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- Most Important Positional Principles
- Most Important Opening Principles
- Most Important Middlegame Principles
- Most Important Attacking Principles
- Most Important Endgame Principles

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35 Most Important Chess Principles | Contents

MOST IMPORTANT
PRINCIPLES OF
POSITIONAL CHESS

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1. IMPROVE ALL OF YOUR PIECES

Improving positioning of your own pieces is one of the most important principles of chess. That
is something common to both tactical and maneuvering type of positions.
Every tempi invested in improvement of your pieces will greatly benefit you in the long run. In
order to attack or defend effectively your pieces need to be properly positioned, on the squares
where they can perform at their best.
Take a look at the position below. White has plenty of ways to improve their pieces. For example:
Bb2 occupying the long diagonal, where bishop is the strongest
Re1 occupying an open file, where rook is the strongest
Ne4 positioning the knight at the center

White to move

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Most Important Principles of Positional Chess | 1

2. CREATE FAVORABLE PAWN STRUCTURE

This is something that many chess players understand, but not many players manage to achieve
in their games. The reason being, most likely, because they get disrupted by other more important chess matters and never have time to worry about simple things like pawn structure.
The truth is, by creating a favorable pawn structure (the one which suits your pieces best) you
not only improve your own pieces, but also make your opponents play far less comfortable.
In the example below, white is about to play c5. That simple move has a deep meaning behind
it. If you take a look at the whites pawn chain, you may notice that all of the pawns are located
on dark squares.
Since black has a dark squared bishop, closing the position on dark squares would make a lot
of sense, because whites knight can easily exploit the closed center. At the same time, blacks
bishop doesnt have many useful moves.

White to move

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Most Important Principles of Positional Chess | 2

3. RESTRICT YOUR OPPONENTS PIECES

Restricting your opponents pieces is a very powerful technique.
In the previous example we saw how we can create a favorable pawn structure to improve our
own pieces activity as well as to reduce mobility of the opponents pieces. The same can also be
done when one of our pieces restricts the movement of the opponents piece or pieces.
In the example below whites bishop completely dominates blacks knight. The knight has no
moves, because all of the squares d7,e6,g6,h7 are controlled by the bishop. [Here is an example
when the opposite is true: the knight dominates the bishop.]
Despite the fact that the material is equal, black already has a losing position, and key reason
is the restricted knight. White continued with 1.c5! restricting the king to a7, followed by 2.h4
running the pawn towards the promotion square. Soon black will have to give up his knight for
that pawn. This examples contradicts to common rule that if your opponent has a dark squared
bishop you need to position all of your pawns on light squares.

White to move

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Most Important Principles of Positional Chess | 3

4. NEUTRALIZE YOUR OPPONENTS PLAN

Understanding what your opponent is planning to do and interfering with his plan is a very important ability. By constantly staying alert and questioning all of the opponents moves you will
be able to stay one move ahead in the game, which is typically enough to win.
In the example below black is planning to relocate his knight on e4-square via d7-f6-e4 maneuver. Since white saw that coming, he took necessary precautions to prevent that from happening. White played 1.Nd3 followed by 2. Nf2 covering the important e4-square first.
Blacks plan failed. Notice that the exchange of rook does not help black to position the knight
on e4.

Black to move

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Most Important Principles of Positional Chess | 4

5. ACCUMULATE SMALL ADVANTAGES

Positional chess is all about accumulating many small and very small advantages and using them
when the time is right. In the position below white already has some of such advantages.
They control an open e-file, blacks a-pawns are weak, the a7-bishop is a bad piece and the d5knight is very well placed.
That is more than enough to launch a winning attack via 1.Re7.

White to move

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Most Important Principles of Positional Chess | 5

6. CONVERT TEMPORARY ADVANTAGES

It is indeed important to possess advantages in the game of chess. However, whats good about
these temporary advantages, if they are well temporary. In order to fully benefit from temporary advantages, we need to use them wisely and convert into permanent ones.
That typically means we need to act fast, before our opponent gets rid of them, or patches them.
In the example below we have that kind of situation. Blacks king temporarily got stuck in the
center. If white does not act fast, black will castle and the position will equalize. White has
something in mind.
1... e4 2. Rxe4+! Sacrificing the rook to open up the position. Nxe4 3. Qxe4+ Kd8 4. Ne5 +- and
white is winning. Notice how white skillfully converted a temporary advantage (inability to
castle) into a permanent one.

