Nowhere to run!
One thing that improved my game drastically was when I started looking at the geometry of how particular pieces interacted with one another.
The lone knight in the center of the board can go to its choice of eight places on its first move alone.
After the first move, it must be on a square of the opposite color.
It's important to note that it is now attacking the same color square it started on.
If you're thinking two moves ahead with a knight, and it's placed in the center without any pieces prohibiting motion, there are an additional 27 options, including its original spot!
That 27 plus the initial eight moves covers over half the board!
That's why it's so easy for players to be "tricky" with their knights. It's because they are extremely powerful pieces!
However, let's look at what happens if we put a knight on the board's edge instead.
It starts off with only four options after move one.
It starts with only four options after moving one.
And after move two, there are 17 choices.
That's a total of 21 which is a significant reduction; however, it still allows for some potential maneuvering, provided your opponent hasn't chosen to exploit the fact you can only move to four squares initially.
Only two choices!
And after the second move, an astoundingly abysmal ten moves for a total of 12!
If the chessboard were a physical battlefield, the center would be the equivalent of a hilltop.
The top of a hill gives your soldiers the best vantage point on enemy combatants and allows them to attack with their full capacity.
Do you remember how I mentioned something about the geometry of the pieces and how they worked together earlier?
If you had a knight on the edge, do you think there's a piece that could stop it from moving to any of it's four escape squares?
Now you can use the same technique even if the knight is in the center! It doesn't stop it from moving altogether, but it can prevent the knight from making half its initial moves.
As we've seen, this eliminates many options and can easily cripple one of the game's most powerful, tricky pieces with a single move!
You can do this to any piece with the same idea.
Leave your opponents with nowhere to run and nowhere to hide.
Eventually, the only option they'll have left is to resign!
I was recently asked about the best ways to punish your opponents when they bring their queen out early.
If you've ever wondered the same thing or if you want to learn to avoid having your queen taken in the first few moves, you can read my guide here!
Until next time, keep improving, keep learning, and most of all enjoy every moment!
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