Even trades can also be good if there is a good strategic reason (such as opening up a cramped position,
or trading a piece in a bad position for a better-positioned opponent’s piece).
Twenty Commandments
of the Middlegame
1. Make the best possible move! Look carefully at the square to which you want to move to
be sure the square is safe. This is the mistake most commonly made by beginners. Be
especially careful to watch out for your opponent’s knights!
2. The four questions.
Ask these questions before EVERY MOVE:
a. Do I have a piece in trouble (that my opponent can capture)?
b. Does my opponent have a piece in trouble (that I can capture)?
c. Why did my opponent move there? What is he/she trying to do?
d. Am I moving to a better square? (safe and better for offense or defense)
e. (As you improve, add this fifth question): Are there any weaknesses in my opponent’s
position I can take advantage of? (e.g., an unprotected piece, or two pieces on the
same file, rank or diagonal)
3. Get in the habit of counting. First, remember what the pieces are worth. Memorize this if
you haven’t yet. Otherwise you won’t know when to trade pieces.
Queen=9; rook=5; bishop=3; knight=3; pawn=1.
4. More on counting: If the piece you are moving can be captured after your move, can you
capture the attacking piece afterwards? And if you do, will still another capture follow?
Often pressure builds on a square and captures are followed by several re-captures. Figure out
who will be ahead when the capturing is over. Your chess “vision” will improve with time.
For example, can White capture three times in a row on e5 in the following position?
The concepts below may be taught sequentially or
as they come up in game reviews or guided game
play. Explain that they are not immutable, despite
being labeled “Commandments.”
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Answer: Yes.
White should capture on e5 with the pawn
(not the rook!), because it wins a pawn, or a
piece if Black persists in recapturing:
l. fxe5 fxe5
2. dxe5 Bxe5
3. Rxe5
PGN28
What about in the following position—should White capture three times on e5?
5. So when two of your pieces are able to capture an opponent’s piece, take with the piece
of least value. (Send in the infantry first, and the cavalry and air power only later!)
6. Move your rooks to open files, where no pawn or piece is blocking the way, if you can.
Rooks love open files!
7. Try to establish a solid position. Put your pieces on “active squares,” where they have
maximum attacking power. Are your pieces moving forward, in a position to help each
other, but still protected? Try to accumulate small advantages. Try to increase the pressure
against your opponent’s pieces and king.
8. Avoid moving too quickly. When you see a good move, wait. Look for a better one.
9. Do not put your opponent’s king in check unless you have a good reason. Good reasons
include gaining time (tempo), achieving a better position for the attacking piece, or creating
a double attack (e.g., attacking another piece while also putting your opponent’s king in
check).
10. Similarly, avoid useless attacks on other pieces. Don’t do it unless there is a reason. If
they can simply move out of the way (or, worse yet, move to a better square), what have you
gained? And don’t bother using valuable pieces to attack your opponent’s less valuable,
protected pieces.
11. Fight for your pawns. They can often make the difference in a close game. In the endgame, a one-
pawn advantage can be decisive.
12. Look to develop double attacks. Any time you can attack two pieces at once (including
the king), you have a good chance of capturing one of them.
Answer: No.
l. fxe5 fxe5
(So far, so good for White,
but now both 2. Rxe5 and
2. Qxe5 lose material)
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PGN29
13. Build “batteries,” in which two pieces are on the same line, with the rear piece supporting
the attack of the forward piece. The queen is often involved in a battery, either leading or
backing up a bishop or rook.
14. Try to “connect” your rooks, which means having them on the same rank or file. This may
permit them to attack an opponent’s piece without risk of being taken, and positions them
for decisive end-game attacks and sacrifices. For example:
15. Have a plan. For example, when you have developed well enough that you are prepared
to begin an attack, decide whether to attack on the kingside or the queenside. Then position
your pieces so that they are attacking the same side. Or, if you are ready to attack your
opponent’s king, plan to attack with more than one piece. (Attacking with one piece rarely
works.)
16. Think about pawn structure. For example, “pawn chains” (connected pawns on a diagonal)
are much better than doubled or tripled pawns (on the same file). “Isolated” pawns (unable
to be defended by other pawns on either side) are easy for your opponent to pick off, so try
to avoid getting them. Think of each of your pawns as a potential future queen. If they
protect each other, you will have more pawns left for the endgame.
17. Know when to trade pieces. This was covered above, but it’s important enough to be repeated.
Trade pieces of even value when you are ahead, not when you are behind.
Trading a piece for a better piece generally makes sense.
If you are even in material, an even trade may make sense if you have a badly-positioned
piece (e.g. a trapped piece, a “bad” bishop, or doubled pawns) and your opponent’s piece
is putting pressure on you.
At the end of the middlegame, if you are trying to win by promoting a pawn, try to trade
all pieces except for your pawns.
The opposite is true for the defender. If you are trying to keep your opponent form
winning by promoting a pawn, trade as many pawns as possible and keep the other
pieces on the board.
21
Black is winning the “point count”
and if it were Black’s move, Black could
play 1…Qxe2! 2.Rxe2 Rd1+ 3.Re1 Rxe1#.
But White to move uses her doubled rooks
on the e-file to win: 1.Re8+ Rxe8 2.Rxe8#
PGN30
18. Concentrate and be alert! Don’t fiddle with your pieces or let yourself be distracted by
other activity in the room. Bobby Fischer said the biggest difference between him and his
opponents was that he gave 90% of his attention to the game. He thought most players gave
as little as 30%.
19. Don’t relax if you are ahead. With one careless move, you can lose the advantage quickly.
20. If you are behind, don’t give up! Keep making strong moves, and hope your opponent will
give you an opportunity to catch up. (This happens often in games between beginners.)
Where there’s life, there’s hope. So don’t resign, even if you’re pretty sure you’ll lose.
Look at your situation as an opportunity to practice defense and at least postpone your loss.
If you’re playing with a clock, maybe you’ll win on time!
Basic Tactics
Introduction. Chess coaches uniformly recognize the importance of tactics, and there are many
ways to teach them. Coaches who teach with computers often have favorite tactics software or
websites. Several that are highly regarded are Think Like a King, CT-ART 5.0, Chesskid.com,
and Chesstempo.com.
If you teach with a conventional demo board, the sections which follow should give your students
a good start. (We have these diagrams available in electronic form (PGN) on the Chicago Chess
Foundation website on the resources page.)
Forks. Look for situations where your pieces can attack two of your opponent’s pieces at the same
time. One type of fork occurs when two of your opponent’s pieces are on the same rank or file
(where they can both be attacked by a rook or queen) or on the same diagonal (where they can both
be attacked by a bishop). Be on the lookout for these patterns.
(White is to move in all of the examples that follow.)
Qa4+ Qb1+ Re4+
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PGN31 PGN32 PGN33
Kd4 Bf6 Bxd5+
Ng5+ Nc7+ Qg4+
Bxe4+ e6+ Kd5
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PGN34 PGN35 PGN36
PGN37 PGN38 PGN39
PGN40 PGN41 PGN42
Qxe6+ Nd5+
Pins. Look for (or create) situations in which an opponent’s piece cannot move because to do so
would leave the king in check (an “absolute” pin) or leave another valuable piece open to attack
(a “relative” pin). The pinned piece cannot be used by your opponent, and is also open to further
attack.
Bd5 Ra7 Kf4
Bg5 Kd5 Bh3
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