Well, there's a bunch of strategys on Rook vs. Knight and Rook vs. King endings, but what about even endings? I run into Rook vs Rook plus pawn endings all the time and every move seems so pointless. Are there any books on this topic?
Get Fundamental Chess Endings for a a good start. That should get you most of the way there. Then Dvortskey's endgame manual should get you to master level endgames.
With good knowledge, you have a great chance of winning drawn positions, especially because some endgames are very finicky in that you must play precisely to avoid allowing your opponent to win when it is drawn.
Originally posted by LordofADown Well, there's a bunch of strategys on Rook vs. Knight and Rook vs. King endings, but what about even endings? I run into Rook vs Rook plus pawn endings all the time and every move seems so pointless. Are there any books on this topic?
Are you interested in even endgames (R+p V R+p)? Or nearly even (R+p v R)?
I have Fundamental Chess Endings, which I find very difficult to use, despite it's thoroughness.
However, I did pick up a couple of tips to win this endgame... Game 1854352 Non rook pawns have a better chance of resulting in a win than rook pawns. Shut down counterplay on the side of the board away from your extra pawn. Set up an outpost for your rook to defend the pawns on the other side of the board. The king needs to try to get in front of the passed pawn, while the rook's best position is behind.
endgames have many positions but its mastering the fundamentals and piecing it together that help you understand it. trust me silmans book is worth the price. i got it for 16 bucks i think on amazon.com it covers everything up to master and then gives some fun games by masters of the endgame including fischer, alekhine, and more.
that endgame you had is called building a bridge, your rook blocks relentless checks so the pawn can advance. theres about 4-5 rules with rooks in endgames with pushing pawns up the board in order for a win.
GM Howell's Essential Chess Endings covers many equal material endings. I like the way he's organized it, with the most common endings getting the most coverage.
Originally posted by kmac27 silmans complete guide to endgames has about 20-30 pages on how to use rooks. "all you can eat baby". just like scotty nguyen said ;-)
ive heard very very good things about this book, had a personal recomandation from an IM about it.
Anyways, just for kicks I went into the 2000+ section to see how I would do on solving some of the problems. Interestingly, I always got the first 4-7 moves right, just playing off the top of my head in my head. Im not saying I understood them or would even have a clue how to get there, but found it intersting that I could solve those end games....now if only I could stop blundinger away my pieces and learn how to develope an effective midgame plan, I might make a player out of myself...but seeing how thats more than 75% of the game right there (midgame and tactics), thats a long ways to go.
I would go with silman because a lot of people seem to like it. But after that, you definitely need Fundamental Chess Endings.
To repeat: in equal or lost endgames, against unexperienced people, you do have a good chance of drawing or winning. But against people who are highly rated and also know the theory, they are still equal or lost.
Originally posted by LordofADown Does anyone have any game examples of turning an equal endgame into a win?
(please don't embarras me by showing me one of my own games.... i've already seen them all)
Game 3629433 I only got through the middle game because my opponent didn't kill me off when he had the chance. The endgame should have been lost but my opponent allowed me to crawl back into the game. My K went all the way across the board to have an impact on the game, then I escorted my K back across the board with the N and used the B to defend my remaining pawns. Then I coordinated the K & N to escort a pawn. Even late in the game, I think my opponent had the opportunity to draw with more careful play.
11 Jul '07 04:221 edit
Equal endgames
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