White to move

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Most Important Principles of Positional Chess | 6

7. DO NOT RUSH
That is one of the very important chess principles applicable to all stages of the game from opening to the endgame. This principle does not mean that you need to waste tempis, but it says that
you need to prepare carefully before attempting any serious positional changes.
In the position below white has an advantage of two central pawns. Indeed he can push them
right away, but that wouldnt be wise.
Instead, he prepares the push first, by playing moves like f4, Kh1, Rd1 and Re1. After the preparatory moves everything will be ready for a strong attack in the center, which will most likely
win the game.

White to move

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Most Important Principles of Positional Chess | 7

CHESS IS
THE ART
OF ANALYSIS.
MIKHAIL BOTVINNIK.

MOST IMPORTANT
OPENING
PRINCIPLES

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8. DEVELOP PIECES RAPIDLY

It is not a secret that the main objective of opening is development. Even though it sounds like
common sense it is not the case for many amateur players. Some players use this phase of the
game for quick queen checks, pawn hunt and launch of unprepared attack.
Needless to say, that after their cheap shots fail (and that happens in 99% of the games) they end
up in deep trouble. Imaging being way behind in development, with an exposed king stuck at
the center, under attack of opponents rooks and the queen.
Not a very pleasant position to be in. Focus on rapid development and you wont be one of these
unlucky players that lose in 15 moves.
In the position below Black is 2 pawns up but he is so much behind in development that the
game is already lost.

Black to move

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Most Important Opening Principles | 8

9. DONT MOVE THE SAME PIECE TWICE

This is a general rule to remember. Typically you want to move each piece just once during the
opening phase. Unless there is a very good reason (serious material gain, checkmate, etc.) to
move the piece twice, it should be avoided.
Give a chance to other pieces to get developed before you start repositioning already developed
pieces.
It seems like white found a nice attacking move Nb5, threatening a vulnerable c7 square. But
this move was an inaccuracy because it violates one of the basic opening principles of not moving the same piece twice.
Black can easily defend with Qf7, simultaneously opening the diagonal for the light squared
bishop. White just lost a tempo. It wouldve been better for white just to play O-O.

Black to move

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Most Important Opening Principles | 9

10. DONT MAKE UNNEEDED PAWN MOVES

Dont spend valuable time in the opening making unnecessary pawn moves.
Generally speaking, you should only make pawn moves when they are needed to develop the
pieces (central pawns, fianchetto, etc.) Especially avoid prophylactic pawn pushes; they dont do
any good in the opening.
White just played an unforced pawn move h3. This is not very good move because it loses time.
Better is just Qe2+ or Nxd5.

Black to move

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Most Important Opening Principles | 10

11. DEVELOP KNIGHTS BEFORE BISHOPS

There are many reasons to develop knights before bishops. First of all, the knight is a short
range piece, meaning that it only can control the nearby squares. If a knight is not developed its
effectiveness is close to zero.
At the same time, a bishop is a long range piece and can control many squares even from the
back rank.
Also, by developing the bishop before the knight you are leaving a knights pawn unprotected.

Black to move

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Most Important Opening Principles | 11

12. DONT EXCHANGE DEVELOPED PIECES

In order to develop a piece you invest a valuable chess resource: time. If you exchanged a wellpositioned piece for an undeveloped counterpart you are losing tempos, and thats something
you definitely want to avoid in the opening.
Use these tempos to develop more pieces instead!
In the position below it is not a good idea for white to play Bxb8 because it will lose a tempo.

White to move

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Most Important Opening Principles | 12

13. CASTLE EARLY

Putting the King to safety is one of the priorities of the opening. Keep in mind that contrary to a
popular belief it is much harder to attack the castled king.
At the same time, castling connects the rooks, allowing them to work more efficiently. Always
castle early in the game!
Following this simple rules will save you handful of games.

