HINTS FOR BEGINNERS--ELEMENTARY COMBINATIONS
THE mental development of the chess player is a gradual struggle
from a state of chaos to a clear conception of the game. The
period required for such development largely depends upon the
special gifts the learner may possess, but in the main the
question of methods predominates. Most beginners do not trouble
very much about any particular plan in their study of chess, but
as soon as they have learnt the moves, rush into the turmoil of
practical play. It is self-evident that their prospects under
such conditions cannot be very bright. The play of a beginner is
planless, because he has too many plans, and the capacity for
subordinating all his combinations to one leading idea is non-
existent. Yet it cannot be denied upon investigation that a
certain kind of method is to be found in the play of all
beginners, and seems to come to them quite naturally. At first
the pawns are pushed forward frantically, because there is no
appreciation of the power and value of the pieces. Conscious of
the inferiority of the pawns, the beginner does not conclude that
it must be advantageous to employ the greater power of the
pieces, but is chiefly concerned with attacking the opposing
pieces with his pawns in the hope of capturing them. His aim is
not to develop his own forces, but to weaken those of his
opponent. His combinations are made in the hope that his
adversary may not see through them, nor does he trouble much
about his opponent’s intentions. When most of his pawns are gone,
then only do his pieces get their chance. He has a great liking
for the Queen and the Knight, the former because of her
tremendous mobility, the latter on account of his peculiar step,
which seems particularly adapted to take the enemy by surprise.
When watching beginners you will frequently observe numberless
moves by a peripatetic Queen, reckless incursions by a Knight
into the enemy’s camp, and when the other pieces join in the
fray, combination follows combination in bewildering sequence and
fantastic chaos. Captures of pieces are planned, mating nets are
woven, perhaps with two pieces, against a King’s position, where
five pieces are available for defence. This unsteadiness in the
first childish stages of development makes it very difficult for
the beginner to get a general view of the board. Yet the
surprises which each move brings afford him great enjoyment.
A few dozen such games are by no means wasted. After certain
particular dispositions of pieces have proved his undoing, the
beginner will develop the perception of threats. He sees dangers
one or two moves ahead, and thereby reaches the second stage in
his development.
His combinations will become more and more sound, he will learn
to value his forces more correctly, and therefore to husband his
pieces and even his pawns with greater care. In this second stage
his strength will increase steadily, but, and this is the
drawback, only as far as his power of combination is concerned.
Unless a player be exceptionally gifted, he will only learn after
years of practice, if at all, what may be termed “positional
play.” For that, it is necessary to know how to open a game so as
to lay the foundation for a favourable middle game, and how to
treat a middle game, without losing sight of the possibilities of
the end-game. It is hopeless to try to memorise the various
openings which analysis have proved correct, for this empirical
method fails as soon as the opponent swerves from the recognised
lines of play. One must learn to recognise the characteristics of
sound play. They apply to all and any position, and the
underlying principles must be propounded in a manner generally
applicable. And this brings me to the substance of my subject,
round which I will endeavour to build up a system compatible with
common sense and logic.
Before I proceed to develop my theme, I shall set down a number
of elementary rules which will facilitate the understanding of
such simple combinations as occur at every step in chess.
If we ignore the comparatively small proportion of games in which
the mating of the opponent’s King is accomplished on a full
board, we can describe a normal, average game of chess in the
following way. Both sides will employ their available forces more
or less advantageously to execute attacking and defensive
manœuvres which should gradually lead to exchanges. If one side
or the other emerges from the conflict with some material gain,
it will generally be possible to force a mate in the end-game,
whilst if both sides have succeeded by careful play to preserve
equality of material, a draw will generally ensue.
It will be found a little later that a single pawn may suffice,
with some few exceptions, to achieve a victory, and we shall
adopt the following leading principle for all combinations, viz.
loss of material must be avoided, even if only a pawn. It is a
good habit to look upon every pawn as a prospective Queen. This
has a sobering influence on premature and impetuous plans of
attack.
On the other hand, victory is often brought about by a timely
sacrifice of material.
But in such cases the sacrificing of material has its
compensation in some particular advantage of position. As
principles of position are difficult for beginners to grasp, I
propose to defer their consideration for the present and to
devote my attention first to such combinations as involve
questions of material. Let us master a simple device that makes
most combinations easy both for attack and defence. It amounts
merely to a matter of elementary arithmetic, and if the beginner
neglects it, he will soon be at a material disadvantage.
