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CHESS STRATEGY

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Basics

Pieces

Tactics

Openings

Middle Game

End Game

Glossary

	Opportunities to exchange different kinds of pieces come up all the time in a game of chess. To determine whether or not a given exchange is favorable, the following system is widely used. A pawn is given a value of 1 point, and the other pieces are given values in terms of approximately how many pawns they are worth. These values are: knight 3, bishop 3, rook 5, queen 9. A king, of course, is priceless (its "combat" effectiveness, though, is a little better than a knight's). In reality, piece values vary with the position and the stage of the game. The above values are fairly accurate for endgames, where a rook is generally equal to a minor piece and two pawns; but in the opening and middle game, a rook is worth only about a pawn more than a minor piece. Bishops are better than knights in most endgame positions and in middle games with open lines, while knights are superior in closed, blockaded positions or when all the pawns are on one side of the board. A knight supported by a pawn on an advanced outpost (fifth or sixth rank) from which it cannot be driven away by a pawn or other minor piece has a value close to that of a rook. In the opening and middle game, center pawns are the most valuable and pawns on the edges the least valuable. A doubled pawn is worth less than two ordinary pawns, and often becomes a target for attack. A passed pawn has extra value, which increases dramatically the farther it advances: As a rule of thumb, when it is supported and safe from capture, a passed pawn is worth about a minor piece on the sixth rank and a rook on the seventh rank.  Back to Top Material, or force, is only one measure of a player's assets in a position. Two other important measures are time and space. In this position, White is a knight behind but is far ahead in development. White has gained several tempi over black--a tempo being a unit of time equal to one move. White has good prospects despite having one fewer piece.  Back to Top In the following position, White has another kind of advantage: space. The black pieces have only two or three ranks on which to maneuver, while the white forces have four or five. This means more limited options for Black, and a more difficult position to play. Force, time, and space can be converted into one another. A common tactic, for example, is to give up a pawn to gain time--that is, while the opponent spends two or three moves capturing the pawn and getting his piece that made the capture back to safety, a player may be able to move his or her pieces to better squares and build an attack.  Back to Top