Understanding Chess Tactics

Transcription

1 Undestanding Chess Tactics Matin Weteschnik Quality Chess

2 Contents List of symbols 4 Peface 5 What is this book about? 7 Intoduction 13 1 Becoming familia with the pieces! 17 2 The pin 23 3 The discoveed attack 51 4 The Reloade 77 5 The double attack 87 6 Mate Gain of tempo/intemediate move The X-ay attack Opening and closing lines Status examination 177 Solutions to execises 219 Indexes 232

3 What is this book about? Chess is a visual game. A chess playe must be able to ecognise elementay pattens, theefoe the tactics in this book will be pimaily explained gaphically. This appoach is suppoted by a lage numbes of diagams, which will also allow the eade to study this book without a chessboad. Chess is also a game of logic. Logic, in the same way as chess tactics, depends on collecting and pocessing infomation. This book will show you how to accuately find the elements of tactics, and wok with them ceatively. This book is divided into the following pats: Chapte 1 Becoming familia with the pieces! k pzpp0 6pvL lt-+-0 4Pzp QzPq0 2-zP-+-zP-zP0 1+-tR-+-mK-0 1.g4! It is an illusion to assume that afte 1.g4 the black queen could take the white queen. The black queen cannot move, because she is defending against c1-c8 mate. That is also why the black bishop has no time to take the white queen. In this chapte you will lean (among othe things) to safeguad youself against illusions of this kind. Chapte 2 The pin mk0 7zpl+-wq zp-+-zp zpzp-zp P+0 3wQP+R P+-+-zPP+0 1+L+-+-+K h7! Thee is much moe to know about the pin than might appea at fist sight h7 looks like a mistake because of 2. h3 but... The theme of this chapte is the chain of thee points that constitutes the fomation of a pin: The pin s inteaction with othe pieces and squaes on the boad. How to ecognise the pin if it is in a peliminay state (only two points out of thee).

4 8 Undestanding Chess Tactics Chapte 3 The discoveed attack tR-+-+-zpk0 6P+p zPp+-+q p zPzPp0 2-wQ-+-zP-zP K f7 This time the taget of the discoveed attack is a squae. The fomation h5- f3-d1 is the same fomation as the pin. Detailed infomation about what constitutes a discoveed attack and how to ceate and stike with the discoveed attack ae demonstated in this chapte. Chapte 4 The eloade 8-tR-++k zp-0 6p+-wQ-wq-+0 5+p+P+-mK zP0 3zP zP This is the end of a nice combination by Wold Champion Tal. The black queen gave check on f6 focing White to take. But the black pawn will take back with a check and eload itself with deadly foce. What the fist piece occupying f6 (the black queen) did not achieve on this squae, the following piece will do. The eloading of pieces is explained hee and - stangely enough - (and desevedly!) ecognised as a tactical motif in its own ight and finally given a name in chess liteatue.

5 What is this book about? 9 Chapte 5 The double attack k R+-zpp p+n+-0 4P+p+-+Q wqP KzP L+-0 White has just played g3-g4? unning into a double attack e6! The boxed-in squaes show the tagets of the f5. The encicled squae on e3 is the point fom whee the knight stikes e6 wins the necessay tempo against the undefended d7. An easy example, but this chapte will also eveal to you the fine points of this motif. Chapte 6 Mate 8-t-++k+0 7zp-+-+pzpp0 6-wqp zPl vl-zP-+0 3+PzP P+-vLQ+PzP0 1+-mKR+-sNR ed8! Knowledge of mating pattens (hee a + mate) is essential. This chapte will teach you all of the impotant ones. But thee is moe to it than just executing the mates. Giving mate is a subtle at. O why do you think the tactical giant Andessen played 1... ed8 in the above position?

6 10 Undestanding Chess Tactics Chapte 7 Gain of tempo/intemediate move 8-mk-+-+-t0 7+l+p q+-wQ-+0 5+R+p+-zp-0 4-vL-zP zP-+-+-zP R+K xh2 The tempo lets us find efficient ways to bing ou pieces to squaes othewise impossible with a nomal timetable. Unde enomous pessue himself, Black finds time to tansfe his queen via c2 to the mating squae h7. This chapte will tell you how to make combinations possible in the nick of time. Othe elated themes ae also investigated in this chapte. Chapte 8 The X-ay attack 8-+Rt-+-mk zpp Q wq PzP K0 1. e8 Simple but effective: the X-ay attack! This small chapte shows you how this fequently misundestood little motif can clealy be detected and utilised.

