In the first part, we saw how the moves of the pawns and pieces are recorded, but we still have to see how captures are recorded, ambiguities are resolved, and some other matters. I haven’t put the labels along the side of the board for all the diagrams in this post. If you need to review how the squares are named, review Chess Notation Part 1.
It is very common for chess games to come down to an endgame, and very often those endgames amount to a single Pawn or a Pawn for each side (plus the Kings, of course). In order to win more chess games, you must know endgame strategy for these simple endings.
How can you record your own chess games for later study (or to show your greatness to future generations)? The answer is in chess notation. This article (part 1 of 3 parts) will show you how to use algebraic notation to record your chess games and read the games of others.
For those of you who are new to chess, or wondering what chess players are like, I recommend the movie Searching for Bobby Fischer. I was talking with some friends last night (hi Tracey and Stan!), and the subject of the movie came up. I told them I would have to blog about it … and I was right! 🙂
This article is about the rules for how to draw a chess game.
A draw is a tie … neither player wins. Though a draw against a very strong player can feel very much like a win. You will often hear chess players brag of their draws … (“I got a draw against such and such grandmaster”).
Today’s article is about the rules of checkmate.
Checkmate is the object of the game. The object is not to have more pieces than your opponent; it is not to play the most beautiful game; it is to checkmate your opponent’s King.
Checkmate occurs when the King is in check (hopefully your opponent’s King) and he cannot get out of check by any of the possible means.
Here is a typical checkmate pattern.
Before we finish our review of the rules of chess, we have to look at the concept of check.
Check is any attack against a King. If a piece or pawn could capture the King on the next move, then the King is “in check.” The rules require that the King get out of check immediately. The rules also prohibit the King from moving into check or making any move that exposes him to check.
Today’s article is about Pawn promotion. And along with the rules about Pawn promotion, we will take a little step into endgame strategy.
The pawn is the lowly foot soldier of chess. And though it is the weakest of the pieces, it can have a huge impact on the outcome of a game. The gain of a single pawn can be enough to ensure victory in many positions.
This is the ninth in my series of articles about how the chess pieces move. This article will cover the rule about the en passant capture. My next article will cover the rule about pawn promotion, and then we’ll move on to the rules about check and checkmate. After that I plan to have a series of articles and videos on how to checkmate, which should be a lot of fun – be sure to look for that. Click the RSS feed button above to be notified through your favorite reader about updates to this blog!
There are a couple of matters that chess beginners (and even some advanced players) don’t completely understand about the rules for castling; this article should clear up those misconceptions.
Some players … usually brand new players … mistakenly believe that if the King has ever been checked, he loses the right to castle. This is not true. In order to lose the privilege of castling, the King must have moved. And by the way, it doesn’t matter if the King moved because it was in check, or just because it felt like taking a stroll. If the King moves, it can no longer castle; but a King that has been checked may still castle – provided it hasn’t moved.