Every position, browsable

Theory

The endings with one right answer, and the job is to know it. Seven pieces or fewer, every goal proved against the tablebase.

King & Queen CheckmateKing and queen against a lone king is the quickest mate to learn. The rule: keep your queen a knight's jump from his king and copy each step he takes, so his box never grows. Once he reaches the edge, stop copying before the corner, leave him two squares, and bring your king.White to play and win · < 1000White to play and win< 1000
King & Rook CheckmateKing and rook against a lone king is the mate you will need most often. One question decides every move: can the rook make his box smaller without getting caught? If yes, do it. If not, bring your king closer. When the kings face each other, a safe rook check pushes him back one rank.White to play and win · < 1000White to play and win< 1000
Two-Rook Ladder MateTwo rooks can mate a lone king without any help from your king. The rule: one rook holds a rank, the other checks on the next rank, and they take turns to climb like a ladder. If his king attacks a rook, slide that rook to the far side of its rank.White to play and win · < 1000White to play and win< 1000
Bishop and Knight Mate: The Final CornerYour target is a corner of the bishop's color. Here that corner is a8, a light square, the same color as your bishop. Your bishop and knight already hold his king in a cage: he only has a7, a8, b7, b8, c8 and d8. The method: keep him caged, walk your king in, count his squares before every quiet move, and finish with two checks in a row, one from each piece.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
Two Minor Pieces: The W-ManeuverHis king hides in h8, a dark corner. Your bishop runs on light squares, so it can never mate him there. Drive him to a8, the light corner. The rule on the back rank: your bishop guards the light squares, and your knight covers the dark ones. The knight's route traces a W: f7, e5, d7, c5, b7.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
Two Bishops CheckmateTwo bishops and a king force mate on a lone king by driving it into a corner, and only with your king's help. Put the bishops side by side on neighbouring diagonals: together they make a wall his king cannot cross. Then ask one question every move: can a bishop move the wall closer without letting him out? If yes, do it. If not, bring your king closer.White to play and win · 1000–1199White to play and win1000–1199
Bishop & Knight CheckmatePROThis is the hardest basic checkmate. Your target is a corner of the bishop's color. Your bishop runs on light squares, so the right corners are a8 and h1. The method has three phases. Push his king to the edge. Walk it along the edge to the right corner: the bishop guards the light squares, the knight covers the dark ones along its W route, and your king follows. Then finish with two checks in a row, one from each piece.White to play and win · 1600–1799White to play and win1600–1799
Kling and Horwitz: Two Bishops Against a KnightPROTwo bishops beat a lone knight almost every time. Kling and Horwitz gave this position in 1851 as a draw: the knight on b7, right next to its king, is very hard to attack. In 1983 computer analysis showed that White wins, because the setup can be broken without letting Black rebuild it in another corner. With perfect play on both sides, the tablebase gives mate in 57 moves. You play to win one thing, the knight: once it falls, the usual two-bishop mate finishes the job.White to play and win · 2000+White to play and win2000+
Opposition: King Before PawnYour king stands in front of the pawn, and the pawn has to reach e8. The rule: take the opposition. Put your king face to face with his, one square between them, and leave him to move. His king must step aside, and yours walks forward.White to play and win · 1000–1199White to play and win1000–1199
The Square of the PawnWhite's pawn runs for a8 and your king has to catch it. Do not count moves one by one: draw the square of the pawn. If your king can step into it, the pawn is caught.Black to play and draw · 1000–1199Black to play and draw1000–1199
The Rook Pawn Corner FortressWhite's a-pawn is a rook pawn, the big exception in pawn endings. The rule: put your king in the corner, in front of the pawn. From there your king cannot be driven out, and once the pawn reaches a7, White can only keep the pawn by stalemating you.Black to play and draw · 1000–1199Black to play and draw1000–1199
Take the Opposition to Hold the DrawYou have only your king against king and pawn, and you can hold the draw. Keep his king off the key squares in front of the pawn. The rule: when his king steps up, put yours right in front of it with one square between, so that he is the one who has to move. That is the opposition.Black to play and draw · 1200–1399Black to play and draw1200–1399
King on the Sixth: The Winning FormationYour king stands on b6, in front of its pawn, and this wins no matter whose move it is. The rule: with the pawn on the fifth rank, a king on a6, b6, c6, a7, b7 or c7 wins. Keep your king on those squares, clear the pawn's road first, and push only after that.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
The Rule of the Square: Outrunning the KingYour b-pawn runs for b8 and his king is far away. Do not count moves one by one: draw the square of the pawn. If his king cannot step into it on his move, push, and the pawn queens on its own.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
