These are the most elementary types of checkmates in the opening (Scholar's mate), middlegame (Back Rank mate) and endgame (Ladder). Even if the novice doesn't want to use scholar's mate, it's important they can recognize it to defend against it. Back-rank mate is similarly important, both to play it when it presents itself, and to prevent it from presenting itself. Ladder checkmate is important because it's the most rudimentary way to close out a game where the novice has earned a large advantage.
Five Checkmate Patterns You Must Know
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Hello everyone!
As you know chess is a pattern recognition game and as you keep trying and learning those patterns, you will gradually improve your game. In this post I would like to explain 5 checkmate patterns you would definitely encounter in your games. So it better to be prepare and spot them when you see them.
Anastasia’s Mate is when a knight and a rook ( can also be a queen) work together to deliver a checkmate to a king situated on a side of the board. Another requirement for this checkmate to happen is that the opponent king movement must be restricted by a friendly piece.
Here is the basic example of it. We can see that the king has no way to escape the rook check, because the knight protect the G5 and G7 square. Also the only available square that isn’t attacked by any of white pieces is blocked by the black pawn.
Often this position happen by sacrificing a queen to open the H file ( or A file in the other case). Let’s see how we can put this into practice into an actual game.
It’s white to play and it actually has a checkmate on 3 move! But what are those move? Things seemed more easily in our basic example where they were just a pawn and a king. Even if the position become more complex, the idea is the same. Let’s think about our example, how the pieces were placed there? We had a knight on E6, a king on the edge of the board ( H file in our example), a pawn blocking the king and a rook sliding to H file to deliver the checkmate. How could we end up in an approximately same position as that one? The first main problem is that the H file pawn is still there, and what you are thinking is correct, you need to sac the queen in this position to exposed the king, but be very careful, although your idea is the right one, starting with the queen sac will only lead you to lose the queen for nothing. Because after queen takes, king takes back, and rook to H3, the king doesn’t have to go back, it can go to G6 and it will escape.
The first move is to start with the knight. Checking the king with knight E7, king to H8, and now we can sacrifice the queen, because the black king cannot escape to G6 anymore, due to our knight guarding that square. After the king takes our queen, we can slide the rook the H3 delivering a well deserve checkmate.
2. Boden’s Mate
The Boden’s mate involves two attacking bishops on criss-crossing diagonals delivering checkmate. Again, the same requirement is necessary for this checkmate to happen. The king must be obstructed by friendly pieces, usually a rook and a pawn.
In the basic example we see whites bishop criss-crossing a helpless black king. The bishop on H2 was already cutting the C7 and B8 square for the king, leaving only one option available for the, B7. This is where the other bishop came into play and deliver the checkmate. Again black is blocked by his own pieces on the D file and can’t escape.
Typical middle game scenario. It’s white to play and win the game. Can you see it? Look closely and think about what we did in the anastasia’s mate, I know you can solve it.
I was 100% sure you would managed to solve this, I am glad for you, now let’s explain what our thought process where there to win the game. We observed that the white bishop on C4 is restricting black king movements on F7 and G8, confining him in a prison surrounded by his own pieces. Seeing that he has no available square, white must fund a way to check the game. though leading to a checkmate. But where is the check? We see that in this position the only check we can give is with our queen. Taking the pawn on F6, but big problem, the F6 pawn is protected by the G7 pawn. And our first instinct is not to sacrifice our beloved queen. But this is why knowledge and pattern recognition is important in chess. Bearing all the information from the basic example ( criss-crossing bishops, it’s also easy to remember because of the funny name, criss-crossing, haha, you get it), we can easily make the queen sacrifice, because after the pawn recapture, the bishop on C1 will come into H6 and deliver checkmate.
3. Damiano’s Mate
I am sure you have done this checkmate 100 times and see it 100 times more, but applied properly can win you a lot of scenarios where it’s very easy to oversee this mate.
Damiano’s Mate is basically a checkmate pattern where a queen and a pawn( or a bishop) coordinate their efforts against a castled king.
Told you that you saw this one a lot of time before. White checkmates on H7, being protected by his G6 pawn who also guard the F7 square. Again the only non-attacked square is occupied by a black piece and the king can’t escape. ( I start to believe that rook is a paid spy by white).
Let’s look at an example from blacks perspective. Maybe it will trick you, because after learning how things go, you already saw the solution here.
The black pawn on G3, a brave little fellow with no fear in the world, being alone surrounded by enemies, is fearlessly preventing white king access to the F2 square. Even tough checkmate is easy to find, don’t rush yourself into playing queen H5, preparing to mate on H1, because than our brave soldier will die by the hand of white queen, though the F2 square will be available for the king once again, and queen H1 or H2 would no longer be mate. We need to start by sacrificing another brave soldier ( *gothamchess exhale) playing rook H1, after king take, we than play queen H5, king G1, queen H2 checkmate. We need this exactly move order because the king is in check every move, not having time to play queen takes G3, or find another escape plan.
4. Opera’s Mate
This one is my favorite one( I think because how it looks on the board). Opera’s mate happen by attacking the king on the back rank with a rook using a bishop to protect it. A pawn or other piece other than a knight of the enemy king’s is used to restrict its movement.
In the basic example we checkmate with rook d8. The bishop protect the rook while also attacking E7 square and the rook has control of all the bank rank and D file. Again the only available escape square is blocked by a black pieces, instead this time is a pawn ( maybe the rook suspects us for knowing his secret)
Here white is inviting black to a queen trade, but black has other ideas. His plan is to take advantage of the uncastled king and deliver a beautiful Opera mate. Have you spotted? Maybe I must make some examples where you don’t sac your queen the first move, but hey everybody love a queen sac so not much I can do. We both know you always think of sacrificing your queen in the game to win so you would look cool so here is your chance.
Queen F1 check, and white is force to take. After that black will play bishop D3. White can’t take the black bishop here because his king is under double attack, both by the bishop and the rook on F8, and white must move his king to a safe square. The bishop move had a double role, checking the king and preparing the f1 square for the rook, while on the same time open his path to it.
5. Dovetail Mate
The last one of this list is the Dovetail Mate. also known as the Cozio’s Mate. In this pattern to take place the mating queen is one square diagonally from the mated king which escape is blocked by two friendly non-Knight pieces. ( I swear that the black king is much safer alone). Fun fact! It’s called dovetail mate because the pieces arrangement kind of looks like a dovetail.
White queen, defended by the E4 pawn, checkmate the king on G2 square. We can see that the only squares where the queen can’t reach, G1 and H2, are occupied by the rook and the pawn.
In the last example we will see today, the white king is in a very open position, near the center of the board, with all of black pieces pointing towards him. But still in this position it seems like whites rook on G2 is doing a pretty good job by defending both the G4 pawn and F2 square.
If only would be a way to distract the rook from that square, black would have checkmate in 4 move, but wait! there is a way. Bishop takes G4, sacrificing himself for the greater good. White only move is to take it with the rook and now that the F2 square is available, the queen will jump right into it. Queen F2, King E4, and now black will sacrifice the other bishop with queen E5, after king takes bishop on D4, queen E5 is checkmate. Pretty fair exchange if you asked my.
In my opinion, think those 5 checkmates pattern happen the most often in our chess game. I hope you enjoyed this post and found it useful. Remember that chess is a pattern recognition game and as you keep trying and learning those patterns, you will gradually improve your game.
Also if you want to visualize the moves as well as seeing more examples of those checkmate patterns, I made a instructional video about it here .
https://youtu.be/h68sYqXfIaU