White to move

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Most Important Opening Principles | 13

14. CONTROL MORE SPACE

The spatial advantage is a very important aspect of chess. Generally speaking a player that possesses a spatial advantage has control of the game.
Space allows you to much more efficiently coordinate the pieces for both attack and defense, at
the same time preventing your opponent from doing the same.
In our training course we have excellent examples and a much deeper explanation of how spatial advantage can be effectively used and converted into the win.
Notice how white advanced his pawns to occupy more space.

White to move

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Most Important Opening Principles | 14

AN OUNCE OF
COMMON SENSE CAN
OUTWEIGHT A TON
OF VARIATIONS.
SAVIELLY TARTAKOWER.

MOST IMPORTANT
ATTACKING
PRINCIPLES

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15. ALWAYS CREATE A THREAT WITH YOUR MOVE

Creating a threat with every move is one of the most important principles of attacking chess.
If your move possesses a threat, your opponent will have a much harder time realizing his own
plans since he would have to utilize his resources to deal with the threats first.
Always try to find a move that threatens your opponents safety.
Take a look at the position below. It seems white is losing material because his queen, 2 pawns
and the knight are in danger. If white plays passively he will lose a pawn and his advantage.
White however, finds a strong counter-attacking move: 1. Qg3!
Not only this move protects his own knight, but also it threatens blacks knight as well as prepares a discovered attack on the queen (after Nh5+). Now black will be the one losing a piece.

White to move

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Most Important Attacking Principles | 15

16. EXPLOIT YOUR OPPONENTS WEAKNESSES

Weaknesses come in different shapes and forms. Often, they need to be created before you can
fully exploit them. If your opponent already has a weakness you need to regroup your forces
and attack it.
In the example below the material is equal. However, black has a very weak, backward c7-pawn.
White regroups his forces and puts maximum pressure on the pawn.
The important idea that many amateur players dont understand is that even though white cannot win the c7-pawn right away, he gets an enormous advantage in pieces activity.
Compare how white pieces are positioned compared to their blacks counterparts. The position
is technically won for white.

White to move

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Most Important Attacking Principles | 16

17. CONCENTRATE YOUR PIECES BEFORE ATTACK

Before you launch a massive attack, you need to make all necessary preparations. Not preparing
the attack is a huge mistake that can turn out to be very costly.
By concentrating pieces in the region of the board where you plan to attack, you will have all
available resources, increasing the possibility of success.
In the position below white is attacking on the kings side. He plays 1.Qh2, bringing the queen
on the h-file and threatening black kings safety. Next, white will play something like 2.Ne5
instead of taking the pawn, focusing on kings side in general and not thinking about the small
material gain.
Not rushing is a very important concept in many chess positions. It is much better to prepare
an attack and to mate an opponent, than simply to win a pawn.

White to move

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Most Important Attacking Principles | 17

18. WHEN YOU ATTACKING OPEN THE POSITION

This is a common sense rule, and still many players ignore that simple idea. If you have an attack in progress, it makes sense to open the position even further to allow your bishops and
rooks to take use of that open space.
In the position below black was greedy in the opening and grabbed some pawns in expense of
development. Now his queen is misplaced and the king is under attack. White just played 1.d4!
taking advantage of black kings vulnerable position.
The idea is to open the e-file and to include the rooks and queen in the attack. Black is already
is trouble.

Black to move

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Most Important Attacking Principles | 18

19. EXCHANGE OFF KEY DEFENDERS

By exchanging off the key defender in the opponents position you will make the attack much
stronger. Keep in mind that the key defender is not always the strongest piece.
Lets take a look at the position below. White prepared an attack on the kings side, by opening
h-file and doubling the rooks. However, white cannot advance onto h8 because the blacks dark
squared bishop defends that important square.
The g7-bishop is the key defender in this position. Whites plan is to exchange it off. Therefore,
the move is obvious 1.Bc3!

White to move

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Most Important Attacking Principles | 19

20. IF YOU HAVE INITIATIVE AVOID EXCHANGES

This rule may seem to contradict with the previous one. Let me clarify what it means. Even
though you should exchange off the key defenders in the opponents position, you should avoid
unnecessary exchanges since it will only benefit your opponent.
Fewer pieces mean fewer attacking possibilities and fewer things to worry about. Thats not
what we should go after.
In the position below white has significant advantage. He is a pawn up and the black kings side
is weak. White needs to avoid trading queens and followed by lifting the rook to g3.

