Now that you know how to play the game of chess. It is time to get a little more complicated so you will be able to face some of the more advanced players. Of course, only through practice can you get really good. But here are some strategies that are often used in the game of chess. If you do want some practice, come to Chess Club every Monday and Thursday after school.
The fork is very useful in chess. For beginners, it may sometimes be hard to detect forks. Forks are when one piece are able to capture two different pieces in the next turn. Therefore, the opponent can only save one of the piece. The most effective forking piece is the knight, because it can jump over pieces, and is not very strong. So most likely, the capture will gain the player an advantage.
In the example above, you can see that all the pieces in chess are capable of performing a fork, although the knight forks are the most common.
The pin is when a piece is forced to stay within a specific area. Usually, the stronger piece is behind the pinned piece. The pinned piece cannot move, because if it does, the stronger piece will be captured. For example, When a piece cannot move because it would result in the king to be exposed, it is called an absolute pin. However, when the king is not involved in the pin, it is a relative pin. A partial pin is when a piece is confined to a specific rank, file, or diagonal. During a relative or partial pin, it is still possible to move outside of the designed "safe" area, but it would most likely result in a loss of material. A pin is not a tactic itself, but it can certainly be useful during games. Most pins are not easily detected by beginners (no offense), because most beginners cannot look ahead very far. But with practice, this skill can be honed.
In the example above, where should you move to establish a pin?
Bc3!
This pins the rook to the queen. If the rook moves, the queen will be captured. If it doesn't move, it will be captured. White could use this to his advantage, and further develop his pieces before capturing either the rook or queen.
The skewer is similar to the pin, except for the fact that the more stronger
piece is the pinned piece. Therefore, it is usually more powerful and effective
than the pin because the player is most likely forced to move the stronger
piece, thus exposing the weaker piece to be captured. An absolute skewer is when
the king is in check, and the only way to get out of check is to move the king.
Then, the piece behind the king can be captured. Skewers appear less often than
pins, and usually more decisive since most players would move the more valuable
piece. There are three ways to avoid a skewer or pin:
#1 - Don't put yourself in a position where you can get pinned or
skewered...
#2 - Capture the opponent's piece
#3 - If it's not a absolute pin or skewer, used the pinned piece to threaten
the opponent's king or other pieces, distracting the opponent's pieces and
delaying (or ending) the pin or skewer.
In the example above, where should you go to leave a discovered attack, and ultimately gain material?
Bf2!
This checks the king, so white have to stop the check, and then black's rook can take the rook on a1.
A sacrifice occurs when one player temporarily loses material to
gain position or establish an attack. This could be very useful during games,
and an important tactic. All pieces except the king can be sacrificed.
Sacrificing the queen is the most dramatic, since the queen is the most valuable
piece besides the king.
Attacking the king and weakening the king's side can result in a final attack that checkmates the king.
The official rankings for chess
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