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Chess Strategy 101: Getting Started for Beginners

Beginners who are playing their first few games often look down at the board and wonder, what the heck am I supposed to do with all these pieces? If you ever find yourself in this position, then this article is for you.


The Relative Power of the Pieces

Each piece has a different level of power on the chess board. Certain pieces are generally better than others. The pieces given values to show their worth:

Note: the King is not given a value, because he can't be captured, only checkmated.

The piece values can be a guide in determining which side has the advantage. If one player has more points than the other player, he has an advantage in material (with all else being equal, he is probably winning).

The values can also be used to evaluate trades. For example:


What Moves to Make at the Start of the Game

During the initial moves (known as the opening), you have three goals:

Let's take a look at each of these concepts by examining some opening moves. To keep things simple and focus on the concepts, we'll ignore black's pieces for now. In a real game, you would have to carefully consider what your opponent does before each move.

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A great opening move.

As white, one of the best opening moves is to advance the Pawn in front of your King forward 2 squares (e4 in chess notation). This move is excellent because:

  1. It opens lines to allow the Kingside Bishop and Queen to move off their starting squares (this is development).
  2. It helps control the centre by occupying it with a pawn.
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The Kingside Knight usually comes out early.

A great second move is to bring out your Kingside Knight (Nf3 in chess notation). This is a developing move, because the Knight comes off its original square into the action. The Knight also helps to control the centre, because it attacks two key centre squares.

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The Kingside Bishop often comes out next.

A great third move is to bring out your Kingside Bishop (Bc4 in chess notation). This is a developing move, because the Bishop comes off its original square. The Bishop also helps to control the centre from its new position.

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Castling early is usually a good idea.

A great fourth move is to castle (O-O in chess notation). This move fulfills the goal of protecting the King in the opening. It also has the benefit of developing the Rook, by bringing it out of the corner.


Back - Next
Chess Rules and Basics - Table of Contents
Introduction - Game Overview
The Pieces - The Rook - The Bishop - The Queen - The Knight - The Pawn - The King
Starting a Game - Check & Checkmate - Stalemate
Castling - Promotion - En Passant
Understanding Checkmate - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6
Chess Strategy 101
Chess Notation - Part 2
Where to Go From Here