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In chess
Chess

Chess is a recreational and competitive game played between two Player . Sometimes called Western chess or international chess to distinguish it from History of chess and other chess variants, the current form of the game emerged in Southern Europe during the second half of the 15th century after evolving from similar, much older...
, a skewer (or thrust) is an attack upon two pieces in a line and is similar to a pin
Pin (chess)

In chess, a pin is a situation brought on by an attacking piece in which a defending piece cannot move without exposing a more valuable defending piece on its other side to capture by the attacking piece....
. In fact, a skewer is sometimes described as a "reverse pin"; the difference is that in a skewer, the more valuable piece is in front of the piece of lesser or equal value. The opponent is compelled to move the more valuable piece to avoid its capture, thereby exposing the less valuable piece which can then be captured.






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In chess
Chess

Chess is a recreational and competitive game played between two Player . Sometimes called Western chess or international chess to distinguish it from History of chess and other chess variants, the current form of the game emerged in Southern Europe during the second half of the 15th century after evolving from similar, much older...
, a skewer (or thrust) is an attack upon two pieces in a line and is similar to a pin
Pin (chess)

In chess, a pin is a situation brought on by an attacking piece in which a defending piece cannot move without exposing a more valuable defending piece on its other side to capture by the attacking piece....
. In fact, a skewer is sometimes described as a "reverse pin"; the difference is that in a skewer, the more valuable piece is in front of the piece of lesser or equal value. The opponent is compelled to move the more valuable piece to avoid its capture, thereby exposing the less valuable piece which can then be captured. The long-range pieces (queen
Queen (chess)

The queen is the most powerful chess piece in the game of chess. Each player starts the game with one queen, placed in the middle of their first rank next to their King ....
, rook
Rook (chess)

A rook is a chess piece in the strategy board game of chess. In the past the piece was called the castle, tower, marquess, rector, and comes , and non-players still often call it a "castle"....
, and bishop
Bishop (chess)

A bishop is a Chess piece in the board game of chess. Each player begins the game with two bishops. One starts between the king's Knight and the King , the other between the queen's knight and the Queen ....
) can skewer.

In the diagram to the left, with Black to move, the black queen is skewered by White's bishop. Black must move the queen, and on the next move, White will capture the rook. This is a relative skewer; Black is likely to move the queen, which is more valuable than the rook—but the choice is still available.

In the diagram to the right, with White to move, the white king is skewered by the black bishop. This is an absolute skewer, because the rules of chess compel White to move out of check. After White chooses one of the handful of legal moves available, Black will capture the white queen.

Because the skewer is a direct attack upon the more valuable piece, it is generally a much more powerful and effective tactic than the pin. The victim of a skewer often cannot avoid losing material (though it may be possible if, for example, the more valuable piece can give check, thereby forcing the skewering side to move out of check instead of being able to capture the lesser piece, or if it is possible to move a less valuable piece in the way); the only question is which material will be lost. The skewer occurs less often than the pin in actual play. When it does occur, however, it is often decisive.

See also

  • Pin (chess)
    Pin (chess)

    In chess, a pin is a situation brought on by an attacking piece in which a defending piece cannot move without exposing a more valuable defending piece on its other side to capture by the attacking piece....
  • X-ray (chess)
    X-ray (chess)

    In chess, an X-ray or X-ray attack is a chess tactic whereby a ranged piece supports a friendly piece "through" a piece of the opposite color....
  • Chess tactics
  • Chess terminology
    Chess terminology

    This page explains commonly used terms in chess in alphabetical order. Some of these have their own pages, like Fork and Pin . For a list of unorthodox chess pieces, see fairy chess piece; for a list of terms specific to chess problems, see chess problem terminology; for a list of chess related games, see chess variants....


External links

  • - Collection of chess problems involving skewers