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A deeper theory guide to defensive/offensive piece roles...

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deeper_insight 06-Oct-16, 10:30	A deeper theory guide to defensive/offensive piece roles... Some facts players may not be aware of,or should visualize: 1.The pawn has the least offensive power,but its the best defender.So in defensive theory and in important principle:using the least power necessary to protect a piece that is being attacked is usually best.Not to say that the pawn does not have offensive power(it does)...but statistically the pawn is still primarily used more as a defender than an offender,in its "best"role on the board. 2.The Queen many times is moved out as both a defender and offender too early in the game. But the Q is statistically considered a supreme attacker,but not nearly as good a defender. Why?Because,if a Q protects one of its own pieces or creates a blockade of their opponent piece(s),the Q can be driven away quickly by being threatened by another piece.Same with moving the Q out too early...its more prone to attack,and during that attack the enemy can then advance and control more areas of the board as well as formulate more "tempo"on the board.The player that has more tempo on the board will usually have a game advantage.Yes,there are exceptions to this guideline,especially if one player is much stronger in rating than the other and opponent tempo can be neutralized through superior tactics(as I have done in my Reverse Alekhine games).However,the general guidline still applies to most other players:Just remember that your Q should NOT be used as a defender in most tactical circumstances.This is a common error in many players south of 1800 in rating. 3a.The Knight has the LEAST offensive power of any first rank piece,including the Rook,Bishop,Queen and even the King in many circumstances.The King,for example,many times has more of a powerful punch in the endgame than a Knight.The Bishop has more long range offense and so does the Q and Rook.The Knight,statistically is the "second best" defender AFTER a pawn.This is very important to keep in mind as you formulate your better defense in a game.again,aim to drive your game with statistics and better theory!So,seeking to defend a piece with a pawn,rather than a Knight or Queen is more times than not...the better choice to strengthen your game through a stronger defense which is less vunerable to attack and dismantling. b.Knights are WEAKEST when protecting each other.Again,we return to the fact that in a case like that,one of the Knights has less point value if/when it is frozen to protect the other Knight or is forced to move from opponent attack,then potentially weakening the second knight at that position.Most players south of 2100 however,have little clue that "shoulder to shoulder"Knights have generally MORE point value in the endgame.Much of that lack of insight comes from NOT studying the endgame tablebases like the Nalimov using a link below: chessok.com Take for example,the following endgame I copied from one of my chess sources: If you like,place this diagram into the tablebase link above. Now study it.The tablebase will indicate that white can mate in 29 moves.Placing whites Q on any other square,then reapplying the tablebase mate pattern can still deliver mate in approx 29-32 moves.So white has the mate advantage,providing no bluderous play and white has mate in the long term 29-32 moves(approx).You can activate the tablebase to prove this. HOWEVER,remember I mentioned above that "shoulder to shoulder"Knights have more point value in the endgame?Place the following position in the tablebase: Now this position has the same pieces as the first diagram,except that the Knights are now "shoulder to shoulder" on squares e6 and f6.Now run the tablebase analyzer!The tablebase will NOW illustrate this modified position as a DRAW regardless of where you place whites Queen in other tablebase setups.Oh,there are some exceptions,I have found,but the draws outweight whites 29 move win by leaps and bounds!So the conclusion is,based upon the 2 diagrams above that whites mate was in hand with blacks Knights defending each other,but the game was much more prone to DRAW with blacks Knights NOT defending each other SHOULDER to SHOULDER!So,of course,black was better off drawing than losing! Interesting position,to say the least. 4.The Bishop is statistically a better defender compared to the Knight,as long as we think in long range defensive diagonals and open games.By midgame or nearing the endgame,you must observe your opponents light/dark square control.Does your opponent have less control of the dark squares,for example?If so,would it make any sense to exchange your dark squared Bishop for an opponents Knight or his dark squared Bishop which may be hemmed in at that immediate position? Answer:No. The key is to keep your dark squared Bishop,in most circumstances to bear down continued PRESSURE on your opponents dark squares(his 1st through 4th ranks).Even retreating your dark squared Bishop while losing some tempo many times has advantage because your longer range goals of dark square control over the weak contol of the dark squares thatyour opponent DOES NOT HAVE will outweigh the loss of YOUR tempo.This is an important SM and GM insightful way to look at the game or future games. 5.Your Rook statistically becomes the most powerful powerhouse later in the game(usually move 25-30).Advancing the wing pawns can activate the motion of the Rooks.But premature activation of those pawns can prematurly weaken the Kings safe haven,opening it up to attack,especially with the enemy Bishops.Too many players let their Rooks dormant for too long a period,and that has caused many losses.Finding ways to use the Rooks as a defender is critical on tha master levels.Intersting enough and by using advanced analysis of tablebases,programs and club games at the Marshall,my recalled pattern recognition with superior endgames many times centers around both of my Rooks not only having total freedom of movement on my first rank,but usually placed on the e1 and d1 squares OR e1/e2 or d1/d2 squares in defender mode.Central control,in other words,even in the endgame has statistical advantage.Opening up those wing pawns at the right moment,can not only unleash the power of the Rooks,but illustrate the power of disconnected pawn shuttling via Queening,especially if the tempo of your opponent is lacking to capture multiple pawn storms on both wings. 6.More on pawn theory later.I do not want to delve into pawns in this thread right now.The reason is that I want my readers to first study pawn material imbalances: gameknot.com Pawns are a complex subject,including the point value flux depending upon the position of the pawn(or doubled pawns) like on the wings as opposed to the center of the board.But one must combine the value of that imbalance if it,for example,opens up or semi opens up an entire file like in one of my Sodium Attack games(on files b and g) or a Ruy Lopez early exchange of blacks g7 pawn which may "appear"weak,but that is technically an illusion and misunderstood by many players south of 2100 in rating.Open files many times will strengthen ones long term position with an early release and repositioning of ones Rooks on the b and g files,even if the pawns are doubled on the a or h files.And as to the standard Ruy Lopez,giving up your Bishop EARLY for your opponents Knight on square f6,doubling blacks pawns is not necessarily advantageous,since the game is still open,and any theoretical pawn flux with regards to the negative doubled pawns of his position can vanish by midgame defensive posturing as many Ruy Lopez players that understand the fact that losing a Bishop in an open game already closely equalizes blacks doubled pawns and Knight exchange early on. Keeping all of the above defensive/offensive facts in mind as you play out your moves and APPLYING the theory above,avoiding some moves and even retreating at the right time,with loss of tempo,can still achieve a winning strategy for you. Think like a master and one day you may very well become one!Its all how serious you take some of this advice I just gave.Keep in mind,its not just my advice as an opinion of mine!Its the COMBINED and RESEARCHED advice from many masters,senior masters and GM's....and i'm passing it on to you.Its not just my idle opinion to be taken in stride. TA
deeper_insight 06-Oct-16, 10:45	Slight correction above(3rd paragraph from the bottom): "or a Ruy Lopez early exchange of blacks g7 pawn which may "appear"weak,but that is technically an illusion and misunderstood by many players south of 2100 in rating." I meant to say the exchange of blacks f6 Knight with whites Bishop which would then double blacks pawns on squares f6 and f7. TA

