

“Something”,must bewrong here she thought. Sure enough, the answer to thisconundrumwasinthe100thquestion.Onthegiftedstudent’ssheet,theanswertothe 100th question was, “I don’t know the answer”. And on the not so giftedstudent’ssheet,theanswerwas,“Idon’tknowtheanswereither”.ThemoraltothislittlefableIguessis,don’tcheat.

Do your best and have fun at the puzzles first before looking at the answers. Itwouldbemuchmorebeneficialforyoutoworktheproblemsoutfirsthand.

PROBLEMS

1. Ifwhiteweretomove,whatmoveswouldheusetowinthegamein2moves?Ifblackweretomove,what’sthequickestwaytowinthegame?

2a. Whohastheadvantage?Whitetomove

2b. Whohastheadvantage?Whitetomove

3. How would white take the black queen in 3 moves? White to move

4. Ifwhiteweretomove,howwouldhewinin1move?Ifblackweretomove,what’sthequickestwaytowin?

5. Howmanymovesdoesittaketowhitetowinifblackdefendsperfectly?White

tomove

6. Whitetomove:checkmateinhowmanymoves?Blacktomove:checkmateinhowmanymoves?

ANSWERS

1. Ifwhitemoves:1.Qb5+Ke62.Bb3+Nc43.Bxc4#Ifblackmoves:1.…Qh2#

2a. Advantagewhite–Ifthewhitekingmovesinandattackstheblackpawnone7then defends his c5 pawn, he’ll end up being able to promote his pawn to aqueenrightwhenblackpromoteshispawntoaqueen.Thedifferenceis,therearemorewhitepawnsleftontheboard.

2b. Advantageblack–Blackcanpreventthec5pawnfrompromotingintoaqueenandalsopromotehisownpawntoaqueen.

3. 1.Ra3+Kd42.Kd2Qxd73.Rd3+Kc54.Rxd7

4. Ifwhitemoves:1.Qe2#Ifblackmoves:1.…Kxf2+2.Qe1+Qxe1+3.Nd1Qxd1#

5. 1.Ke7!Ne42.Rxa5+Bb53.Rxb5+Nc54.Rxc5#

6. Ifwhitemoves:1.G5+Qf42.Rxf4Kh53.Qg4#Ifblackmoves:1.…Nf3+2.Ng1Rxg1#

I hope you found these puzzles interesting and fun.Artificial chess puzzlesmayappearimpractical,buttheydotrainyourmentalfacultytoseepatternsandinthemixofaheatedchessmatch,someofthesepatternsmaycomeupandyourknacktoseethemquicklycouldbethekeybetweenwinningorlosing.

Itisunderstandablethatyoumaywanttotryyourhandsoutatmoreproblems,sowhatwehavebeenabletodoisgiveoutaFREEBONUSattheendofthebook.Ifyoudon’twanttowait,youcanclickHEREandreceiveabookletwithliterallyhundredsofproblemsandsolutions.Trysolvingthemall,itmaybeimpossibleinonegobutsolvingafeweachdaywillmakeyouabetterchessplayer.Havefun!

CHAPTER11

TipsToGetStarted

Nowthatyouareallgearedupforthetournament,Ihavehighlightedcertaintipsthatmayhelpyouwinthegameandbecomeastrongerchessplayerinthischapter.Letusgooverthemindetail.

Memorizeopenings

Intheearlierstagesofthisbook,wewentovernumerousdifferentopeningsthatare used in chess and spoke about some of the advantages and disadvantages toeach.Didyouknowthatmosttournamentplayersusetheseopenings?Inknowingthis, it is an excellent idea that these openings arememorized by heart so you’llhave anunderstandingofhowyouropponentwill choose to structurehisofheroffensive and thiswill give you ample strategies aswell onhow you’ll choose toplaydefensivelyoroffensively.

