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  • Lesson 18 of 32
  • Your first tactics
  • 2 min

The Skewer in Chess: Attack Through a Piece

A skewer is a pin turned around. This time the more valuable piece is in front: it is attacked, it has to move, and the piece behind it falls.

Step 1 of 2

  1. Front and back

    The white rook on d1 checks the black king on d5. Behind the king, on the same file, stands the black queen. The king must step off the file, and then the rook takes the queen.

  2. Skewer the queen

    The black king on d5 and the queen on d8 stand on the same file. Your rook can attack them both along that line.

    Your move

    Skewer the king and queen, then take the queen.

What you learned

  • A skewer attacks a valuable piece that has a less valuable one behind it on the same line.
  • When the front piece moves, the piece behind it is captured.
  • Rooks, bishops and queens make skewers, because they attack along lines.

In this course

Unit 1The pieces

  1. The Chessboard and How to Set Up the Pieces
  2. How the Rook Moves in Chess
  3. How the Bishop Moves in Chess
  4. How the Queen Moves in Chess
  5. How the King Moves in Chess
  6. How the Knight Moves in Chess
  7. How Pawns Move and Capture in Chess
  8. Chess Piece Values: What Each Piece Is Worth

Unit 2Special moves

  1. What Is Check in Chess, and How to Get Out of It
  2. How to Castle in Chess: Kingside and Queenside
  3. En Passant in Chess, Explained on the Board
  4. Pawn Promotion in Chess: Turning a Pawn Into a Queen

Unit 3Winning the game

  1. What Is Checkmate? Learn to Mate in One
  2. Stalemate in Chess: Why It's a Draw
  3. How to Checkmate With a King and Queen

Unit 4Your first tactics

  1. The Fork: Attack Two Pieces at Once
  2. The Pin in Chess: Freeze a Piece in Place
  3. The Skewer in Chess: Attack Through a Piece

Unit 5Checkmate patterns

  1. Back-Rank Mate in Chess: Spot It and Stop It
  2. Smothered Mate in Chess: The Knight's Checkmate
  3. The Ladder Mate: Checkmate With Two Rooks
  4. How to Checkmate With a King and Rook

Unit 6More tactics

  1. Discovered Attack in Chess: Unmask a Hidden Attacker
  2. Double Check in Chess: Two Checks at Once
  3. Removing the Defender in Chess: Take the Guard

Unit 7Opening principles

  1. Control the Centre: A Chess Opening Principle
  2. How to Develop Your Pieces in the Chess Opening
  3. Scholar's Mate: How It Works and How to Stop It
  4. Fool's Mate: The Fastest Checkmate in Chess

Unit 8Endgame basics

  1. The Rule of the Square in Chess Endgames
  2. The Opposition in Chess: King Endgame Basics
  3. King and Pawn vs King: How to Win the Ending

Lessons for every game

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