Forks
One move that attacks two pieces at once, so you win one of them.
The idea
One move attacks two pieces, and only one can be saved.
- The knight lands where it attacks two pieces.
- One of them is the king, so it must move.
- Then the knight takes the rook.
In a game: Look for a square where one of your pieces would attack two loose pieces at once.
The lesson
A fork is one move that attacks two enemy pieces at once. Your opponent can only answer one threat at a time, so you win the other piece.
Here White’s knight has just jumped to e7. It gives check to the king on g8 and also attacks the rook on c8. Press Next move to see what Black can do.
- 1... Kf8 Black has to move the king. A knight’s check cannot be blocked, and nothing can take the knight.
- 2. Nxc8 The rook cannot be saved, so the knight takes it. White has won a whole rook.
Find the move
Your turn. Black’s queen on b7 attacks your knight. Find the knight move that saves it and forks the king and the queen.
A hint
Look for a knight move that gives check.
Show the answer
1. Nd6+
Nd6+ gives check and attacks the queen on b7 at the same time. The king has to move, and then the knight takes the queen. A knight fork of king and queen is called a royal fork.
Find the move
Queens fork too. White to move: find the queen move that gives check and wins the rook.
A hint
Put the queen on a square that sees both the king and the rook.
Show the answer
1. Qd5+
Qd5+ attacks the king along one diagonal and the rook on a8 along the other. Black has to answer the check, and then the queen takes the rook.
Find the move
Even a pawn can fork. Both black knights attack your pawn on d4. White to move: find the pawn move that wins a piece.
A hint
Move the pawn forward so it attacks both knights.
Show the answer
1. d5
d5 attacks both knights at once. Each is guarded by a pawn, but a pawn is worth far less than a knight, so White wins a knight for a pawn whatever Black does.
Find the move
Even a king can fork, though it only attacks the squares next to it. White to move: find the king move that attacks both black pawns.
A hint
Find the square next to both pawns that no pawn guards.
Show the answer
1. Kc6
Kc6 touches both b5 and d5. Black cannot save both pawns, and White wins the ending. The endgame tablebase, a database that has solved every ending with seven pieces or fewer, confirms it.
A question
White’s queen has just given check on d5, and it also attacks the rook on a8. Why does this fork fail?
Show the answer
The knight on f6 takes the queen.
Right. The knight guards d5. A fork only works if the forking piece cannot simply be captured, so check that first.
Find the move
A bishop can fork as well. White to move: find the fork.
A hint
Look for a check that also attacks the rook.
Show the answer
36. Bb4+
Bb4+ checks the king on f8 and attacks the rook on a3 at the same time. Black cannot save both.
Find the move
And a rook. White to move: find the fork.
A hint
Look for a rook check that also attacks a piece nothing guards.
Show the answer
42. Rf7+
Rf7+ checks the king on f8 and attacks the knight on f6 at the same time. The king cannot take the rook, because the bishop on c4 guards f7. The king has to move, and the rook takes the knight.
Practise
Now some on your own. They get a little harder as you do well.
In the lesson, 5 rated puzzles on this theme come from the puzzle bank, chosen near your rating.
In numbers
In the puzzle bank
2,662 puzzles in GreyChess’s bank practise it. Half of them are rated between 1,244 and 2,223.
The piece that makes the first move of the answer: queen 32%, rook 23%, knight 21%, pawn 12%, bishop 11%, in puzzles from the Lichess puzzle database.