Assessyouropponent’smoveWhenyouropponentmakesamove,donotmakeyourmoveimmediately.Assessandunderstand the rationalebehindyouropponentmaking themove in the firstplace.Whenyouassesshismove,youwillhaveaclearideaabouthisstrategyandyouwillbeable toplanyournextmovesaccordingly.This tipmakesmoresenseespeciallywhenthegamehasjustbegun.Youwillbeabletojudgeyouropponent’sstyle by just assessing his opening. This will also help you identify the potentialthreatsthatyouropponentmighthaveinstoreforyousoyoucandealwiththemsuitably.

Makethebestmove

Sometimes,therecanbemorethanonegoodmove.Understandwhichmoveisthe

bestoptionforyou.Weigh theprosandconsofeachoption that isavailable foryou and choose the best one.To identify the bestmove, youmight have to askyourselfthefollowingquestions:

Canyouthinkofanyothermovethatwillhelpyouinmovingyourpiecetoabettersquare?

Isthereapossibilityofyourpositionimprovingifyouchooseadifferentpiecetomove?

Will you be able to retort in an effective fashion to your opponent’s threatwiththismove?

Willthepieceyouchoosetomovebeinasafesquarewiththismove?

The move that yields satisfactory answers to the aforesaid questions is the bestoptionthatisavailabletoyou.Henceidentifythatmoveandmakeit.

Haveaplaninplace

Winningagameofchessisnotaboutmakingrandommovesandcountingonlucktoworkinyourfavor.Youneedtohaveaproperplanforallthemovesthatyoumake.Thereshouldbesomerelevancebetweenallyourmoves.Youmaycomeupwithaplanbasedontheprinciplesbehindthevariouschessopenings.

Anotherimportantpointtobenotedistoensurethatyoudonotswitchtoomuchamongseveralplansinasinglegame.Whenyoukeepchangingyourmind,youwillloseclarityandthiscanbeaverybigadvantageforyouropponent.Hencecomeupwithaplanandsticktoit.

Knowyourpieces’worthAs Imentioned already in a previous chapter about piece quality, it is importantthat you understand the value of your pieces during the different stages of thegame.Donottradepiecesofhighvalueforpiecesoflowervalue.Keepthevalueofthepiece inmindbeforemakinganymoveandunderstandthe implicationsoflosingapiecebeforemovingit.

Developsoonandwell

With the timer ticking, it is important thatyoudevelopyourpiecesearly into thegame.Ifyoudon’tbankontheopportunity,youropponentwillmostcertainlydosoandlaunchanaggressiveattackagainstyou.

A mistake that most of us commit when we are still a beginner is focusing ondevelopingourpawns.Whilepawndevelopmentandformationisimportant,whenwe focusonlyonmoving thepawns forward,we tend to focus lesson theotherpieces.Theotherimportantpiecesdetermineyourpositioninthegamemorethanabunchofpawnsstuckinthecenteroftheboard.Henceensurethatyoudevelopallyourimportantpiecesassoonaspossible.

Another point to be borne in mind is to never develop any piece without anyreason.Whenyoudevelopapiecewithoutasolidreason,understandthatitisnotgoingtobenefityouinanyway.Alwayshaveapurposefordevelopinganypieceontheboard.

Knowwhentotrade

Thesecretbehindwinningagameisnotaboutavoidingthelossofanypieceontheboard.Itisaboutknowingtherighttimetoloseanypieceontheboard.Makesurethatyou tradeyourpiecesonlyat the right timeso that the lossof thepiecewillactually result in you gaining an important piece of the opponent’s. Keep thesepointersinmindbeforeyoutrade:

Donotmakeanexchangeunlessitisgoingtoincreaseyouradvantageinthegame. This is highly importantwhen both the players have only few piecesleft.

Donotmake an exchangewhen youropponent’s squares are crampedwithlittlemobilityforpiecedevelopment.Theexchangewillnotbenefityouinanyway.

Ifyouknowthatyouropponenthasmorepiecesthanyou,thennevermakeanexchange,asitwillputyouinamuchworsesituationthanbefore.

Stayalertatalltimes

Neverrestjustbecauseyoumadeonegoodmove(thisoccursespeciallyifyouhavejustcapturedyouropponent’squeenduringtheearlystagesofthegame).Youhavethe luxuryof lettingdownyourguardonlywhen thegame isover.Till then it isimportant that you stay alert, watch out for your opponent’s threats and actaccordingly.Onebadmovefromyoucanbeenoughtogiveyouropponentaverybigadvantage.Hencestayalertatalltimes.

