Questions tagged [pieces]

Questions relating to the chess pieces in a general, abstract sense; questions about physical pieces (e.g. identification questions) should be tagged [chess-set] instead.

There are six separate types of chess piece: the Pawn (see ), the Knight (see ), the Bishop (see ), the Rook (see ), the Queen (see ), and the King (see ).

There are two colors of pieces: a light-colored set (termed White) and an otherwise identical dark-colored set (termed Black). Each set is controlled by one player during a game. Standard chess begins with the first two ranks of the chessboard filled with the White pieces, and the opposite two ranks filled with the Black pieces. The White pieces are placed in the following order on the first rank, left to right: Rook, Knight, Bishop, Queen, King, Bishop, Knight, Rook. The second rank is filled with eight pawns. The Black setup on the other side of the board mirrors the White setup. In this way, the two Kings are located in the same vertical half of the board (see ), and the Queens are located in the other half (see ).

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How many points is each chess piece worth?

I am a beginner at chess; please answer this question for me. How many points is each chess piece worth?
Jethik
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Do strong players move their pieces with different relative frequencies than weak players?

This question is an offshoot of Ramon Snir's earlier one about how often different types of pieces get moved, on average, in a game of chess. My question: Do the relative numbers of moves for the given types of pieces differ when one looks at the…
ETD
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Can all 64 squares be attacked or defended by the eight pieces?

Can you place the eight (non-pawn) pieces of one color on an otherwise empty chess board, such that every square (including the squares that pieces are on), is attacked / defended? This is a problem that I wrestled with in high school and I'm not…
Timmy
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Why does Stockfish undervalue pawns when compared to the classical "a piece is worth three pawns" approach?

I was taking a look at values engines give to pawns and piece and was quite shocked by Stockfish values for middlegame (Mg): PawnValueMg = 128 KnightValueMg = 721 ~ 5.6 pawns BishopValueMg = 825 ~ 6.4 pawns RookValueMg = 1276 ~ 9.9…
emdio
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Should a player be forced to move a piece that he has picked up after a spectator knocked it off the board?

While anyone can answer this, I do have official FIDE arbiters in mind. I am following a discussion on chess.com about the worst way you have lost a game. Someone related this story: This didn't happen to me, but it's the worst way to lose a chess…
PhishMaster
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Is there an origin or story of where the pieces that make a chess game got their name from?

I understand why there would be a king and queen but I would love to know where the idea to call pieces what they are - such as the Rook, Knight, Bishop and Pawn - came from. Is there any background information on the reasons they were called this,…
ThunderToes
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How to determine the value of a piece from scratch?

Assume we have a standard chess set setup, but we make a slight change so that (for example) pawns can now move two squares forward on any move rather than just on their initial move. Even assuming that we can still use the established point values…
DTR
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What are "full piece" and "half piece" in chess?

I'm reading Kasparov's Deep Thinking and I came across this sentence: In one computer championship, a machine blundered a full piece early in the game but its opponent declined to capture it. When I googled it I also saw the term "half piece" but…
Dennis
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Do any grandmasters win more with black than white?

Some statistics indicate white scores 52-56% - but I wonder if that differs according to playing style - e.g. perhaps strong defenders prefer the black pieces. Do any former/current grandmasters have stronger win records with the black pieces than…
stevec
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Pressing the clock using the same hand you use to move the pieces

I participated in a club and went to training. The guy who played against me is right-handed, so he placed the clock on the right. I'm left-handed, so I play with the left hand and press the clock with my right hand since it's closer. It's not very…
Lynob
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Why are rooks better than knights?

Generally, rooks are considered to be much better than knights. Why is that? Is it a myth or are they really better? Are there situations where a knights may be better that a rook? I usually think that rooks enter the game a bit later and this…
MozenRath
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What is right way to set up King & Queen In the beginning of game?

I know this is very basic question, but I just started playing and want to know. How do you set up king and queen the right way? Heading I generally get confused between the King and Queen and what square they start from. I recently read this about…
jeanstevens
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What should a player do in blitz if he knocks a piece on to the floor after pressing the clock?

This question is prompted by an incident in today's World Blitz championship in Moscow as described and shown in this tweet. What happened was that Nakamura made a move, pressed the clock, on the way back from pressing the clock his hand caught his…
Brian Towers
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Chess set icons

I am looking for an examples of a free chess set icons. It would be nice if the place allow to download them, but this is not really important, as I will still need to redraw them in svg format. Just to explain what I mean by chess set icons. I need…
Salvador Dali
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Was there a chess piece—elephant, knight or rook—rendered as a being looking into two directions?

I have found a chess set of unknown origin with ducks as pieces. Simple ducks for pawns, king and queen crowned and big, okay, but then, for rook, knight and bishop, I don't know. There is a duck carrying a book or a small chest with both wings, a…
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