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A pawn may move by vertically advancing to a vacant square ahead. The first time a pawn moves, it has the additional option of vertically advancing two squares, provided that both squares are vacant. Unlike other pieces, the pawn can only move forwards. In the second diagram, the pawn on c4 can move to c5; the pawn on e2 can move to either e3 ...
The pawn can also promote in the position on the right (if White is to move), after 1. h7. In practice, however, most of the time the black king can stop a rook pawn because it is usually close enough that the white king cannot prevent it from getting in front of the pawn (or capturing it).
Paradoxically, checkmate with two knights sometimes can be forced if the weaker side has a single extra pawn, but this is a curiosity of little practical value (see two knights endgame). Pawnless endgames are a rarity, and if the stronger side has even a single pawn, an extra knight should give them an easy win. A bishop can trap (although it ...
Hans Berliner puts the difference between a rook and knight as 1.9 pawns and the difference between a rook and a bishop as 1.77 pawns. [9] In practice, one pawn may be sufficient compensation for the loss of the exchange, whereas two pawns almost always is. [10]
A pawn is referred to by the file on which it stands: a rook pawn is on the a- or h-file, a knight pawn is on the b- or g-file, a bishop pawn is on the c- or f-file. A central pawn is a queen pawn or a king pawn, on the d- or e-file. When designating a position as a win or a draw, optimal play by both sides is assumed.
The second guideline has unusual consequences in some games. For example, in Knightmate, the knight is royal while the king is not, so the player may promote a pawn to a king but not to a knight. [62] In losing chess, the king is not royal, so a pawn can be promoted to a king.
Exchanges can appear in connection with practically any kind of attacking or defensive chess tactic or combination of tactics. Such tactics can involve checkmating the opponent, avoiding checkmate, gaining a material advantage, avoid losing more material than necessary, helping a pawn to promote, preventing an opponent's pawn promotion, or setting up a draw by any of a couple methods.
In the ending of a rook and pawn versus a rook, where the pawn is a knight pawn (b- or g-file), the defending king is in front of the pawn, but the defender cannot get his rook to the third rank for the drawing Philidor position, the defending rook draws on its first rank but loses if it is attacking the pawn from behind. [22] [23]