Bishop Pawn and Rook Pawns on the Same Wing
White to play and win
PlayYour f-pawn on f7 is guarded and his king is stuck on f8. Take his king's last squares and he has to move his h-pawn. The rule: never lock the h-pawns yourself. Answer h5 with h3 and h6 with h4, so that he makes the locking move and it is your turn again.
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A Bishop Pawn Beside Blocked Rook Pawns
White to play and win · Win against perfect defense
Waking the engine…
The theory
Watch the method: press play to see the winning idea run, or step through it move by move.
The trap first. After Kf6 and h5, you would lock the h-pawns yourself by pushing h4. His king on f8 then has no move left, and that is stalemate.
A passed bishop pawn with a rook pawn for each side, all on the same wing, is a win, and the winning tool is a familiar one: the reserve tempo hidden in a pawn still on its home square.
Keep the rook pawn home. A rook pawn on its starting square can move one or two squares, and that choice is a spare tempo. Do not spend it early. Instead, escort the bishop pawn to the seventh with the king, chaining the enemy king in front of it.
Squeeze with zugzwang. With the enemy king tied down, force his rook pawn to move, then answer with yours: h3 if he played h5, h4 if he played h6, and the move goes straight back to him. The defender runs out of moves and must give way. If your rook pawn had already advanced, this reserve tempo would be gone and the position could only draw.
In this drill the defender will shuffle and wait. Set the bishop pawn on the seventh, exhaust his pawn moves, and spend your reserve tempo last.
Keep going
Opposition: King Before Pawn
White to play and win
The Square of the Pawn
Black to play and draw
The Rook Pawn Corner Fortress
Black to play and draw
All 68 king & pawn positionsFollow the full curriculum (free)