Diagram 4 may serve as an example:
---------------------------------------
8 | | | | | #R | | | #K |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | #P | #P | #Q | #Kt| #R | | #P | |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | #Kt| #B | #P | | | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | | ^P | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | ^P | | ^Kt| | ^Kt| | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | ^B | | ^Q | ^R | | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | ^R | | ^K | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 4.
It is Black’s move, and we will suppose he wishes to play P-K4. A
beginner will probably calculate thus: I push on my pawn, he
takes with his pawn, my Knight takes, so does his, then my Bishop
takes, and so on. This is quite wrong, and means waste of time
and energy.
When the beginner considers a third or fourth move in such a
combination, he will already have forgotten which pieces he
intended to play in the first moves. The calculation is perfectly
simple upon the following lines: I play P-K4, then my pawn is
attacked by a pawn and two Knights, a Bishop and two Rooks, six
times in all. It is supported by a Bishop, two Knights, two Rooks
and a Queen, six times in all. Therefore I can play P-K4,
provided the six units captured at K4 are not of greater value
than the six white units which are recaptured. In the present
instance both sides lose a pawn, two Knights, two Rooks, and a
Bishop, and there is no material loss. This established, he can
embark on the advance of the KP without any fear.
Therefore: in any combination which includes a number of
exchanges on one square, all you have to do is to count the
number of attacking and defending units, and to compare their
relative values; the latter must never be forgotten. If Black
were to play KtxP in the following position, because the pawn at
K 5 is attacked three times, and only supported twice, it would
be an obvious miscalculation, for the value of the defending
pieces is smaller.[2]
[2] It is difficult to compare the relative value of the different
pieces, as so much depends on the peculiarities of each position,
but, generally speaking, minor pieces, Bishop and Knight, are
reckoned as equal; the Rook as equal to a minor piece and one or
two pawns (to have a Rook against a minor piece, is to be the
“exchange” ahead). The Queen is equal to two Rooks or three minor
pieces.
---------------------------------------
8 | | | | | #R | | #K | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | | | #P | | #R | | #P | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | #P | |#Kt | | #P | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | ^P | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | ^P | | | |^Kt | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | ^P | ^B | | | | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | ^R | | ^K | | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 5.
Chess would be an easy game if all combinations could be tested
and probed exhaustively by the mathematical process just shown.
But we shall find that the complications met with are extremely
varied. To give the beginner an idea of this, I will mention a
few of the more frequent examples. It will be seen that the
calculation may be, and very frequently
---------------------------------------
8 | | | #R | | | #R | #K | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | #P | | | | | #P | #P | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | #P | #B | ^R | |#Kt | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | #P | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | ^P | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | ^B | ^P | | |^Kt | | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | | ^P | | | | ^P | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | ^R | | ^K | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 6.
is, upset by one of the pieces involved being exchanged or
sacrificed. An example of this is found in Diagram 6; KtxP
---------------------------------------
8 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | | | | | | | #P | #K |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | #B | #P | | | | | | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | #P | ^P |#Kt | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | ^P | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | | |^Kt | | ^B | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | | | | | | | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | ^K | | | | | | | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 7.
fails on account of R X B; this leaves the Knight unprotected,
and White wins two pieces for his Rook. Neither can the Bishop
capture on K5 because of R X Kt. leaving the Bishop unprotected,
after which BxKt does not retrieve the situation because the Rook
recaptures from B6.
A second important case, in which our simple calculation is of no
avail, occurs in a position where one of the defending pieces is
forced away by a threat, the evasion of which is more important
than the capture of the unit it defends. In Diagram 7, for
instance, Black may not play KtxP, because White, by playing P-
Q6, would force the Bishop to Kt4 or B1, to prevent the pawn from
Queening and the Knight would be lost. A further example of the
same type is given in Diagram 8. Here a peculiar mating threat,
which occurs not
---------------------------------------
8 | | | #B | | #Q | #R | | #K |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | | | | |#Kt | | #P | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | #P |^Kt | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | ^R | |^Kt | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | ^Q | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | | | | | | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | | | ^K | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 8.
infrequently in practical play, keeps the Black Queen tied to her
KB2 and unavailable for the protection of the B at BI.
White wins as follows:
1. KtxB, KtxKt; 2. RxKt, QxR; 3. Kt-B7ch, K-Kt1; 4. Kt-R6 double
ch, K-R1; 5 Q-Kt8ch, RxQ; 6. Kt-B7 mate.
We will now go a step further and turn from “acute” combinations
to such combinations as are, as it were, impending. Here, too,
I urgently recommend beginners (advanced players do it as a
matter of course) to proceed by way of simple arithmetical
calculations, but, instead of enumerating the attacking and
defending pieces, to count the number of possibilities of attack
and defence.
