Bishop with Blocked Rook Pawns: A Fortress Draw
White to play and draw
PlayThis time your bishop is the right color for h8, and still you cannot win. The enemy pawn on h7 blocks your pawn on h6, and the king in the corner has a stalemate resource ready.
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Blocked Rook Pawns and Stalemate
White to play and draw · Hold the draw against perfect play
Waking the engine…
The theory
Even the correct bishop cannot always win a rook pawn. When the enemy pawn blocks yours, a stalemate fortress appears.
The block. A pawn on h7 facing your pawn on h6 kills all forward progress. Your extra material cannot break a jammed file.
The stalemate trap. With its own pawn frozen, the cornered king often has no legal move if you approach too far. That stalemate is what saves the defender.
The fortress scales. Add locked pawn pairs on the g-file and the f-file, and it is still a draw. Locked pawns are walls, not targets, and extra material changes nothing. The defender has just one thing to watch: the cornered king must shuffle on f8 and g8, never stepping to h8 while your king is close, or it walks into mate.
In this drill you probe for a win that is not there. The lesson is recognizing the fortress and the stalemate resource behind it.
Keep going
King Behind King
Black to play and draw
The Position Janowsky Resigned
Black to play and draw
Driving Off the Lone Bishop
White to play and win
All 24 bishop endgames positionsFollow the full curriculum (free)