it may sound silly, but hey I'm a chess novice - now and then I've been tempted, in an even game, to sacrifice a piece (bishop/knight) in order to prevent the other party from castling (i.e. by forcing the opponent to move his/her King and capture my piece) thinking it gives the advantage. what's a rule of thumb here? is there one? is this (generally) a no-no?
Originally posted by RenarsIf you get a huge attack as compensation I'd say go for it.Might not be such a good idea in corr chess though.
it may sound silly, but hey I'm a chess novice - now and then I've been tempted, in an even game, to sacrifice a piece (bishop/knight) in order to prevent the other party from castling (i.e. by forcing the opponent to move his/her King and capture my piece) thinking it gives the advantage. what's a rule of thumb here? is there one? is this (generally) a no-no?
Have a look at some Petroff defense,cochrane gambit games.
Originally posted by RenarsPost an example of one of your temptations.
it may sound silly, but hey I'm a chess novice - now and then I've been tempted, in an even game, to sacrifice a piece (bishop/knight) in order to prevent the other party from castling (i.e. by forcing the opponent to move his/her King and capture my piece) thinking it gives the advantage. what's a rule of thumb here? is there one? is this (generally) a no-no?
Yeah, you have to weigh it up against what you gain. Enemy king left on the center files is a target. Trying to castle "by hand" costs your opponent some tempi. If you see a chance for material gain or for the attack to crash through, then it would be worth it, but tactics are going to dominate in that situation.
Originally posted by Renarsthe simple answer is: it's a losing move.
it may sound silly, but hey I'm a chess novice - now and then I've been tempted, in an even game, to sacrifice a piece (bishop/knight) in order to prevent the other party from castling (i.e. by forcing the opponent to move his/her King and capture my piece) thinking it gives the advantage. what's a rule of thumb here? is there one? is this (generally) a no-no?
the complex answer: sometimes it's a winning move.
until you can see the difference on your own, I suggest you treat the problem as if the first answer was always and invariably true, without exceptions.