Basic Skills in Chess

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Chess Notation

Chess notations are various systems that have developed to record either the moves made in a game of
chess or the position of pieces on a chessboard.

Chess notation uses abbreviations for each piece, using capitalized letters.

King = K, Queen = Q, Bishop = B, Knight = N, Rook = R, Pawn = no notation.

Capturing an enemy piece sees an “x” placed between the piece moved and the square the captured
piece was upon.

When the opponent’s king is threatened by check, a “+” sign is added to the end of the notation.

Three way out of check:

Capturing the checking piece, with either the king or another piece. If the checking piece threatens the
king, the king can capture the piece if the king does not move into a new check (i.e. if the piece is not
protected by another enemy piece). Likewise, a piece that is pinned to the king cannot capture the
checking piece if such a move would place the king in check from the pinning piece.

Moving the king to an adjacent square where it is not in check. The king is not allowed to castle when it
is in check. The king may capture an enemy piece in a move to get out of check, as long as the piece is
not protected.

Blocking the check. This only works if the checking piece is a queen, rook, or bishop and there is at least
one empty square in the line between the checking piece and the checked king. Blocking a check is done
by moving a piece to one such empty square. (The blocking piece is then pinned to the king by the
attacking piece.)[3]

In the position in the first diagram, White can get out of check by any of three methods:

Capturing the attacking piece by the move Nxa2.

Moving the king to any unattacked square (marked with "x"); namely, Kd6, Ke5, or Ke7.

Blocking the check by the move Rc4 or Nd5.

Know How to use Chess clock


Every chess player must become accustomed to playing with a clock. Devote some time during practices
learning how to play with a clock and understanding how the clock can impact the outcome of your
game.

Same Hand Moves Pieces and Presses Clock. Each player must operate the clock with the same hand
that moves the pieces.

Recording Moves. If either player has fewer than five minutes remaining, both players are then allowed
to stopped notating. (However, most coaches recommend that if you have lots of time, you should still
notate even if your opponent falls below five minutes).

Time Control. The tournament flyer states the “time control” for an upcoming tournament is Game
30/d5. In this example, the player has 30 minutes. The “d/5” indicates the “delay” that is also applied for
each move. So, in this case, each player has 30 minutes with a five-second delay for each move. This is
the customary time control in most scholastic tournaments.

There are many rules and principles for the three different stages of a chess game

Rule #1 - Develop Your Pieces!

in the beginning of the game you need to develop your position by getting all of your pieces out as fast
as possible. Using your entire army is an absolute must when playing chess at a high level.

Rule #2- Don't make too many pawn moves.

You have to move at least a couple of pawns in the opening to let your pieces out. Usually, it's a good
idea to start by moving one of your centre pawns two squares. Moving the king's pawn two squares
opens lines for the queen and kingside bishop, so is usually the best choice for beginners.

Rule #3- Don't bring your queen out too early.

Wait a minute, wasn't the first rule to develop the pieces? So why not the queen? Remember, the queen
is the most valuable piece besides the king, so you can't afford to lose her (unless you can get your
opponent's queen in exchange). Early on in the game, that means your opponent has fourteen pieces
which are less valuable than the queen. If you bring your queen out early on, your opponent can
develop his pieces and attack your queen at the same time. You would then have to waste a move
saving your queen when you could be developing instead. Here is an example.

4. Don't move the same piece twice

It's absolutely vital to not waste a single move in developing your pieces. If you start moving the same
piece around while your other pieces are still on their starting squares, you're losing time. The only time
you should move a piece twice is if you need to capture an enemy piece.

5. Castle early
Once the pieces start coming out, the king will start to feel a bit vulnerable in the centre of the board. To
avoid being a victim of a quick checkmate, you should try and make sure your king gets castled early in
the game. Preferably, this should be before move 10. Castling also has the bonus effect of bringing one
of your rooks to the middle of the board, where it can menace the enemy king if he has neglected to
follow this rule!

6. Develop towards the centre

As you get better at chess, you'll start to learn that the most important area of the board is the centre -
that is, the squares e4, d4, e5 and d5. Think of these squares as being like the high ground. Just as in real
warfare, controlling the high ground in chess is often the key to victory.

7. Clear the back rank and connect your rooks

By connecting your rooks, we mean clearing the space between them so that they protect each other.
You can do this by moving out all your pieces and castling your king. Having the back rank clear means
your rooks can easily move back and forth along it - either for defensive purposes, or to support a pawn
push. Ideally, you want to move them to the centre as in our fantasy position above. Placing a rook
opposite the enemy queen is sometimes also a good idea, even if there are currently pieces in the way

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