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I was playing this game just a few minutes before posting this, and tried to save the game by entering the following endgame:

[Title "Black to move"]
[StartFlipped "0"]
[fen "8/6k1/1p2Kn1p/7P/1P6/5B2/8/8 b - - 0 1"]

I intended to sacrifice the knight for the b-pawn and then get theoretical draw by entering the following endgame :

[Title "Theoretical draw"]
[fen "8/6k1/4K3/7P/8/5B2/8/8 w - - 0 1"]

In the game, I played 1...Ne8 with the intention of posting it on d6. Then I could defend it with my king ( on the dark squares of course ). White can break this blockade with zugzwang ( he can make proper bishop moves to achieve this ), but I believe that Black has sufficient squares at his disposal to defend.

Is there a way for White to breach my defense that I have missed?

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  • 1
    Are you sure you can get the B pawn before your b pawn is eaten and the white pawn starts rolling? If you can, then the game looks drawn.
    – Tony Ennis
    Jun 19, 2014 at 3:51
  • @TonyEnnis: That is why I have asked the question ( Can Black draw this endgame? ). I have managed to find some very interesting lines but could not reach 100% verdict... Jun 19, 2014 at 16:07
  • Without a full analysis I suspect white should win. But it will not be easy.
    – yobamamama
    Dec 25, 2019 at 20:44
  • looks like a clear win for white Feb 4, 2020 at 15:30

1 Answer 1

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To me, it looks like your plan is to move your king forward to d6. After he takes your pawn, you play Kd6 keeping opposition and blocking the pawn advancement with the Knight on c7. Looks dead drawn after that.

[Fen "8/6k1/1p2Kn1p/7P/1P6/5B2/8/8 b KQkq - 0 1"]

1... Ne8 2. Kd7 Kf7 3. Kc6 Ke6 4. Kxb6 Kd6 5. Ka5 Nc7

[Fen "8/2n5/3k3p/K6P/1P6/5B2/8/8 w - - 3 6"]
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  • I have upvoted your comment because I like the idea with Kd6+Nc7 better than mine setup. I have found a much stronger path for White, so I will not officially accept your answer for now. Best regards. Jun 19, 2014 at 14:54
  • What is the stronger path? Is this after Ne8? White had a lot of options but it didn't appear to change the plan drastically. Or, is this from before the diagram? You should edit your question and maybe add this in there if you want other answers to address it.
    – Alan
    Jun 19, 2014 at 15:17
  • 1...Ne8 2.Ke7! Nc7 3.Bb7! and now Black needs to find a way to sacrifice the knight for a b-pawn ( which may not be possible ). This is the line that forced me to further investigate options for both sides. Jun 19, 2014 at 16:06
  • @AlwaysLearningNewStuff I'm not sure how to add new lines, but it doesn't look possible to prevent the Knight from capturing. After Bb7! I believe after Nc7-b5-c3 it is impossible to prevent the Knight from capturing the pawn or chasing the Knight away so the pawn can safely advance. An immediate threat is Nc3-a2 with capturing the pawn imminent. If White plays Bd5 to prevent Na2, Black can play Nd4 or simply hang out on c3 or b5.
    – Alan
    Jun 19, 2014 at 16:25
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    This link might help you. You can also look at my answers ( almost every one of them contains multiple lines in diagram ) to learn how to do this. Just click on Edit and instead of editing my answer, just look at the way I did it. You can also dump the lines as text and I will reformat them, it is not a problem. The line you quoted is the exact one that gives me trouble... Jun 19, 2014 at 16:56

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