Questions tagged [kings]

Questions relating to the King

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Is it possible to capture a queen directly in front of the king? [duplicate]

Can the king capture a queen directly in front of him when he is in check ?
Gene's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
222 views

Checkmate with two bishops of same colour

Is it possible to checkmate King with two bishops of same colour in the endgame?. Is it possible in Chess to get this position in reality? Position: King with Two bishops of same colour V/S King.
Prashant Akerkar's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
88 views

Double steel king

For a few examples of a king walk, see Tim Krabbe's site. Do you have an example where both kings go haywire? (Found this own game in my old chess zines, but since the heavy material is just a Q plus ...
Hauke Reddmann's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
174 views

If I remove a king from one side, which side has an advantage?

If I remove a king from one side, which side has an advantage? Say, the losing condition will change for that side to "no pieces left". Removing king = one less way to lose, but an extra ...
voismager's user avatar
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7 votes
2 answers
1k views

What is the required material to force a king move checkmate?

A fun thing to do is to try to achieve specific "achievements" (like these) in real games. One such achievement is to checkmate with a king move. As the king itself obviously can't deliver ...
SE - stop firing the good guys's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
342 views

Can a king capture a piece in front of the enemy king [duplicate]

Can I eat a piece in front of the enemy king with my king? For example: My king was on b6, the enemy knight was on b5, and the enemy king was behind the knight on b4. So can I capture the knight with ...
Raneem's user avatar
  • 11
7 votes
1 answer
700 views

With regards to the safety of the king when castling kingside

Basically, I want to keep my king safe after a kingside castle. I want to avoid this: 8/8/8/8/8/8/5PPP/2r3K1 w - - 0 1 The configuration is such that none of my pieces can access the f1 square. I ...
insipidintegrator's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
111 views

I don't understand why this scenario is checkmate. The black rook cannot move, as it's protecting black king. Can someone explain? See photo [duplicate]

So in this scenario the White Queen put the black king in check, which was then blocked by the black rook. So, how is it that the black queen moving to the position of F1 is considered checkmate? The ...
Braxton Wheeler's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
449 views

History of convention for king & queen placement

As stated in this question, the convention that the player with the lighter-coloured pieces makes the first move was not established until fairly late in the 19th century. Before then, what convention ...
Rosie F's user avatar
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7 votes
5 answers
5k views

Is endangering the king a good strategy in some positions?

According to Wikipedia, "any chess piece except the king may be sacrificed". However, I am wondering,if in some rare situations, whether endangering the king can also be a good strategy. ...
Zuriel's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
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Is this king in checkmate?

Consider this chess board set up: Is the black king allowed to move to B4 or D4? The knight on C6 would put their white king in check if it moves. I haven't really read any rules about this so ...
parhine's user avatar
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10 votes
1 answer
1k views

Developing the king before developing most of your pieces

I saw this opening for the first time and was amazed by the position of the white king. [FEN "?"] [startply "21"] 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. h4 h6 5. g4 Bd7 6. h5 e6 7. f4 c5 ...
Zuriel's user avatar
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0 votes
0 answers
62 views

Can someone explain why this is checkmate for white? Can a king put another king into checkmate? [duplicate]

I am just learning to play chess so bear with me please :). I understand that the black king cannot move to d8 or f8 because of the white rook, nor d7 or f8 because of the white bishop. But why can it ...
leowil74's user avatar
11 votes
1 answer
2k views

Series of illegal moves in check

This question falls under FIDE rules (USCF answers/comments welcome). If I make an illegal move leaving myself and my opponent in check, hit the clock and my opponent misses it and then continues play ...
Aaron's user avatar
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-1 votes
2 answers
1k views

If not in check, can a king capture an opposing chess piece?

If a king is not in check, can it capture an opposing chess piece?
Ron Huerth's user avatar
4 votes
3 answers
2k views

Is this an illegal chess move?

Can the White king move to g2 to checkmate? 8/8/8/8/4Q3/7k/5K2/8 w - - 0 1 1. Kg2
ImABigDummy's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
275 views

Is it possible to reach King vs King by moving each piece at most twice?

I'm interested in short games that reach a King vs King endgame. Sam Lloyd reached King vs King after only 17 moves. This has since been improved to 16.5 moves. (See this and that.) One can show that ...
Dustin G. Mixon's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
1k views

Why was this stalemate?