The Pawn That Never MovesBlack's h-pawn is running and your king looks too slow to catch it. Your a5 pawn saves you without ever moving, because the threat to push it wins the time you are missing. The rule: walk your king where it helps your own pawn and heads for the square of his pawn at the same time.White to play and draw · 1200–1399White to play and draw1200–1399
Queen Beats the Center PawnQueen against a pawn one step from queening: against a center pawn, the queen wins. The rule: check or pin until his king has to stand in front of its own pawn, on d1. The pawn is blocked there, so you get a free move, and your king steps one square closer. Repeat until your king reaches the pawn.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
Reciprocal Zugzwang: e6 Against c5You are White and you play to win. The d-pawns are locked, so only the kings can move. Two squares are mined: e6 for you and c5 for Black. With the kings on e6 and c5, whoever has to move loses. The rule: never step onto e6 first. Wait until his king stands on c5, then take e6.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
The Same Position, and Only One Move Saves ItThe same locked pawns, but now you are Black, it is your move, and you play for a draw. The mines are the same: c5 for you and e6 for White. With the kings on e6 and c5, whoever has to move loses. The rule: stay one step from c5, and step onto it only after his king has reached e6.Black to play and draw · 1200–1399Black to play and draw1200–1399
The Bishop Pawn EscapesA bishop pawn on the seventh, with your king far away on d5. The queen cannot win this. When you check his king toward the pawn, he goes to the corner on a1 instead of c1, and there taking the pawn is stalemate. Only a king close enough to help mate could win, and yours is too far.White to play and draw · 1200–1399White to play and draw1200–1399
When the Bishop Pawn Loses AnywayThe same bishop pawn and your king again on d5, but his king stands on d2, on the wrong side of its pawn. To reach the stalemate corner on a1 it has to cross c1, in front of the pawn. That step blocks the pawn and gives you the free move: your king comes close enough to win.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
Let the Rook Pawn Queen, Then MateA rook pawn on the seventh is the queen's hardest case. Once his king reaches a1, in front of the pawn, he has no move left, so your free move would be stalemate. What wins here is a king close enough to mate: you let the pawn queen and mate him anyway.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
The Pendulum DefenseYou are White and you play for a draw. One pawn each. Your king holds the f-pawn by swinging between g3 and g2, like a pendulum. The rule: when Black's king is on e2, go to g3. When it is on e3, go to g2.White to play and draw · 1200–1399White to play and draw1200–1399
The King's ZigzagYou are White and you play to win. Both pawns are five moves from queening. Your king has to come back to c2 to stop the b-pawn, and a pawn push with check would cost you the move you need. The rule: on the way back, pick a route the pawn cannot check. A crooked route takes no more moves than a straight one.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
Zigzag Around the CheckYou are White and you play for a draw. Your king is outside the square of the a-pawn, so it cannot catch it. Your hope is your own e-pawn, and both sides will queen. The rule: walk toward your pawn, but never stand on a square where Black's new queen arrives with check.White to play and draw · 1200–1399White to play and draw1200–1399
Key Squares: The Winning MapKey squares are the squares where your king wins no matter whose turn it is. For a pawn on d5 they are c6, d6 and e6, and c7, d7 and e7 just beyond. The rule: once your king stands on one, keep it on them, step around his king, and use the pawn move to hand him the move.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
King and Two Pawns vs KingTwo connected pawns against a lone king win, as long as you do not lose one. The rule: before each pawn move, check that the king cannot take a pawn for free. A pawn is safe if the other one guards it, or if taking it lets the other one queen. If a push is safe, push. If not, bring your king.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
Defending King & Pawn vs KingWhite wants to queen the e-pawn, and you have only your king, but you can draw. The rule: keep your king directly in front of the pawn, and when the white king stands in the way, face the white king instead, with one square between the kings.Black to play and draw · 1200–1399Black to play and draw1200–1399
Distant Opposition and OutflankingThe d-pawns are locked, so the kings fight alone. Your king has to get around his to attack the d6 pawn, and the fight is on the f-file. The rule: when his king stands on the f-file, oppose it there with an odd number of squares between the kings; when it steps off to one side, step forward on the other side.White to play and win · 1200–1399White to play and win1200–1399
The Opposition Is Worthless Without an OutflankWhite has the opposition and an extra pawn, and it is still a draw. The rule: the opposition only wins if the attacking king can then step around yours. Mirror his king from the c-file, rank for rank, so that every step around meets the opposition again, and you hold.Black to play and draw · 1400–1599Black to play and draw1400–1599
One Reserve Tempo Wins the OppositionYour a-pawn is still on a3, and that one spare step decides the game. The rule: a pawn that can still move without harm is a reserve tempo. Keep it, and spend it at the moment when the move you hand over puts the other side in zugzwang.White to play and win · 1400–1599White to play and win1400–1599