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The Great Pawn Hunter
Chess Tutorial

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Barriers

As powerful pieces, such as rooks and queens, come off of the board, the king becomes more powerful as a playing piece. No longer does it sit idling on the back row. Now it must come out and play fighting barrier chess for key squares that blockade enemy passed pawns or help support the advance of one's own pawns to the queening square.

In diagram #1 there is a mate in two for White. How does one go about finding the right moves to make? The answer is to look at where the barriers are set up on the chess board.

If it were Black to move then the King would have to move to e8. Once the King is on e8, the White Rook will move to c8 and checkmate. Rc1! maintaining the barrier.

In diagram #3, the famous Lucena position is being played. Here, the concept of barriers is used to keep the Black King out of the game and then to stop the Black Rook from checking the White King once the King comes out from behind its Pawn cover. Look at the diagram following this one. It is the goal to be reached.

1) Re1! creating a barrier against the Black King by forcing it to move to the f file. If it moves to the d6 square then the White King moves to d8 and the Pawn queens.
...Kf7.
2) Re4! building a shelter for the King against the Black Rook.
...Ra2
3) Kd7 threatening to queen the Pawn.
...Rd2 check

4) Kc6 moving down the board towards the White Rook.
...Rc2 check
5) Kd6 protecting the pawn
...Rd2 check
6) Kc5 moving down the board towards the White Rook
...Rc2 check
7) Rc4 Blocking the Rook from any more checks. Now the Pawn can queen!

The concept of barriers can be seen in this diagram called Philidor's position which can be used to obtain a draw.

1) Re3 creating a barrier against the King and Pawn along the third rank. While the White King sets a barrier on the second rank from c1.
...Rh2 Black makes a waiting move hoping for White to make a mistake.
2) Rg3 The idea here is to wait until the Pawn advances to c3 and only then to move the White Rook in back of the Black King and Pawn forcing a perpetual check and a draw.
...c3
3) Rg8 getting in back of the King
...Kb3
4) Rb8 with perpetual check !