I'm new to chess and I don't have much knowledge. But I was playing a game as Black, and I was up by a lot of material and played Nxc4 to capture White's last bishop. The game ended in a stalemate, ...
TiagoRibeiro's user avatar
11 votes
3 answers
5k views

I'm new to chess-what should be done here to win the game?

[FEN "8/8/8/8/3k1KB1/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"] I am new to chess and have no clue as to how to win this game. Which moves can be done with what is on the board in order to win? Could anyone explain?...
Dick Rogbi's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
506 views

The King's ability to promote a piece

If the King makes it to the eighth rank and then back to the first rank, can he promote a piece like a pawn can when it reaches the eighth rank?
Susan Graves's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
276 views

Using a check-preventing piece to protect the checkmating piece

Let's say that a piece is protecting my king from check, i.e. blocked or pinned. For example, my rook is in the way of my opponent's queen in checking my king. Can I checkmate their king with another ...
Mathew Lionnet's user avatar
1 vote
3 answers
4k views

King + Queen vs. King + Queen - is this a draw?

Black and white both have one queen and the king. Is this game a draw?
frontEdition's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
152 views

Endgame theory question

Let us look at an endgame where White has 8 pawns, and Black has the e/d-pawn missing. How can White win this endgame if both sides play perfectly? I am having a little trouble.
user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
384 views

Checkmate with 3 bishops vs 1 bishop

I know that you can mate with two bishops, but I do not know whether it is possible if White has 3 bishops, and Black has 1 bishop. Is there a general method? If so, is it possible for White to ...
user avatar
14 votes
2 answers
1k views

What is Indian Castling exactly?

Western castling doesn’t exist in historical Indian Chess (Chaturanga). Instead, in some versions, there is a cool move whereby each king can once in the game make a knight's move. I read that it is ...
Laska's user avatar
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3 votes
3 answers
12k views

Is it possible to win with a king and one bishop vs a king?

Are there any possible moves to checkmate a Black opponent if we have a White bishop and king?
Kiran Malvi's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
1k views

What do you do when you put your king in check and you don’t realise?

I moved my king as I wanted it to be in a safer location and after I did my turn my opponent realised that I put my king in check by accident and as the rules state you cannot put your king in check ...
Talha's user avatar
  • 21
4 votes
1 answer
460 views

Weakness in the Stonewall setup?

In the following setup of Stonewall Attack: [FEN ""] 1. c3 null 2. d4 null 3. e3 null 4. f4 null 5. Bd3 Wouldn't that make the king vulnerable to diagonal attacks from a bishop or a queen? If yes, ...
AGawish's user avatar
  • 43
-2 votes
1 answer
282 views

Looking for practical rulesets for when king promotion is allowed

One consistent feature of chess over the centuries is that each side has had one king only. The rules of promotion had to be tightened up to prevent promotion to a second king. However, if promotion ...
Rewan Demontay's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
49 views

How much is the king worth material-wise? [duplicate]

In chess classes, I have been told either that king is worth an infinite amount of points or 10 points. What is the actual material-worth of the king piece?
user avatar
3 votes
5 answers
398 views

When can king and pawn win against another king and pawn?

Assume such a situation: Both players (Black and White) only have two pieces, that is a King and a Pawn. They have the liberty of placing them according to their wishes on the first row of their side ...
gaazkam's user avatar
  • 139
6 votes
3 answers
1k views

How to improve king safety

I really wish to improve my chess skills a bit, albeit I am pretty sure that I do not want to become a grandmaster. One of my problem is my king's safety. Chess is very different from some other ...
Alexander's user avatar
  • 771
32 votes
6 answers
28k views

King or Queen-Which piece is which?

I recently bought a set of wooden chess pieces, which I liked for its simplicity. I'm not sure, however, which one is supposed to be the king and which one is supposed to be the queen. I would say ...
Elerium115's user avatar
3 votes
3 answers
347 views

Is this the quickest way to clearing the board to two kings? [duplicate]

Is 21 moves the least needed to get board down to 2 kings? [FEN ""] 1. e4 d5 exd5 Qxd5 Qh5 Qxa2 Qxh7 Qxa1 Qxh8 Qxb1 Qxg8 Qxb2 Qxg7 Qxc2 Qxf8 Kd7 Qxf7 Qxc1 Ke2 Qxd2 Kf3 Qxf2 Ke4 Qxf1 Qxe7 Kc6 Qxc7 ...
Rewan Demontay's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
1k views

Why isn't the objective of chess to capture the opponent's king? [duplicate]

The objective of chess is to put the opponent's king in a position where it cannot evade capture. Why not go all the way? Short of tremendous blunders of moving into check, chess would be completely ...
W. K.'s user avatar
  • 70
8 votes
6 answers
2k views

At what playing strength level should one be able to mate with King Bishop and Knight vs King?