Nevertakeunnecessaryrisks

Being an aggressive player can actually benefit you but being a blind aggressiveplayercanreduceyourchancesofwinningthegame.Nevertakeunnecessaryrisksthatmightcostyouyourvictory.Takeonlycalculatedrisks.

Refrainfromgivingunnecessarychecks

While giving a check will threaten your opponent, ensure that there is somepurposebehindeachcheck.Givingoutmeaninglesschecksisamerewasteofnotjustyourtimebutalsoyouropponent’s.Youcouldusethattimeinabetterfashionifyouchooseyourmoveswisely.Nevergiveacheckwithoutanypurpose.

Checkandcheckmate

Itisimportantthatbeginnersunderstandthedifferencebetweenthesetwoterms.Itisobvious that“check”and“checkmate”arenot the same thing.Theseare twodifferenttermsandarenottobeconfusedwitheachother.Itissafetosaythatthecheckprecedesthecheckmate.

Acheck iswhen theopponent’sking is indanger.Youhave challenged thekingandthereisachanceforthekingtomovetoanotherspace.Youhavetowarntheopponentby sayingcheck.This is the sign that thekingneeds tobemoved toasafe spot. Initially, beginnerswill notmake this call anddecide to takedown theopponent’s king.This iswrong, as youropponentneeds tobewarned about theimpedingdanger.Theopponentmustthenmovehisorherkingtosafety.

Ontheotherhand,acheckmateisonewherethegameisover.Nomatterwherethekingismoved,heisalwaysindanger.Thissignifiestheendofthegame.Youaresupposedtosay,“checkmate”andsignifythatthegameisover.

Don’tstinkatchessbygoingstale!Chess is a riveting but a complicated game.With lots of practice, one can learnsome very interesting and effective strategies like theRuyLopez and the Siciliandefense, but it alsohas a steep learning curve forbeginners so it is important toprepare for failure and figureoutways toput the game into a drawn statewhenonesseesthepossibilityoflosing.Therearesixwaysinwhichagameofchesscanend up in a draw, which are Perpetual check, insufficient mating material,Repetitionofmoves,fiftymoverule,drawbyagreement(discussedearlier)andlastbutnotleast,andtheonewewillfocusoninthisarticle,thestalemate!

Stalemate isasituation inchesswhere in, theking isnot incheckandthechessplayercannotmakealegalmove.Astalemateendsthechessgameandtheresultisadraw.Thishappensfrequently in theendgame,whentherearenotmanypieceson the board/ Stalemate is a draw in normal chess, however, there are differentchessvariants,historicalaswellasmodern,inwhichstalemateisnotconsideredasadraw.

Ancient versions of chess like as Shatranj announce the player who leads to astalemateasthewinner.Eveninthisage,manypeoplehavecalledouttoreturntothissamerule.

Rememberthatthereisaverysmallchancefortheplayerhavingalosingpositiontoavoidalossthiswayanddrawagame.Stalematesucceedsonlyiftheopponentisnotveryattentivetoyournextmoves.

ReasonsforgettingintoastalemateThe answer is quite artless. When your opponent has the lead and you sensestronglythatyoucannotwin,thenitwouldbeinyourgreatestinteresttodoyourbesttoendthegameinastalemate.

Afewwaystogetthegameintoastalemateare

Move your king into aplacewhere it cannotmove.Then sacrifice all yourotherpieces in amannerwhere theymust be taken.Then,BOOM!You’ve stalemated

andgameendsinadraw.

Inaddition,ifthegametrulydwindlesdowntovirtuallynopiecesbeingleftlessthetwokingsandonepawn,thenyoucanchoosetoendgamebyasimpletechniqueillustratedbelow.Practice thebelowscenarioandfindthe trick toalwaysendthegameinastalemateifyouweretheblackplayer.

(TheabovediagramsshowaclassicstalematestrategyfortheBlackplayer.Ifyoufindyourselfinsimilarsituationtothediagramontheleft,useittoyouradvantageandhavethematchconcludeinadrawratherthanadefeat.)

