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Basic Tactics

A Brief Introduction to Combinations & Sacrifices

including Deflection & The Over-Worked Piece &
The Weak Back Rank & Removing the Guard

Deflection involves (you guessed it) deflecting a piece away from its current position. Often, this involves drawing a piece away from an important defensive duty or leading a piece to a square where it will be vulnerable to attack or capture (or even checkmate, in the case of the King).

Examine the board below:

This is a very simple deflection. By playing b3! White deflects the Black Knight from c4, leaving the Black Knight on d6 vulnerable to capture by the White Rook. Click here for a demonstration.

Examine the board below:

Very often, deflection also involves the tactical motif of the over-worked piece. Black's Rook is an over-worked piece. It has two important defensive tasks: protecting the Black Queen and protecting against Rf8#. However, a simple deflection by White shows that Black's Rook can't perform both of these tasks adequately (i.e., it is over-worked): 1. Rf8+! The Black Rook must prevent checkmate with 1... Rxf8, allowing White to play 2. Qxb5! and White is ahead in material. However, White has an even better continuation, taking advantage of Black's weak back rank (i.e., any check along the back rank is checkmate (assuming said check can't be countered)): White plays 1. Qxb5! If the Black Rook allows itself to be deflected by playing 1... Rxb5, then White finishes the game with 2. Rf8#! Instead, Black's best bet is to move the Rook to safety so it can continue to protect Black's weak back rank. Click here for a demonstration.

The variation above is an example of a simple combination of tactical motifs: i.e., it involves combining more than one tactical motif (in this case, a deflection / over-worked piece and a weak back rank). Since simple tactics don't always present themselves, they often have to be created with a combination. Such combinations often start with a sacrifice of material: the attacker gives up a piece (or two, or even more in some cases!) in order to create a tactical situation which will win back even more material. Sacrifices involving a deflection are very common. Let's look at a couple of examples of all of this.

Examine the board below:

White wishes that there were some way that the Knight could fork the Black Queen and King, but they aren't in quite the right position for a fork. However, there is a combination available: 1. Rf6+! This deflection sacrifice puts the Black King on the right square for a Knight fork after 1... Kxf6, 2. Nd5+! Click here for a demonstration.

Examine the board below:

Here's an example of a combination which starts with a deflection sacrifice which in turn creates a weak-back rank: 1. Qxd8+ Kxd8, 2. Rf8#! Click here for a demonstration.

Removing the Guard is another common sacrificial technique. Examine the board below:

White would like to play Nf7+ and fork the Black King and Queen, but the Black Knight is guarding the f7 square. However, White can remove the guard by sacrificing the White Rook: 1. Rxe5! dxe5 and now 2. Nf7+! wins material. Click here for a demonstration.

Next: Test Exercises