Tactics | Queen pins e-pawn to king ♟️ 50+2 Chess Quick Wins! Book

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50+2 Chess Quick Wins: Tactical ideas for exciting chess for beginner players. Buy on Amazon! US | CA | UK | DE | FR | IT | ES | NL | AU

My book, "50+2 Chess Quick Wins: Tactical ideas for exciting chess for beginner players" was published and released on Amazon in October 2023. This is the sixth video and article of a series that will cover the first section of the book, that explains tactical ideas and themes that underlie many quick win games!

In the previous article, “Tactics: Attack using open centre files”, we saw how semi-open and fully open centre files, the d- and e-files in the opening stages of the game can create tactical opportunities for a quick win. One specific manoeuvre that can be very powerful is placing our queen on a semi-open e-file, pinning the opponent's e-pawn to the king.

Now, developing the queen early is normally contrary to sound opening principles. It is often unclear where the queen should go, and there is a risk that the queen will be harassed by the opponent’s minor pieces, resulting in a loss of tempo. That said, as we saw in the Scholar’s Mate/Wayward Queen Attack, the queen can be a very powerful attacking piece in the opening in specific contexts.

This manoeuvre is common in the Englund Gambit as developing the queen to the e-file is part of an established theoretical line. With the pin in place, the opponent's e-pawn is unable to defend the squares on the adjacent d- and f-files. This complication to the position can be unexpected for the opponent, which can result in a critical deficiency in their king’s defences.

As the e-pawn pin tactical pattern is not commonly seen in frequently played and encountered chess openings (the e-file will need to be semi-opened, and the queen needs to be placed on the file), the opponent may not be actively scanning for it in their calculations of a position.

The tactic can be made even more effective by obscuring or hiding the initial setup of the pin. As written by Sun Tzu in The Art of War, “All warfare is based on deception.” For instance, having an initial intervening piece during the setup of the pin can create a hidden tactical resource. Moving that intervening piece with an attack now also reveals the pin!

Game 1 - Englund Gambit Accepted

Game 2 - Budapest Gambit