31
votes
Accepted
Why do points matter in trading pieces?
The point system in chess gives a rough indication of how strong each piece is. So the short answer to your question is, yes, a rook is more valuable than a knight, and so in the vast majority of ...
- 408
25
votes
Accepted
Trading queens in the opening
There is not opening that usually paves the way for a queen trade. There are plenty of specific lines that allow for it, but it takes cooperation from your opponent.
The first line that comes to mind ...
- 32.7k
14
votes
Accepted
Why would you want to trade pieces?
There are a few classic reasons which tend to make exchanging pieces favourable. None of these are absolute; in any given position, short-term tactical considerations may dominate. But you might like ...
- 1,699
12
votes
Why do points matter in trading pieces?
Just to put a point on this:
Does the fact that the knight is worth 2 less points than the rook make it less valuable?
This is looking at it upside down.
What matters in an exchange is getting ...
- 331
10
votes
Accepted
Why doesn’t the computer like my odd queen trade?
Losing an exchange is itself enough to make the move weak.
You go from being up R+P for N, which is a winning advantage,
to up just one pawn with opposite color Bishops, which
could often be drawn.
...
- 8,314
9
votes
Trade a bishop in the opening
With each of the trades that you mentioned, it is not just a B for N. Beyond that, the side giving up the B also doubles the other side's pawns, but it is still deeper than that. In each case, the ...
- 32.7k
9
votes
Trade a bishop in the opening
In general there are two scenarios in the opening where one side might want to exchange one of their bishops for a knight.
The knight controls key squares in the center which are being
contested. In ...
- 100k
9
votes
Why would you want to trade pieces?
Trading pieces thoughtlessly is bad. As you say, it wastes a move. Good players trade pieces when it gives them an advantage like exchanging a passive piece for an active piece or when a piece is ...
- 100k
9
votes
Accepted
When is it a good idea to trade pieces in the endgame?
General rule: If losing, trade pawns. If winning, trade officers.
Specific rules, as always in chess:
Black controls the only open line - big time. One argument more for not trading.
Both kings are ...
- 17.3k
8
votes
Accepted
Why was castling bad for white in this game, and engine strongly prefered trading queens?
Castling (9. 0-0) is not a very bad move. You still have a very solid advantage after it due to being a pawn up and having the better pawn structure (black's pawns on a7, c7, c6 are weak and ...
- 20.9k
8
votes
Accepted
Trade a bishop in the opening
First, you should never say "X is worth Y amount of pawns". You could think in terms of it being worth ABOUT that amount all things equal, but never make assumptions about exact values. The position ...
- 4,339
8
votes
Accepted
“Rating” going up too fast
I'd say you shouldn't worry about your rating at all and that you should welcome being paired with stronger opponents, because you'll learn more from those games - even if you don't spend more than a ...
- 871
7
votes
Trade a bishop in the opening
Very good question! This illustrates a deeper conflict between chess "principles" and "practice"
I have learned the bishop pair is worth a half pawn
Very dangerous piece of advice here! That is ...
- 17k
5
votes
Openings that reach endgames?
There's a "drawing line" in the Petrov Defense for White:
[FEN ""]
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Qe2 Qe7 {Black has to play this or 6. d3 wins a piece} 6. d3 Nf6 7. Qxe7+
Playing 7. ...
- 29k
5
votes
Accepted
When should you trade to prevent castling?
The problem with that move is a number of things.
You gave up the bishop pair.
His attack on your king is stronger than yours on his king, and you traded off a defender.
You have no time to go after ...
- 32.7k
5
votes
Why was castling bad for white in this game, and engine strongly prefered trading queens?
9.Qxd8 followed by 10.Nxc6 wins you another pawn. Meanwhile, 9.0-0 gives Black time to protect the c6-pawn.
Given this, 9.Nxc6 is almost as good as 9.Qxd8 for the same reason (winning a pawn). ...
- 19.9k
5
votes
Why would you want to trade pieces?
Not all advantages in chess are material. You may want to trade pieces to gain other sorts of advangages. You're often not really wasting a move, since your oppoenent will also waste one of their own ...
- 17k
5
votes
“Rating” going up too fast
Currently, I see that the opponents make blunders sometimes, so my “rating” is not entirely reflective of my progress
Why do you think so? If you make fewer blunders than your opponents and/or are ...
- 3,656
4
votes
Understanding when it's OK / not OK to trade off the fianchettoed bishop
A weakness is only a weakness if it can be tortured by the opponent.
In example 1, White has already castled, so Re1-e4-h4, Q-d2-h6 seems to be the only way to bring on some scary firepower against ...
- 17.3k
4
votes
Accepted
Is it ever advantageous to make a trade that loses material for the sake a positional advantage?
Yes! It is. One common example of giving up material for positional reasons is the exchange sacrifice. See Laszlo Szabo vs Tigran Petrosian. On move 14 Petrosian sacrifices the rook for the knight in ...
- 499
3
votes
Josh Waitzkin chessmaster mastery quiz - spatial advantage, trading bishops
Josh says f5 ... Is Josh wrong about f5?
Yes, although black's position is terrible in any case.
If we look at the initial position and try and assess a number of things are immediately obvious:
...
- 100k
3
votes
Accepted
Josh Waitzkin on trading pieces ('the art of the trade')
Since you explicitely requested an answer...
I don't own that Waitzkin book, but merely judging from your excerpts his pedagogical talents are as doubtful as White's position here :P
First of all, ...
- 17.3k
3
votes
Why was castling bad for white in this game, and engine strongly prefered trading queens?
As already pointed out by user1583209, 9.Qxd8 Rxd8 10.Nxc6 followed by Nxe7+ wins an extra pawn. However I wouldn't say that trading your knight Black's dark-squared bishop is good for you because of ...
- 17k
3
votes
Accepted
Understanding when it's OK / not OK to trade off the fianchettoed bishop
In the first position you mentioned, I'm guessing the reason why the engine recommends Bg7 is because Re8 weakens the f7 pawn, which could conceivably get loose later on.
In the last position, before ...
- 146
3
votes
Accepted
Trading bishops
First, note that
It is well-known that a bishop pair is stronger than a bishop and a knight or two knights.
is wrong, strictly speaking. Wheter either of these combinations is strongest depends on ...
- 173
3
votes
Is Shredder just making a mistake or is there a strategy here?
Chess computers have the ability to beat any human player with extreme ease, so in order to give you a chance and make the game interesting, they need to play bad moves on purpose.
The problem is that ...
- 17k
2
votes
Why doesn’t the computer like my odd queen trade?
The computer says you're ahead after the move you played. But you're only up a little, and you ended up with only a rook and opposite-colored bishops along with the pawns. You still have to work for ...
- 20.3k
2
votes
Why do points matter in trading pieces?
All other things being equal, a material advantage is normally sufficient to win the game. I should mention that the value of a piece is directly related to its strength, i.e. to how many squares it ...
- 3,036
2
votes
Why do points matter in trading pieces?
Even though it is quite a useful guidline for beginners, the actual value a piece is assigned to inherently depends on the prevailing board constellation.
Similar to "In closed positions knights ...
2
votes
Why do points matter in trading pieces?
Some other factors can also affect piece values, such as it’s position, and what other pieces it’s paired with. Many people agree that a bishop pair is worth much more than simply the sum of their ...
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