Chess lessons › Checkmate patterns
Winning without giving stalemate
With a king and queen against a king, keep clear of stalemate and finish with mate.
The idea
Against a lone king, leave it a move until the move that mates.
- The black king is in the corner, with a2, b1 and b2 around it.
- Qb3 lands a knight’s move away and covers all three squares.
- No move and no check: stalemate, and the win is gone.
In a game: Before each queen move near a cornered king, ask: will it still have a move?
The lesson
With a king and queen against a king you win by checkmate. The danger is stalemate: if the lone king has no legal move and is not in check, the game is a draw.
It happens most often in a corner. Here Qb3 looks strong, but the queen lands a knight’s move from the king. From there she covers a2, b1 and b2, every square around it, without giving check.
- 1. Qb3 Stalemate. The black king has no move and is not in check, so the game is drawn.
Find the move
Now your king stands on b3, guarding a2 and b2. Some queen moves here are stalemate. Find the checkmate instead.
A hint
Check the king along the first rank.
Show the answer
1. Qf1#
Qc1 checks along the first rank and covers b1. Your king covers a2 and b2, so the black king has nowhere to go. Qf1 mates the same way.
A question
White to move. Your king on g6 guards g7 and h7. Which queen move wins?
Show the answer
Qe8, a check along the back rank.
Right. The queen checks along the eighth rank and covers g8, and your king covers g7 and h7. That is checkmate.
Here is why Qe6 throws the win away. The queen covers g8, your king covers g7 and h7, and the black king is not in check. Black has no legal move: stalemate, a draw.
The lesson: before every queen move near a cornered king, ask whether it will still have a move. If it will not, your move must be check.
- 1. Qe6 Stalemate. A won game is now a draw.
The safe way is to leave the king a square while your own king walks over. Here the queen on b5 keeps the black king on a8 and a7, so it always has a move. Walk your king to c7, then give mate.
- 1. Kd6 Your king walks over. Black still has a7.
- 1... Ka7 2. Kc7 Your king now guards b7 and b8. Black still has a8.
- 2... Ka8 3. Qb7# Checkmate. The queen is next to the king, and your king protects her.
Find the move
White to move. One queen move here lands a knight’s move from the cornered king. Avoid it, and find the checkmate.
A hint
Check the king along the a-file.
Show the answer
1. Qa1#
Qa4 or Qa1 checks along the a-file. Your king covers b7 and b8, so the black king has nowhere to go. A queen a knight’s move from a cornered king takes all its squares without giving check, and that is stalemate.
Play it out
Now play a whole mate against the tablebase, which defends perfectly. Box the king in, leave it a square while your king comes over, and before every queen move ask: will Black still have a move?
In the lesson you play this out on the board, against the endgame tablebase’s best defence.
In numbers
Positions to practise
24 positions in the study, every result proved by the tablebase: 24 are wins for the side to move, with best play on both sides.