Pawn Forks
We will begin by taking a look at how the lowly pawn often wins a piece with a fork.
This is the most basic type of pawn fork. It can occur at any stage of the game, including the opening.
Knight Forks
Knight forks are perhaps the most common and most feared forks of all. Knights and Queens are especially well suited to double attacks because they move in ways other pieces don't. Let's start with the most brutal of Knight Forks, the family fork! This is actually a triple attack on the opponent's three most valuable pieces, King Queen and Rook. When a Knight forks a King and Queen, it's called a royal fork.
But here's a pretty example of a family fork:
(More examples and exercises to follow!)
This week's lesson will be on one of the most common tactical themes in chess, the double attack. This is also known as a Fork in English. A double attack is when one piece attacks two squares or pieces. Any piece, from the pawn to the King, can create a fork. The most common pieces involved in a fork are the Knight and the Queen. We will look at positions involving all of the pieces and pawns.
There are two special cases of double attack that deserve special mention. A double check is often called a double attack, but in that case, two pieces are attacking the enemy king. Another special case is the "skewer" which is also known as the x-ray attack. In that case, a piece attacks two other pieces on the same line, as if it is x-raying the first piece and aiming at the second. X-ray attacks will be analysed in a separate lesson.