White to move

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Most Important Attacking Principles | 20

21. ATTACKING ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BOARD

This is a very powerful technique that you should use in your own games. When your opponent
was able to defend on one side of the board, you should relocate your pieces on the other side
and continue the attack.
In the example below black defends queens side with both rooks and the king pretty well.
Therefore, white changes direction of the attack and relocates his pieces on h-file winning material.

White to move

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Most Important Attacking Principles | 21

NO PRICE IS TOO
GREAT FOR THE
SCALP OF
THE ENEMY KING
KOBLENTZ.

MOST IMPORTANT
MIDDLEGAME
PRINCIPLES

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22. CENTRALIZE YOUR PIECES

It is a well-known fact that in the center pieces control a lot more squares than elsewhere. This
is especially important rule to remember when dealing with the knights. The knights can control as many as 8 squares when centralized, while only 2 square if cornered.
It is true that bishops can be very effective from the flank. However, in the center they are more
mobile and control both parts of the board. The same goes for the queen. If it is safe, bishops
and queen should be centralized as well as knights.
Notice how white has centralized four of his pieces.

White to move

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Most Important Middlegame Principles | 22

23. TRADE YOUR FLANK PAWNS

The central pawns are generally considered to be more valuable than the flank pawns. This is
because central pawns allow controlling important central squares (d4-d5-e4-e5) which can be
used to support pieces and develop a strong attack not only in the center but also on the kings
or queens side. At the same time central pawns provide space and increase pieces mobility.
Therefore, it is recommended not to trade your central pawns for the opponents flank pawns.
In fact you should do the opposite and exchange your flank pawns for the opponents central
pawns.
White should play fxe3 to create a strong pawn center with e-d-c pawns.

White to move

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Most Important Middlegame Principles | 23

24. AVOID PAWN WEAKNESSES

A pawn weakness is something that can give your opponent an instant edge and allow him an
easy game by exploiting them.
That is something that can turn an otherwise equal endgame into a loss. To avoid endgame
trouble you need to take care of the pawn structure right from the opening and middle-game.
Avoid doubled, backward, and isolated pawns.
In the position below both white and black have serious pawn weaknesses. White has doubled
and backward pawns, while black have isolated pawns.

White to move

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Most Important Middlegame Principles | 24

25. AVOID CREATING WEAK SQUARES

A weak square is a square that cannot be protected by a pawn. Weak squares in your position
are perfect candidates for becoming strong outposts for your opponents pieces.
The closer the weak square is to your kings position or to the center, the bigger trouble it usually creates. Always be careful with pawn advances, since that is what creates the weak squares.
Pawns cant go back.
On the diagram below white has a weak f3 square right next to his kings position. It can be
soon used by the blacks knight and queen to create mating threats.

Black to move

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Most Important Middlegame Principles | 25

26. ALWAYS BLOCKADE OPPONENTS ISOLATED PAWN

An isolated pawn is a powerful weapon and can be used by your opponent to launch a strong
attack, because it supports pieces and provides extra space.
Another danger of isolated pawn is that it can be pushed forward at the right time causing
many problems. Thats why it is very important to always blockade opponents isolated pawn to
avoid complications.
The best piece for this purpose is indeed the knight.

Black to move

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Most Important Middlegame Principles | 26

27. OCCUPY OPEN FILES WITH YOUR ROOKS

It is no secret that rooks work best on open files. If there is an open file available your instinctual move should be to occupy the file with your rook.
Next step should be to double your rooks on the open file. If there are no open files available,
you can occupy a semi-open file that you can force open later.
In the position below white has serious positional advantage because he is controlling the open
file - main element of the position.

White to move

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Most Important Middlegame Principles | 27

28. KEEP THE BISHOP PAIR

The bishop pair is very powerful in most positions. Only if position is totally locked up the two
knights may be stronger than a bishop pair.
Avoid giving up one of your bishops in the opening or early middle-game just to create doubled
pawns in your opponents pawn structure. In most cases the attacking potential of the bishop
pair overweight the pawn structure defects.
In the position below white has a serious positional advantage due to the possession of the
bishop pair.

White to move

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Most Important Middlegame Principles | 28

BEFORE
THE ENDGAME
GODS HAVE PLACED
THE MIDDLEGAME
SIEGBERT TARRASCH.