Now, if you are on the other side of the table, your intentionmust be to avoidgetting a stalemate by your opponent. And there is just one strategy to do this,simplylooktoseewhetheryouropponent’skingoroneofhis/herchesspiecescanstillmoveAFTERyouhavemadeyournextmove.

Thedosanddon’tsofchess

Whenitcomestochess,therearesomedosanddon’tsthatyouneedtotakecareof.Inthischapter,wewilllookatsomeofthese.

Dos

Theveryfirstthingtodoiskeepaskingyourselfquestions.Thesequestionsshouldbealongthelinesof…

Whatismyopponentupto?

Whatarehismotivesbehindhismoves?

Whyishemovingthepiecesthatheis?

CanIdosomethingtocapitalizeonmyopponent’smistakes?

By asking yourself all these questions and more, you can make headway in thegame.

During the middle game, it is important that you look for targets in youropponent’splay.Themiddlegameisonewhereyouneedtoattackyouropponentasbestasyoucan.Keepaneyeontheirkeypieceslikequeenandbishops.Trytocapture these as soon in thegameaspossible.At the same time,keepaneyeonyourkeypiecesaswellbecauseyoudon’twanttoenduplosingthemduringthisstage.Onceyou identifyyouropponent’sweaknesses,youmuststrategizeandtrytocapitalizeassoonaspossible.

It is important that you not lose your queen when you are trying to attack the

opponent’sking.Tradingyourqueenwillturnintoabigdisadvantageforyou.Trytoholdontoyourqueenandtakeoutyouropponent’squeenusingyourknightorbishop. It is fine to lose thesepiecesbutnot thequeen,however, if youare inagoodposition to takeout youropponent’skingby sacrificingyourqueen (like inLegal’smate)thendoso.

Thebeststrategywithyourpawns is topushoneduring theendgameandforceyouropponenttosacrificeakeypiecetopreventthepawnfromdevelopingintoaqueen.Thefurtherinranksapawngoes,themorevalueitdevelopsinthegame.Itisbesttopushconnectedpasspawnstogether.

Don’tgetoverconfidentduringagame.Ifyouthinkyouhaveeverythinggoingforyouandendupmakingamistake,thenyouwillprobablyloseallyourconfidence.Don’toverestimateyourstrategy;thisisespeciallyimportantifyouareplayingwithabonafideopponent.Theopponentmightknowwhatyouareuptoandcounterall yourmoves.There isnopoint in going about a gameusingoneof the checkmatestrategiesthatwealreadysawwithsomeonewhohasbeenplayingchessforalongtime.Youmightendupinapositionwhereyoucannotuseanyotherstrategyandhavegivenawaythegame.

Do practice well before you attend a competition. Practice by yourself and alsopracticewithanopponent.Memorizingsomeof thecommonsituationswillhelpyou play well and fast.Make use of all the tactics that you know and use themthroughoutthegame.

Don’tsOneimportantdon’tofchessistonotplacetwoormorepawnsinthesamefile.This isbetterknownasdoubling.It is important thatyoukeepallofyourpawnsconnectedandatnotimeshouldyourpawnsbetooscatteredabout.Althoughitisvitalthatyouclaimthecenteroftheboardassoonaspossible,itisimportantthatyounotdosousingjustyourpawns.Captureitusingsomeofyourotherpiecesaswelllikeyourknightsandbishops.

Oneimportantdon’tofthegameistonotmoveyourkingtooearly.Movingyourkingearlywill inmostcasesendangerhim.Youwillnotrealizethatyouhaveputhim in a vulnerable position.Aswasmentioned before, it is best that you castleearlyandplace2-3pawnsinfrontoftheking.Therookthatyouplacebesidethekingshouldactasaguard.Itshouldnotbemovedunlessabsolutelynecessary.In

casetheopponentisposingathreattotherook,youmustplacesomethingintheway to prevent the rook being taken down. If you think the opponent will takedowntherookandyoucantaketheirpiecewiththeking,thenyoumightbefallingintoatrapthatyouropponentispullingonyou.

