Bon nuit! Good evening friends. Do you know the difference between deflection and decoy? They are both tactics that can win material or the game. But deflection usually means a piece goes AWAY from a square, and decoy means it is lured TOWARD a square.
In the following puzzles, you will use a rook to force another piece to move away. Maybe the piece was guarding a checkmate square, or maybe it guards a piece. This tactic is similar to remove the guard in that way. Are you ready to crush? I will do the first one for you.
1.) White to move. The queen and rook are lined up in a nice battery on the h-file. But black's queen is guarding that h7 square. How do we deflect the queen away? Remember to always look for forcing moves.
2.) This one you can do. Your job is to capture the queen. But not right away! First you must deflect the rook from protecting her.
3.) Black to move. Deflect the white queen or rook. Two part question.
4.) Black to move. The first move is the same, but this time, what would you do if the queen doesn't take right away? Well, you'll just have to deflect her again, by pinning her to the king!
5.) White to move. This puzzle is similar to number 2. If deflecting the rook from from the queen doesn't work, you can deflect the queen from the rook! Look for checks for your first move only.
6.) White to move. No matter how black takes back you will win the queen! (Hint: Look for a knight fork.)
Great job! You are now a master deflecter. Maybe you should take up karate?
See you next week! Click here if you would like more practice deflecting.
Tip of the week: Instead of capturing something right away, see if you can deflect its protector!