Chess Strategy
Learning how to play good strategical chess can be the difference between winning or losing. But do you know what people mean when they are talking about chess strategy? Let's learn about this important concept together!
What Is Chess Strategy?
In chess, it is common for players to make a distinction between strategy and tactics.
A tactic involves a move (or a few moves) that will bring a material advantage right away. These moves can be forks, pins, skewers, or any other sort of quick blow to the opponent.
On the other hand, strategy usually involves a long-term plan that is not necessarily based off of winning material. Instead, it creates a positional advantage by building up on small advantages over many moves. Examples of strategical play could be improving your piece to a better square, stopping an opponent’s plan, or making your whole army work together in harmony.
Why Does Chess Strategy Matter?
There is a common saying that chess is 99% tactics. But if tactics are so important, why should you care about strategy?
It turns out that playing good strategical chess is what will allow you to play those winning tactics. After all, how can you use your pieces' full power if they are all on bad squares, away from the action, and blocking each other?
The example below shows how a player can take advantage of strategical concepts to get an edge. Black made the strategical mistake of bringing their queen out too early. White took this opportunity to apply good strategical thinking and developed his pieces while attacking the queen. By doing this, White won many tempi or “free moves."
A few moves later and White already had all their pieces in place to apply the last tactical blow, winning the black queen.
Knowing strategical concepts can help you to find good moves in a position. When you understand chess strategy deeply, it is like the chessboard turns into a map that leads you to a hidden treasure! Just by looking at the position, you can figure out the best move to win the game.
Look at the position below. White is ahead in material, with an extra pawn. This situation might seem scary, but there is actually an easy way for Black to win the game.
If you understand chess strategy and the power of an outside passed pawn (like the black one sitting on h5), you won't have a problem finding the best move. All you have to do is trade the minor piece and then promote your pawn.
Wrapping Up
You now know the difference between chess tactics and strategy. You also know why learning chess strategy is vital to becoming a better player. Head over to our Lessons page to become a better strategic player now!