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How to Win a Beginner's Chess Game

Chess is one of the world's oldest and most deceptively complex games. It also happens to be the world's only sport in which the best player is a computer program. Although the smarter you are, the better chess player you'll be, if you are of average intelligence you can still become an excellent chess player--as long as you learn to concentrate. Once you learn to think logically and strategically, you'll find ample opportunities to turn any chess game in a favorable direction.

Instructions

Opening
- 1
  Open by moving a pawn to one of the four centermost squares: d4, e4, d5 or e5. This will help you seize control of the center of the board.
- 2
  Focus on getting your pieces off the back row. Generally, knights should be brought out first, then bishops and finally your queen. Bringing your queen out too early renders it vulnerable to threats from minor pieces.
- 3
  Castle early to protect your king. Remember to keep pawns in front of your king to protect it.
Tactics and Strategy
- 4
  Fight for control of the center of the board. Your pieces are much more powerful when placed near the center because they have much more mobility that way.
- 5
  Look for forks. A fork occurs when one of your pieces threatens two of your opponent's pieces at once, forcing him to choose which one to sacrifice. Knights are particularly useful for this purpose.
- 6
  Protect your pieces. As far as possible, keep each piece protected by another so that your opponent cannot take it, even in a fork, without sacrificing a piece himself.
- 7
  If your position seems hopeless, consider trying to salvage a stalemate. A stalemate amounts to a tie, and occurs when your king is not in check yet your only possible move(s) would place it in check.

Chess & Checkers