From

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deeper_insight
06-Oct-16, 10:30

A deeper theory guide to defensive/offensive piece roles...

Some facts players may not be aware of,or should visualize:

1.The pawn has the least offensive power,but its the best defender.So in defensive theory and in important principle:using the least power necessary to protect a piece that is being attacked is usually best.Not to say that the pawn does not have offensive power(it does)...but statistically the pawn is still primarily used more as a defender than an offender,in its "best"role on the board.

2.The Queen many times is moved out as both a defender and offender too early in the game.
But the Q is statistically considered a supreme attacker,but not nearly as good a defender.
Why?Because,if a Q protects one of its own pieces or creates a blockade of their opponent piece(s),the Q can be driven away quickly by being threatened by another piece.Same with moving the Q out too early...its more prone to attack,and during that attack the enemy can then advance and control more areas of the board as well as formulate more "tempo"on the board.The player that has more tempo on the board will usually have a game advantage.Yes,there are exceptions to this guideline,especially if one player is much stronger in rating than the other and opponent tempo can be neutralized through superior tactics(as I have done in my Reverse Alekhine games).However,the general guidline still applies to most other players:Just remember that your Q should NOT be used as a defender in most tactical circumstances.This is a common error in many players south of 1800 in rating.

3a.The Knight has the LEAST offensive power of any first rank piece,including the Rook,Bishop,Queen and even the King in many circumstances.The King,for example,many times has more of a powerful punch in the endgame than a Knight.The Bishop has more long range offense and so does the Q and Rook.The Knight,statistically is the "second best" defender AFTER a pawn.This is very important to keep in mind as you formulate your better defense in a game.again,aim to drive your game with statistics and better theory!So,seeking to defend a piece with a pawn,rather than a Knight or Queen is more times than not...the better choice to strengthen your game through a stronger defense which is less vunerable to attack and dismantling.

b.Knights are WEAKEST when protecting each other.Again,we return to the fact that in a case like that,one of the Knights has less point value if/when it is frozen to protect the other Knight or is forced to move from opponent attack,then potentially weakening the second knight at that position.Most players south of 2100 however,have little clue that "shoulder to shoulder"Knights have generally MORE point value in the endgame.Much of that lack of insight comes from NOT studying the endgame tablebases like the Nalimov using a link below:

chessok.com

Take for example,the following endgame I copied from one of my chess sources:

If you like,place this diagram into the tablebase link above.
Now study it.The tablebase will indicate that white can mate in 29 moves.Placing whites Q on any other square,then reapplying the tablebase mate pattern can still deliver mate in approx 29-32 moves.So white has the mate advantage,providing no bluderous play and white has mate in the long term 29-32 moves(approx).You can activate the tablebase to prove this.