One important don’t is tonot go into a competitionwithout consuming enoughnutrition.Eatfoodsthatarerichinbrainnourishingnutrientssuchasnutoils.Youcanalsoconsumefreshfruitsandvegetables,whichwillhelpyou,thinkwell.Carryanenergybarwithyouaswellasitwillhelpyouremainenergeticallthroughyourgame.

Keytakeaways

Asweknow,Chessisnotarecentgame;itisquiteanoldgameandhasexistedforthousandsofyears.It issaidtohaveoriginatedinIndiaandthenmadeitswaytotherestoftheworld.Itwasoriginallyusedtoplanmilitarytacticsthatwouldhelparmymenplantheirmoves.Throughtheyears,severalchangeswereintroduced,allofwhichmadethegamequitepopular.

It is best that youbuy yourself a small board topracticewith.Although chess isbestplayedwithanopponent, it isalsopossible toplaythegamebyyourself.Allyou have to do is play as your opponent or play online. This will help youunderstand thegameandalsounderstand thedifferent strategies that exist in thegame.

Thebasic idea is topractice thegameasmuchaspossiblebeforeyoutakeonanopponent. You will then know how to counter your opponents’ moves as youbecome familiarizedwith the openings and various patterns associatedwith eachone.

The very first thing to understand in chess is the basicmotive behindplaying it.Thatmotiveistotakedownyouropponent’sking.Thekingisthemainplayerinagameof chess andheneeds tobeguarded till theend.Theplayerwhoseking iscapturedfirstistheloserofthegameandforthis,youhavetostrategizeandplanyourgameinawaythatforcesyouropponenttomakeamistakeandexposehisorherkingtoyou.

Before this can happen however, you need to plan out your game and devise astrategythatwillhelpyoutakedowntheirking.Theveryfirstthingtodoislookatopening strategies. These opening strategies are those that you use to start thegame.Thereareseveralofthemandyouneedtomemorizetheminordertohaveagoodadvantageandtoplaythegamelikeprofessionals.Assoonasthegamestarts,youcanputthesestrategiesintoplayandbeginthegamethe“rightway.”

Once the game has started and a little headway has been made, you must takecontrolofthecenteroftheboard.Thecenteroftheboardisextremelyimportantandyoumust tryandconquer it as soonaspossible. Ifyoudominate thecenter,thenyoucanadvanceinthegamequitewell.Ontheotherhand,ifyouropponentiscontrollingthecenter,thenitisbestthatyoutakecontrolofthewingsandlookforopeningstomakeyourmoves.

Nextoff,itisimperativethatyouunderstandhowtodevelopandbringyourhighvalue pieces out, practice this! Most novices habitually leave half their armylingeringinactively,whichisakintoonlyusingonehandinaboxingmatch.Thatisridiculous!

Itisimportantthatyouunderstandthevaluesofeachpieceontheboardandhowthese change throughpiece development.Thesepieces need tobeplacedon theboard in such a way that they are equally spread out on the board. If youconcentrateyourkeypiecesinjustoneplacethenyoumightenduplosingtoyouropponenteasily.Duringthemiddlegame,youmustplantheendgame.Thereareseveral end game strategies, much like your opening strategies, that you mustunderstandandusetofinishyourgame.

Therearemanybasicchesstacticsthatyoumustunderstandifyouwishtowinthegame. These include understanding how to control the center, using the queen’srealpowers,protecting thekingatall times,knowinghowandwhen tocastle etc.Once you understand all of these and put them to play, you will realize howeffortlesslyyoucanwinagainstnovicesorstandyourgroundagainstexperiencedplayers, but care must be taken to understand when each of these tactics areapplicableandcome intoplay.Youcannotsimply implement themasyou like, itdependson the context of the situation. It is recommended that you look at thedifferentexamplesprovidedinthisbooktounderstandthesestrategiesbetterandbrushuponthemoften.

Asyouknow,therecanbeadrawinanygame.Thereareseveraltypesofdrawsinchess aswell and thesemainlyhappenwhenbothparties are guarding their kingwisely. In such situations, therewillbenooneclearwinnerbut it canbe agoodthing to arrive at a draw, especially if youhave been checked a few times in thegame. Itwill ensure that you do not lose the game and you force it into a drawwhereyouropponentalsodoesnotwin.