MOST IMPORTANT
ENDGAME
PRINCIPLES

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29. CENTRALIZE YOUR KING AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

This is by far the most fundamental endgame rule. Surprisingly many amateurs neglect this
important principle often missing a big opportunity to win or draw the game.
The idea of centralizing the king is rather simple. In the endgame, when majority of the pieces
are gone, the king becomes a powerful weapon and should actively participate in the game to
support his own pawns and piece as well as to attack the opponents ones.
The first step of your thinking in any endgame position should be how to centralize your king
quickly and efficiently.
In the position below white has serious advantage because they centralized the king three
moves earlier than black.

Black to move

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Most Important Endgame Principles | 29

30. WHEN YOU UP IN PAWNS EXCHANGE PIECES

This is a pretty straightforward rule to understand. If you up a pawn, with pieces on the board
the position may still be ambiguous.
However, if you simplify the position further by taking pieces off the board, the extra pawn will
immediately play a greater role and can even decide an outcome of the game.
In the position below white is up a pawn. Thats why it is a good idea for them to trade the
minor pieces. By forcing that exchange white will be able to easily take advantage of the extra
pawn, winning the game.

Black to move
You should be very careful about exchanging pawns in positions like shown above. In the extreme situation, after exchanging all of the pawns you will end up in a Knight + Pawn vs. Knight
endgame which may easily end in a draw, because black will simple give up his knight for a
pawn.
To avoid this scenario, if you up some pawns, exchange pieces, not the pawns.

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Most Important Endgame Principles | 30

31. OBTAIN AN OPPOSITION

Opposition is a powerful endgame technique. It is commonly used to force the opponents king
away from the pawns, giving up control of the key squares. Generally, a side that holds an opposition has a positional advantage, often winning or drawing the game.
Position below is the most classical example of the opposition. If it is whites turn to move the
game is drawn, because white cannot penetrate blacks position without advancing the pawn.
If it is blacks turn to move, black needs to give up space and loses. In other words, the side that
holds an opposition has some sort of advantage which is enough to win or save the game.

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Most Important Endgame Principles | 31

32. FLANK PAWNS ARE STRONG AGAINST THE KNIGHTS

Knight is a short range piece and it has especially hard times in the endgame positions involving passed flank pawns.
For example, in the position below blacks knight cannot stop the passed rook pawn due to
knights low mobility and inability to reposition itself into a better defending position on time.

White to move

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Most Important Endgame Principles | 32

33. PLACE THE ROOKS BEHIND PASSED PAWNS

This is another very important rule to remember. Many amateur players disregard this simple
rule placing the rook in front of the passed pawn and then have trouble converting the advantage.
Dont make that mistake and always remember to place the rook behind the passed pawn. This
placement of the rook supports the pawn all the way through the promotion square and also
makes it possible to threaten the opponents king or pawns from the safe distance.
You should also keep this rule in mind when youre attacking opponents passed pawns. By
placing your rook behind the opponents passer, you control the pawn all the way through the
promotion square making it much harder to defend.
In the position below white has placed his rook behind the passed pawn and supports it all the
way to the promotion square.

Black to move

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Most Important Endgame Principles | 33

34. CREATE A PASSED PAWN

Creating a passed pawn should be one of the priorities in the endgame. Passed pawn possesses
a large value due to the possibility of promotion.
In fact, a passed pawn is so valuable that if it reaches the 7th rank it is worth a rook.
It is especially easy to create a passed pawn if you have a pawn majority on one side of the
board.
In the example below, white can easily create a passed pawn by first exchanging the b-pawn on
the opponents c-pawn and then exchanging off the opponents b-pawn.

Black to move

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Most Important Endgame Principles | 34

35. IF YOURE EXCHANGE DOWN AVOID ROOK TRADE

If you have a minor piece for a rook (aka exchange down) you should save the remaining rook,
since this is the only piece that can guard open files and ranks. Without this piece your position
will collapse and the pawns will fall.
In the position below black is exchange down. White offers a rook trade, but black wisely rejects
it attacking whites weakness the backward b-pawn.
With a correct play black has a good chance to draw this position.

White to move

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Most Important Endgame Principles | 35

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