HOWEVER,remember I mentioned above that "shoulder to shoulder"Knights have more point value in the endgame?Place the following position in the tablebase:

Now this position has the same pieces as the first diagram,except that the Knights are now "shoulder to shoulder" on squares e6 and f6.Now run the tablebase analyzer!The tablebase will NOW illustrate this modified position as a DRAW regardless of where you place whites Queen in other tablebase setups.Oh,there are some exceptions,I have found,but the draws outweight whites 29 move win by leaps and bounds!So the conclusion is,based upon the 2 diagrams above that whites mate was in hand with blacks Knights defending each other,but the game was much more prone to DRAW with blacks Knights NOT defending each other SHOULDER to SHOULDER!So,of course,black was better off drawing than losing!

Interesting position,to say the least.

4.The Bishop is statistically a better defender compared to the Knight,as long as we think in long range defensive diagonals and open games.By midgame or nearing the endgame,you must observe your opponents light/dark square control.Does your opponent have less control of the dark squares,for example?If so,would it make any sense to exchange your dark squared Bishop for an opponents Knight or his dark squared Bishop which may be hemmed in at that immediate position?

Answer:No.

The key is to keep your dark squared Bishop,in most circumstances to bear down continued PRESSURE on your opponents dark squares(his 1st through 4th ranks).Even retreating your dark squared Bishop while losing some tempo many times has advantage because your longer range goals of dark square control over the weak contol of the dark squares thatyour opponent DOES NOT HAVE will outweigh the loss of YOUR tempo.This is an important SM and GM insightful way to look at the game or future games.

5.Your Rook statistically becomes the most powerful powerhouse later in the game(usually move 25-30).Advancing the wing pawns can activate the motion of the Rooks.But premature activation of those pawns can prematurly weaken the Kings safe haven,opening it up to attack,especially with the enemy Bishops.Too many players let their Rooks dormant for too long a period,and that has caused many losses.Finding ways to use the Rooks as a defender is critical on tha master levels.Intersting enough and by using advanced analysis of tablebases,programs and club games at the Marshall,my recalled pattern recognition with superior endgames many times centers around both of my Rooks not only having total freedom of movement on my first rank,but usually placed on the e1 and d1 squares OR e1/e2 or d1/d2 squares in defender mode.Central control,in other words,even in the endgame has statistical advantage.Opening up those wing pawns at the right moment,can not only unleash the power of the Rooks,but illustrate the power of disconnected pawn shuttling via Queening,especially if the tempo of your opponent is lacking to capture multiple pawn storms on both wings.

6.More on pawn theory later.I do not want to delve into pawns in this thread right now.The reason is that I want my readers to first study pawn material imbalances:

gameknot.com

Pawns are a complex subject,including the point value flux depending upon the position of the pawn(or doubled pawns) like on the wings as opposed to the center of the board.But one must combine the value of that imbalance if it,for example,opens up or semi opens up an entire file like in one of my Sodium Attack games(on files b and g) or a Ruy Lopez early exchange of blacks g7 pawn which may "appear"weak,but that is technically an illusion and misunderstood by many players south of 2100 in rating.Open files many times will strengthen ones long term position with an early release and repositioning of ones Rooks on the b and g files,even if the pawns are doubled on the a or h files.And as to the standard Ruy Lopez,giving up your Bishop EARLY for your opponents Knight on square f6,doubling blacks pawns is not necessarily advantageous,since the game is still open,and any theoretical pawn flux with regards to the negative doubled pawns of his position can vanish by midgame defensive posturing as many Ruy Lopez players that understand the fact that losing a Bishop in an open game already closely equalizes blacks doubled pawns and Knight exchange early on.

Keeping all of the above defensive/offensive facts in mind as you play out your moves and APPLYING the theory above,avoiding some moves and even retreating at the right time,with loss of tempo,can still achieve a winning strategy for you.

Think like a master and one day you may very well become one!Its all how serious you take some of this advice I just gave.Keep in mind,its not just my advice as an opinion of mine!Its the COMBINED and RESEARCHED advice from many masters,senior masters and GM's....and i'm passing it on to you.Its not just my idle opinion to be taken in stride.

TA

deeper_insight
06-Oct-16, 10:45

Slight correction above(3rd paragraph from the bottom):
"or a Ruy Lopez early exchange of blacks g7 pawn which may "appear"weak,but that is technically an illusion and misunderstood by many players south of 2100 in rating."

I meant to say the exchange of blacks f6 Knight with whites Bishop which would then double blacks pawns on squares f6 and f7.

TA

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