Fork
One piece attacks two or more targets at the same time.
Look especially for knight and pawn forks.Pattern recognition
Common chess tactics
Tactical patterns to know
Learn how to check, capture, and threaten
Below are 15 tactical patterns every chess player should know. Before every move, look for opportunities to use these tactics and for threats that require a defense. As you master and recognize the basic patterns, more complicated combinations will become visible.
Pin
A piece cannot safely move because it would expose a more valuable piece or the king.
Attack the pinned piece again.Skewer
A valuable piece is attacked and must move, exposing a piece behind it.
Checks by queens, rooks, and bishops often create skewers.Discovered attack
Moving one piece reveals an attack by a piece behind it.
The moving piece can create a second threat.Double attack
A single move creates two threats, making both hard to answer.
Count every forcing threat after each candidate move.Removing the defender
Capture or drive away the piece protecting a target.
Ask which defender makes the position work.Deflection
Force a defending piece away from its required square or duty.
A sacrifice may pull the defender away.Decoy
Lure a piece—often the king—onto a vulnerable square.
The destination square is the key to the combination.Clearance
Vacate a square, rank, file, or diagonal for another piece.
Forcing moves can clear traffic with tempo.Interference
Place a piece between a defender and the piece or square it protects.
Long-range defenders are vulnerable to interference.Zwischenzug
Play an in-between forcing move before making the expected recapture.
Check all checks before automatically recapturing.Overloading
A defender has too many jobs and cannot perform all of them.
Create another threat against something it protects.Back-rank mate
A boxed-in king is mated by a rook or queen along the back rank.
Give the king an escape square before danger arrives.Smothered mate
A knight mates a king trapped by its own pieces.
The classic pattern often includes a queen sacrifice.Windmill
Repeated discovered checks allow a piece to collect material.
The king is forced back and forth while the attacker moves.