Showing posts with label GP tactics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GP tactics. Show all posts

Saturday, February 27, 2010

GP Tactics: Unusual Mating Motif

I was surprised to find two examples of the same unusual mating pattern in the tactics subset I created before Christmas.  In the first position, I was losing anyways, but allowed an immediate resolution:

 
1.Kg3?? Rg1# , a type of epaulette mate.

The second example required a finesse move:

 
The immediate 1.Rb6?, as played by me, allows the king to escape with 1…Kc5.  However, 1.Rd5! threatens 2.Rb5#.    Black can only avoid mate by giving up a lot of material, e.g. 1…Rxc4.
A king in front of two isolated enemy pawns has its liberties seriously curtailed.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

GP Tactics: Counting/Removal of the Guard Tactic

{ Edit: Whoops, a last-minute picture swap introduced the wrong position.  Fixed now--GP}

Continuing (at long last) with the theme of simple tactics data-mined from my own games, here’s a position that seems straight out of Heisman.  If I can find where the heck I left my copy of his Back to Basics: Tactics, I have a nagging suspicion that he’s covered the same tactic.  Analyze 1.Bg5:
Solution after the fold

Friday, December 25, 2009

GP Tactics: Endgame Oversight


I will be publishing some of the tactical problems, labeled with the “GP Tactics” tag,  that were data-mined from my own games, as described in this previous post. 
A tactics set generated from your own games not only provides variety in difficulty level, but variety in motifs.  For example, many of the problems involved endgame positions.
For the position below. Black seems to be making progress on the queenside.  Analyze and evaluate 1…Nb4:



Solution after the fold