What is Check?
Understand when a king is in check and how to respond
A king is in check when it is under attack by an opponent's piece:
- The player must get out of check on their next move
- There are three ways to get out of check:
- Move the king to a safe square
- Capture the attacking piece
- Block the attack with another piece
- If a player cannot get out of check, it's checkmate
Checkmate
Learn what checkmate is and how to achieve it
Checkmate occurs when:
- The king is in check
- There are no legal moves to get out of check
- The game ends immediately when checkmate occurs
- The player who checkmates wins the game
Common checkmate patterns include:
- Back rank mate
- Smothered mate
- Anastasia's mate
- Arabian mate
Defending Against Checkmate
Learn strategies to avoid checkmate
Key defensive strategies:
- Keep your king safe by castling early
- Maintain good piece coordination
- Watch for potential mating threats
- Keep escape squares for your king
- Don't leave your king exposed