Let us consider a few typical examples. In Diagram 9, if Black
plays P-Q5, he must first have probed the position in the
following way. The pawn at Q5 is attacked once and supported once
to start with, and can be attacked by three more White units in
three more moves (1. R-Q1, 2. R(B2)-Q2, 3. B-B2) Black can also
mobilise three more units for the defence in the same number of
moves (1. Kt-B4 or K3, 2. B-Kt2, 3. R-Q1). There is,
consequently, no immediate danger, nor is there anything to fear
for some time to come, as White has no other piece which could
attack the pawn for the fifth time.
---------------------------------------
8 | | | | | #R | #B | #K | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | #P | #P | | #R | | |#Kt | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | | | | | #P | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | #P | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | ^P | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | ^P |^Kt | | | | ^P | ^B | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | | | ^R | | | | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | ^R | | | | ^K | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 9.
It would be obviously wrong to move the pawn to Q6 after White’s
R-Q1, because White could bring another two pieces to bear on the
P, the other Rook and the Knight, whilst Black has only one more
piece available for the defence, namely, his Rook.
The following examples show typical positions, in which simple
calculation is complicated by side issues.
In Diagram 10, the point of attack, namely, the Black Knight at
KB3, can be supported by as many Black units as White can bring
up for the attack, but the defensive efficiency of one of Black’s
pieces is illusory, because it can be taken by a White piece. The
plan would be as follows: White threatens Black’s Knight for the
third time with Kt-K4, and Black must reply QKt-Q2, because
covering with R-K3 would cost the “exchange,” as will appear from
a comparison of the value of the pieces concerned. The “exchange”
is, however, lost for Black on the next move, because
---------------------------------------
8 | #R | #Kt| #B | #Q | #R | | #K | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | | #P | #P | | | #P | #B | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | #P | | | #P | | #Kt| #P | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | ^Kt| #P | | ^B | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | ^P | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | ^B | | | ^P | | ^Kt| |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | ^P | ^P | | | ^P | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | ^R | | | ^Q | | ^R | ^K | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 10
White’s further attack on the Knight by Q-B3 forces the Rook to
defend on K3, where it gets into the diagonal of the Bishop,
which at present is masked by White’s Knight. The sequel would be
3. QKtxKtch, RxKt (not BxKt on account of BxR winning a whole
Rook), 4. BxR, and so on. A similar case is shown in Diagram 11.
---------------------------------------
8 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | #P | #K | #P | #Kt| | | #P | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | #P | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | ^Kt| | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | | ^B | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | ^P | | ^P | | | ^P | ^P | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | #B | | | | | | | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | | | ^K | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 11
Here, too, there is a flaw in the simple calculation, because the
defending units are not secure. Beginners should devote special
attention to this position, which is in practice of frequent
occurrence.
It can be easily perceived that the Bishop cannot capture the
pawn at B7 on account of P-QR3. But to take with the Knight would
also be an error, because Black would then keep chasing away the
covering Bishop.
1. P-Kt4; 2. B-Q6, K-B3; 3. Kt-K8, B-B2; and wins one of the
pieces.
Finally, one more example, in which one of the defending pieces
being pinned makes simple calculation impracticable.
In Diagram 12 it seems at first sight as if Black could play
KtxP: although White can pin the Knight with R-K1
---------------------------------------
8 | #R | | #B | | #K | | | #R |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | #P | #P | | | | #Kt| #P | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | #P | #Kt| | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | ^P | ^Kt| | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | | | | | ^B | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | ^P | | | | | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | ^R | ^Kt| | | | ^R | ^K | |
---------------------------------------
A B C D E F G H
Diag. 12
and then attack it once more with his Knight, Black would appear
to have sufficient protection available, with his Kt and B. White
has no time to double Rooks, because if he does so, after his R-
K2 Black would play the King away from his file and allow the
Knight to escape.
But White can, by a simple sacrifice, bring the slumbering R at
R1 into sudden action:
1. ... KtxP; 2 R-K1, B-B4; 3. Kt-B3, Kt-Q3; 4. RxKt, KtxR; 5. R-
K1, and White wins two pieces for his Rook.
These illustrations will be sufficient to give the beginner an
understanding of economy of calculation in all kinds of
combinations. His power of combining will grow speedily on this
basis, and thrive in the fire of practical experience. Where an
opponent is missing, the gap must be filled by reference to such
books as treat of the science of combination and give examples
taken from actual play.