King safety
Chess ends when a king is checkmated. Being ahead in material does not help if your king can be mated in one move.
Castle early
At the start, the king sits in the middle (e1 or e8). Pawn exchanges open the center quickly, and the king becomes a target for rooks and queens. Once your knights and bishops are out, castle early: the king goes to the side and a rook comes toward the center.
When f7 (or f2) is attacked
Early in the game, only the king defends the pawn on f7. A white queen and bishop aiming at f7 together is an attack every beginner meets. Every move, check whether enemy pieces are aiming at the squares around your king.
After 1.e4 e5 2.Qh5 Nc6 3.Bc4
A good move …g6
The pawn chases the queen from h5 and also blocks its line to f7.
A common mistake …Nf6
This tries to chase the queen with the knight, but f7 is left undefended. White plays Qxf7#, checkmate.
The pawns in front of the king
After castling, the pawns in front of the king (f, g and h) are its shield. Moving them carelessly leaves holes for enemy pieces.
But if all three stay at home, the king has nowhere to go. A rook or queen check on the first rank (the eighth for Black) can then be mate: a back-rank mate. As the endgame nears, make one escape square with h3 (…h6 for Black).
A good move …h6
This makes an escape square on h7. If White checks with Re8+, the king steps to h7.
A common mistake …Rxb2
Grabbing a pawn allows Re8#. The three pawns in front of the king block every escape square.
Checklist for your games
- Before you move, look for every check your opponent could give next.
- Count how many squares around your king the enemy pieces attack.
- Before you grab material, check that your king cannot be mated afterwards.
Practice
Play in the chess dojo and get every move graded →