Rook vs Connected Passed Pawns
White to play and win
PlayTwo connected pawns crawling toward promotion against your rook. With your king close they're prey; one slow move and they're monsters. Order of capture is everything.
No signup needed. The opponent never gives up, and every mistake gets explained.
Rook vs Connected Passed Pawns
Win against perfect defense
Setting up the board…
The theory
Connected passed pawns are the only pawn formation a rook genuinely fears. The evaluation swings on one line of latitude: BOTH pawns on the sixth beat a lone rook; anything less advanced, with the defending king near, loses to correct technique.
The winning method (this drill). Your king stops the front pawn; kings blockade better than rooks. The rook attacks the BACK pawn, the one whose only job is protecting its partner. The defender faces an impossible choice: advance the back pawn (it becomes the front pawn, now blockaded) or defend it with the king (your rook switches targets with tempo). The pincer tightens until both fall.
The rule of thumb to memorize: pawns abreast on the 6th (from their perspective) = pawns win against rook alone; on the 5th = rook wins with king support; on the 4th = rook often wins even unaided. One rank of advancement flips the result, which is why every tempo in this drill matters and the tablebase defense will make you prove the count.
Where it comes from: every rook endgame where one side's connected passers race the exchange. Evaluating BEFORE entering (win, or self-inflicted loss) is the practical skill this position trains.