As in title above, at what playing strength level should one be able to mate with King, Bishop and Knight vs King without much effort (with reasonable time left for the game)?
A. N. Other's user avatar
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-3 votes
4 answers
956 views

If a king is in check, can the opponent's king take said king if it puts them in check? [duplicate]

If a king is in check, can the opponent's king take said king if it puts them in check? Someone may think they win, but surely you can’t put yourself in check even if the opponent's king has been ...
Lucie turner's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
169 views

Taking the King while (self) being in check in Blitz Chess [duplicate]

In Blitz (5-min Chess) your opponent puts you in check. You then make a move that places your opponent in check. Can your opponent still take your King and claim victory (even though he's in check)?
G L Honaker Jr's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
357 views

Advantage of Diagonal Opposition

Suppose there are only two pieces on the board, black king and white king. Black king is at g7 and white king is at e5. It's Black's turn to move. So in this case white has the opposition. Black now ...
Abhi's user avatar
  • 21
1 vote
3 answers
1k views

Capturing the king in a blitz game

In a blitz game, when my king is checked, I make an illegal move that checkmated the opponent and pressed the clock. Then my opponent captured my king and claimed victory. Capturing the king is not a ...
melody's user avatar
  • 21
7 votes
2 answers
1k views

When to move/centralize king?

[fen "8/3k1ppp/2p2n2/r2p4/p2Pp3/4P3/PP2BPPP/4K2R w - - 0 1 "] At this position Stockfish has recommended Kd2, and noticing how the black bishops are off the board the king seems safer centralizing ...
TheAutomaton's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
421 views

Can white king capture defended pawn by pinned piece? [duplicate]

Black can not move his bishop and can not attack the white king even if the white king captured the black pawn. Can the white king capture the pawn ?
Emad Saeed's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
2k views

Is castling a king move or a rook move?

Most computer chess games consider castling to be a king move. You click on the king and it shows an option to castle. What do the FIDE's rules say about this though? Is castling a king move, a rook ...
clickbait's user avatar
  • 637
-2 votes
2 answers
7k views

Number of moves till draw with a king [closed]

5R2/8/6k1/8/4Q3/p7/P7/8 b - - 0 1 If there is a king (black) and one pawn (black) with one queen (white), one pawn (white) and one rook (white) and the pawn (white) is blocking pawn (black). Can ...
Luka Mihajlovic's user avatar
-1 votes
2 answers
5k views

What happens if me and my opponent only have kings? [duplicate]

So, you can capture any piece in chess except for the king. But what happens if me and my opponent get all pieces captured (except for the king)?
user19393's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
324 views

Only being able to move and not capture while in check

I was playing chess with my Dad, and he was shocked when I made a capture while check. He said that when he learned to play, that, when you are in check, you cannot capture with the king or any other ...
Fodor Dominik's user avatar
9 votes
3 answers
3k views

Could two kings force checkmate against a lone king?

I was looking at minimal combinations of material needed to force checkmate (K+R, Q+B, R+N+N, etc). You end up with a sort of threshold of how much material is needed, and that sort of assigns a ...
eyeballfrog's user avatar
8 votes
4 answers
535 views

Checkless Chess

Is there any material difference between chess the way it is now versus doing away with check and checkmate and defining victory as simply capturing the opponent's King, assuming an available King ...
I. J. Kennedy's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
1k views

Moving into check?

I will try to be specific. I was playing a game, and the only piece my opponent could move was their king. It was taking forever for me to checkmate the king. I had a queen, two rooks, and a few pawns,...
Michael's user avatar
  • 41
28 votes
2 answers
6k views

Was there ever a time when the goal in chess was to capture the king?

The modern rules of chess, except for the stalemating being a draw, are basically equivalent to a game in which the goal is just to capture the king, not checkmate him. It's plausible that in the ...
Jack M's user avatar
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