7 What is this book about? 11 Chapte 9 Opening and closing lines (Lines of communication) 8-+l pzP-+kvlp zpp+0 5+p+-zp zP-+PzP zP LzP0 1vL-+-+-mK-0 1. h3! Lines fo attack o defence, lines between pieces, squaes and tasks, lines to open, lines to close and inteupt ae the stoy of this chapte. Realise the impotance of you pieces woking togethe and lean how to cut off you opponent s pieces fom thei colleagues. Taget squae = h4-f2 Chapte 10 Status Examination 8-+l+-+k wqp+p0 6p+-zp-+p P Pzp-zPn LtNzPn0 2PzPQvL-+KzP tR +-0 e3 = taget of Not defending h4 Not defending e1 (because e3) double attack (because e1) 1... xf4! In the final chapte we will lean how to oganise and effectively pune the calculation pocess when woking with tactics. This chapte bings it all togethe: fom the easy questions such as How many (eteating) squaes does a piece have? to finding complex combinations like the one above.

8 13 Intoduction Tactics can be boken down into basic elements and systematically analysed. Theefoe eveybody should be able to undestand tactics and use tactics successfully in his o he games. Wold Champion Steinitz once pointed out that combinations ae not coincidences o stokes of genius but the esults of concete positions. He taught us how to analyse any given position fo its elements. The same method used to analyse positions can be applied to combinations. They too can be boken down into thei elements. Although tactics sometimes can be vey complicated, thee is good news: tactics consist of basic elements that can be leaned like a language o mathematics. Some yeas ago I tained fo about two yeas with the fome taine of Pete Leko, Tibo Kaolyi. With Tibo I mainly studied openings, middlegame stategy, and endgames. Duing this time I also solved a lot of combinations to shapen my tactical skills. I had developed my own little outine. Wheneve I thought I had discoveed some mechanism o chaacteistic of a position, I stated taking notes. The wok on thousands of positions gew fist into a collection of unsoted tactical insights, but finally esulted in a stuctued oveview of tactics. Ove time seemingly unconnected infomation tuned into a coheent concept. The book you ae now holding in you hands is my attempt to communicate this undestanding of tactics. Most of the positions discussed in this book ae oiginal positions fom my notes. It does not eally matte fo teaching puposes whethe these examples ae well known o not. Howeve, my expeience when teaching club playes is that most playes did not know these positions. When I was asked to tain a local club team, I thought it might be a good idea to have a look at thei games fom a team championship in ode to find out about thei playing stength. I saw the following position k+0 7zp-+lsn-tp0 6-zp-wq-+p+0 5+-zpptR-sN zP-wQ-+0 3zP-zP-+-zP-0 2-zP-+R+KzP White is a piece down but has just played h4-f4, and I wondeed why they wee asking fo taining if they could play moves like this! Black obviously did not know what was going on, as he now played: 1... c6?! Now I was expecting White to win back his piece. Supisingly the playe fom my futue club moved his queen back to h4. Now I knew they definitely needed my help. Let us look at the diagam again: k+0 7zp-+-sn-tp0 6-zplwq-+p+0 5+-zpptR-sN zP-wQ-+0 3zP-zP-+-zP-0 2-zP-+R+KzP Afte studying this book, you will immediately ealise the combinative idea of the solution to the diagam position. It is the typical patten fo a discoveed attack. The game should have continued:

9 14 Undestanding Chess Tactics 2. xe7 xf xe7 3. xe7 gxe7 is equal. 3. xe8 xe8 4. xe8 f8 5. xf8 xf8 6. e6 Foking king and ook mk-+0 7zp-+-+-tp0 6-zp-+N+p+0 5+-zpp zP zP-zP-+-zP-0 2-zP-+-+KzP Fom being a piece down at the beginning of the combination, White could have foced an equal pawn endgame. To calculate this ove the boad might have been difficult fo you. Nevetheless, with the knowledge of this patten (the discoveed attack) you might have found it afte all. This book will teach you two things: 1. It will systematically intoduce you to all the elementay pattens and tactical fomations 2. It will teach you how to ceate and use them in you games Anothe game fom this club will illustate quite damatically what happens when a playe is not familia with the basic pattens and elementay motifs. Witt Hoellwath Gemany t-+k+0 7zpp+q+pzp-0 6-+pt-+-zp vlQ0 4-+-zP LzP PzP-+R+PzP tR-mK-0 In this position thee ae thee ways to win mateial: 1. e7 (motif: line inteuption) xe7 2. xf7 h8 3. xe7 xe7 4. xe7 and White wins. 1. xf7 xf7 2. e8 xe8 3. xe8 (motif: X- ay attack) 3... f8 4. xf8 and White wins. 1. xf7 xf7 (motif: pin) 2. e8 xe8 3. xe8 h7 4. xf7 and White is a pawn up but stuck with opposite coloued bishops. Holge Witt, the tanslato of this book, booded ove the boad fo half an hou and found an ingenious fouth possibility: losing the game... A few weeks late Holge, who had just stated to tanslate this book, was playing in a tounament. A couple of days befoe this tounament he had been woking on the chapte on double attacks. The basic patten in mind, he had aleady seen a possible double attack on c2 against king and bishop. Finally the time had come to cash in on the idea he had been habouing in his mind fo quite a while. This book will: 1. Intoduce you to all the elementay pattens and tactical fomations. This book will: 2. Teach you how to ceate and use these pattens in you games.