Youmusttrytoforcethegameintoastalemateifyouareonthevergeoflosingthegame.Thatwillensurethatyouropponentdoesnotwineither!

Itwill be extremely interesting if you canmakeuseof thequick game strategies.Youropponentwillkeepwonderingwhatyoudidandhowyouwereable toendthegame so soon.As youknow, for the strategies towork for you, youneed tocapitalizeonyouropponent’smistakes.Thebiggestmistakethattheywillmakeisnotallowingany space for theirking toescape.Youcaneasily capture theirkingandcheckmatethem.Practicethembeforeatournamentandyoumightbeabletobreezepastthefirstfewrounds.

Onceyoustartplayingthegameanddevelopwinningskills,itisbestthatyoustartattendingtournamentsandcompetitions.Tournamentsareheldallovertheworldandyoucanparticipateinthem.Don’tworryifyoulosethefirstfewtimes,itisnotpossible toperfect thegameeasily;you typicallyneed to losea fewgamesbeforeyoucanwin.Therewillbeexpertsthereandyoumighthavetoplaywithsomeonewhohasplayedthegameforalongtime.

There are certain tournament specific rules and strategies that you need to getacquaintedwith;makesureyouarefamiliarwiththemfarbeforeyourgamebegins.

FREEBONUS

Asathankyouforpurchasingthisbook,I’dliketoofferyouthisfreebonus.Insideare700chessproblemsforyoutosolve,similartothepuzzlesinanearlierchapter.Havefunwiththem,andrememberthatthemoreyoupractice,bothingamesandpuzzles,thegreateryourskillswillbecome.

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Conclusion

Ihopethatyouareexcitedtopracticethedifferentopeningsandtacticsmentionedinthisbook.Asyoucanclearlysee,Chessinvolvesmoreplanningthanclevernesstoplayandyoushouldbequickenoughtoreadyouropponent’smovesandplayyourmoveaccordinglybeforethetimerunsout.

Inaddition,yournewfoundskillswillbesuretoattractalargervolumeofplayerstosit across from you. Believe it or not, the game of chess entices excitement andworth inpeople fromalldifferentbackgrounds.Whowouldn’tenjoypitting theircreativethinkingagainstanotherinafriendly,competitivegame?Thereisareasonthatchesshasbeenaroundforcenturies,anditdoesn’t justhavetodowithsmartseither;itopensthedoorstosocialbondingaswell.

Don’tstartplayingbythinkingthatitisaverydifficultgame.Itisundeniablyahitamongst scholars but is simple enough for anybody to take up, including schoolchildren!

Ifyou’veeverbeentoarelaxedcafé,pepperedwith interestingpeople, thathasashelf full of board games, youwill be sure to find a chess board among the lot(possibly with some missing pieces). Even though the game itself encourages asenseofmutualdignityandrespectamongstitsplayers,inacomfortablesettingitisrifewithplayfulbanternotshortofsmilesorlaughs.

Chances are if you’ve been reading this book you already have access to achessboard.Ihighlyrecommendtakingitandafriendwithyouonanicedaytoapublicspacesuchasapark,loungeorcommonsareaandbeginplaying.Youmightdrawattentionfrompassersbywhoyoucouldinvitetojumpinonthenextgameandgetacquainted. Ifyouhavechosenaprimeplace,youprobablywon’tbe theonlypeopleplayingeither.

It is not possible to become a pro at chess overnight. However with enoughpractice,nothing is impossible.Ipraythisbookactsasacatalyst inrealizingyour

dreamofbecomingamasteratthisgamesomeday.

Please, ifyouhaveenjoyedthisbook, leavebriefcommentsonwhatyouliked.Ifyou found this book lacking in certain areas, please also let us know sowemayimproveuponthenextedition.

Itisinmydearestprayersthatthisbookhassparkedenthusiasminyouradorationforourbelovedgame,Chess.

Sincerely,

LoganDonovan