A Complete Guide to Chess Strategy in Easy Steps

Chess is a popular game globally, although it originated in India. It has other names, such as international or Western chess. It began in the 17th century, the Gupta Empire (600CE), and today, it has a federation named FIDE, the International Chess Federation. You need to follow the chess strategy to win the game because wasting moves is not worth it. 

Furthermore, the game is played on a chessboard with two people, and the players are called “black” and “white”. Each team has 16 pieces to play, which includes a king, a queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns. White has to initiate the game with strategy. 

What is the Chess and Its Rules?

Chess is a game that two people play on a board with 64 black and white squares arranged in an 8×8 grid. Each player has 16 pieces to play and must follow the rules to win the game. It is among the oldest board games. The game’s setup is: 

  • Rooks are placed on the outer line of the board.
  • Knights are placed beside the rook.
  • Bishops are placed beside knights.
  • The queen must be placed on a square the same colour as the queen.
  • The king is placed between the Queen and the Bishop.

Chess has some rules, such as:

  • King can move only one square front, sides, and back. 
  • The queen can move in all directions (vertically, horizontally, and diagonally)
  • Bishops can move diagonally, but they can only move to the lighter or darker squares, depending on their colour. 
  • Knight can move two squares horizontally and then one square vertically (in L shape). 
  • Pawns’ moves are tricky: a pawn can move two squares if it has yet to move. Once the pawn is moved, it can move one square forward. However, it captures the pieces diagonally. 

Understanding Chess Strategy Step-by-Step

Here is the step-by-step chess strategy that will help you win all the games. Let’s check them out:

1. Control the board’s centre

The opening should be initiated from the centre of the board. It makes all your pieces move freely. Move the pieces like 1.e4 and 1.e5; it helps control the board’s centre. Once you move e4, the bishop and the queen can move. Furthermore, controlling the centre is important because it increases the chances of winning the game. The more middle moves you make, the greater the king’s chances of survival.

2. Move all the pieces

Playing with two or three pieces in particular can lead you to lose the game. Instead, move all the pieces to capture the opponent’s important pieces. It is an important chess strategy to win the game. But moving one piece continuously and taking to the opponent’s camp wastes time. So, move all your pieces on the board to surround the opponent’s king from all sides.

3. Read the opponent’s move

Don’t just play random moves; instead, focus on the opponent’s strategy, read it and then make your move. If they move queen, they must be looking to capture any big piece. So, blindly moving any piece can lead to time wastage, and you will lose all the pieces. 

4. Focus on your weakest pieces

After moving all your pieces once, try to protect your weak piece. If there is any piece in front of the opponent’s capturing piece, make it safe by putting the strongest material in front. Also, focus on the opponent’s weak materials; if there is any move with which the opponent can lose, make it. 

5. Move pawn rarely

Pawns can only move forward, so save the pawn for later. Choose the pawn move when you are sure about your decision. Pawns are a major element that can turn into all the other pieces once they reach the opponent’s deck. 

What is the 40 40 20 rule in chess?

The 40-40-20 rule in chess is for time management. While playing the game, players mostly focus on capturing the pieces, not the important things. So, with the help of 40-40-20 rules, you can equally divide focus on the important things. According to this rule, a player should spend 20% of the time studying the game, 40% in the middle game, and another 40% of the time in the end game. It is mainly important for the players who are under 2000 rate. 

What is the best first move in chess?

One of the first moves in chess is 1.e4. It has many advantages, such as it protects the king and maintaining the focus in the centre of the game. Another advantage is that it allows the bishop and queen to make their moves, as they are the most important pieces of the game. The second most important move in the game is d4. It forces the opponent to play d4 and d5. D4 protects the queen from the front. 

Bottom Line

Playing chess becomes more important when you follow the chess strategy. There are many popular strategies for playing chess, such as moving e5 first and playing with all the materials are important. Using 40-40-20 rules can lead to winning the game as it equally divides your time on different things. What is the 40 40 20 rule in chess? What is the best first move in chess? Everything is clear in this blog.

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