10 Intoduction 15 Schwappach Witt Deizisau k q+-zp-0 6p+-+-+Pzp0 5+pvlP+p+P nzP-+0 3+P+RsN-+Q0 2PvL-+-+K R+-0 The black bishop took the knight xe3 Eliminating the defende of the c2-squae. Afte his opponent took back on e3 with his queen: 2. xe3 Holge finished the game with the decisive double attack: 2... c2 The diffeence between the two games was that Holge had leaned to ecognise a basic tactical patten, which he then used in the game. As in the pevious example, most amateu chess games ae decided tactically. Theefoe, the quickest way to impove you chess is to study tactics. Howeve, solving tactical puzzles without fully undestanding the undelying mechanisms is not the most efficient way to lean. Rathe than offeing yet anothe compilation of combinations to solve, you will undestand the elements of combinations. Do not execise what you do not undestand! Look how ticky Holge became. In the following position he is using tactics to impove the position of his bishop. Rotemund Witt Fankfut t-+k+0 7+p+lvl-+-0 6pwqn+p+p p+-0 4-zP-zP zP-+LzPN+-0 2Q+-+N+P+0 1tR-+-+RmK e8! If White takes on e6 with 2. xe6, Black would simply answe 2... f7 simultaneously coveing the check and tapping White s queen. Woking though this book will help to impove you undestanding and you esults just like the playes of the club I coached. On aveage the playes impoved by one to two hunded ating points and the club s team has been pomoted twice in thee yeas to a highe league. And maybe one day you will be able to uncok tactical champagne like this: 8-+-t-tk+0 7+-zp-+pzpp0 6p+N pzP zp zP-+lwq-0 2PzPL+-+P+0 1tRNwQ-+-tRK0 White to move

11 16 Undestanding Chess Tactics Black is theatening mate with... h3 o... h4. Obviously White is despeately looking fo a good eply. Again you notice the visual and obvious stuctual components of a tactical motif: thee pieces in a ow constitute a pin, hee ook, queen, and king. Based on this basic patten of a pin, White found the answe: 20. h6!! With this move White coves both theats and is theatening mate on h7 himself. If Black took the queen, White would simply take the bishop on f3, winning back his queen with a mateial advantage. I am sue that by eading this book you will undestand elementay tactics completely and you will successfully implement them in you games. Since this is not just a tactical puzzle book, I puposely did not give detailed analysis fo each position unless I thought it necessay. Fo a successful jouney though this book I would advise you to concentate on eading and undestanding athe than solving the poblems. Consequently, you will find a lot of diagams in this book enabling you to ead it without a chessboad. You will benefit most fom this book when you ead though the entie mateial fist and then go back to study cetain themes moe closely. My own expeience taught me that I have touble finishing a chess book when I lose myself in unnecessaily detailed analysis. I have ead many of the classics fom stat to finish, such as Steinitz, Taasch, Laske, Nimzowitsch, Reti, Capablanca, Alekhine, Spielmann, Tatakowe, Kmoch, Euwe, Avebakh, Bonstein, Fische and Vukovic. But, apat fom them, my bookshelf is a gaveyad fo unfinished chess books featuing endless vaiations and sidelines. At the end of each chapte fou execises ae given. Do not despai if you cannot solve many of them. Some ae athe demanding. As aleady mentioned, this book is not an execise book. Conside the execises as small lectues: they help you to undestand the subjects of the peceding chapte. Undestanding is the fist and most impotant step. If you ae willing to take anothe then you have to pactise combinations and ventue into pactical play. This book will endow you with all the necessay tactical tools.