Chess Strategies for Total Beginners

You know the rules. The pieces, the captures, check and checkmate, special moves like castling and promotion. So what now?

Knowing the rules and playing well are two very different things. The good news: a handful of simple ideas will take you from "I can move the pieces" to "I have a plan." None of these are advanced — they're what every chess club teaches first.

Every piece has a value. You don't write it on the board, but every chess player has it memorised. The values tell you which trades are good, which are bad, and whether you're winning or losing at any moment in the game.

The king has no point value because losing it ends the game. For everything else, the values let you make quick decisions:

• Good trade: trade your knight (3) for the opponent's rook (5). You gain 2 points of material.
• Even trade: trade a knight for a bishop. Both worth 3 — neither side gains.
• Bad trade: trade your rook (5) for a knight (3). You lose 2 points.

The opening is the first 10–15 moves of the game. You don't need to memorise specific openings yet. You just need to follow four simple ideas — and you'll already be playing better than most beginners.

The four squares in the middle of the board (e4, e5, d4, d5) are the most important squares in chess. Pieces in the centre attack more squares than pieces near the edge. A knight in the corner attacks only two squares; a knight in the centre attacks eight.

On your very first move, push your e-pawn or d-pawn two squares forward. This claims a centre square, opens a diagonal for your bishop, and opens a file for your queen.

"Developing" a piece just means moving it from its starting square to somewhere useful. Knights and bishops are the easiest to develop — they're stuck behind your pawns until you move them out.

Aim to get every minor piece (knights and bishops) off the back rank in the first few moves. Knights usually go to f3 and c3 (or f6 and c6 for Black). Bishops go wherever they have a clear diagonal.

Once your kingside knight and bishop have moved, the squares are clear and you can castle. Castle as soon as you can — usually within the first 6–10 moves. Castling does two important things at once: it tucks your king into a corner where it's safer, and it brings a rook into play.

The queen is your most powerful piece, but if you bring her out in the first few moves, your opponent will chase her around with cheaper pieces. Every time the queen has to move, you waste a turn — while your opponent is busy getting knights and bishops developed.

Wait until you have a few minor pieces developed before bringing the queen out. She'll have somewhere safe to go — and a job to do.

Here's a classic opening — the Italian Game — that follows all four principles in just a handful of moves. Step through it.

Most beginner games are decided by hanging pieces — leaving a piece undefended where the opponent can take it for free. Your rating goes up almost overnight when you learn to spot these.

Before you make any move, ask two questions:

1. What does my opponent's last move attack? If they just moved a piece, look at every square that piece now attacks. Is one of yours sitting on one of those squares undefended?
2. What will my move expose? If you move a piece, will it leave another piece unprotected? Will it open a line of attack on your king?

Train your eyes to scan the board after every opponent move. With practice it becomes automatic — and most blunders disappear.

Tactics are short sequences of moves that win pieces or deliver checkmate. There are dozens of patterns, but three show up over and over again. Once you can spot them, you'll start winning material in almost every game.

A fork is when one of your pieces attacks two enemy pieces at the same time. The opponent can only defend one — you capture the other.

Knights are the kings of forks. Their L-shaped move means they can attack pieces in places nothing else can reach. Watch:

We have a full section teaching just about forks, start learning here.

A pin is when one of your pieces (bishop, rook, or queen) attacks an enemy piece that can't move — because moving it would expose a more valuable piece behind it (usually the king, sometimes the queen).

Here's a classic pin from a famous opening called the Ruy Lopez:

We have a full section teaching just about pins, start learning here.

A skewer is the opposite of a pin. The valuable piece is in front. You attack it, force it to move, and capture the piece behind.

We have a full section teaching just about skewers, start learning here.

Beginners often play moves on impulse. They see a capture and take it. They see a square and grab it. The fastest way to improve is to slow down and run through a checklist before every move.

Here's a simple one:

1. What did my opponent just threaten? Always start here.
2. Are any of my pieces hanging? Check every piece on the board.
3. Are any of their pieces hanging? Look for free pieces.
4. Do I have a check, capture, or threat I can make? Active moves first.
5. If not, what's my plan? Develop a piece, improve a piece, or push toward the centre.

If you're up material — say you've won a knight or a rook — your goal changes. You don't need to attack. You just need to survive long enough to convert your advantage into a finished game.

The simplest way to do that: trade pieces. Every time you trade an even-valued piece, you simplify the position. With fewer pieces on the board, your material advantage matters more, and there are fewer ways for either side to make a mistake.

The opposite is also true: if you're behind in material, avoid trades. Keep pieces on the board to give yourself chances to attack and create complications.

The endgame is the final phase of the game, when most pieces have been traded off. The most important rule of the endgame for beginners: push your pawns. A pawn that reaches the 8th rank promotes — usually to a queen — and that's almost always game over.

Most endgames boil down to one question: who can promote first? Use your king to support your pawns (the king is a strong piece in the endgame, when there's no danger of checkmate). Use your remaining pieces to clear paths and stop the opponent's pawns.

Almost every beginner makes these mistakes. Knowing them gives you a head start:

• Moving pawns instead of pieces. Pawns don't develop. Move your knights and bishops first.
• Bringing the queen out on move 2 or 3. She'll get chased back, and you'll lose tempo.
• Forgetting to castle. A king stuck in the centre after move 12 is asking to be checkmated.
• Trading pieces with no plan. Don't trade just because you can. Trade when it helps you (you're up material) or when it improves your position.
• Ignoring the opponent's last move. Most blunders happen because the player didn't notice what the opponent had just threatened.
• Giving up too early. Beginners blunder constantly. If you're losing, keep playing — your opponent will probably blunder back.

Reading about chess will only take you so far. You learn chess by playing chess. Get to a board (or a screen) and put these ideas to work.

Chess is a long-term game. Don't worry about being good immediately — worry about being a little better next month. Every player you admire was, at some point, exactly where you are now.

Now go play.