Chess P’s (Part 2)
This is the second of the two part article that we have churned out for you. We will be explaining to you the most commonly used “P” terminologies in chess that will deepen your understanding of the game and clear your concepts. Not only that, you will be
able to apply these concepts in your game which will aid your professional development in chess. We won’t keep you waiting for long. Here it comes! The chess terminologies!
The first thing that you should remember is that you can never be successful in chess if you play it without a Plan. As in any other game, a plan is of utmost importance to keep one driving forward. A good chess plan focuses on maximizing positional advantages
while down playing the disadvantages in such a way that their impact is less. This can be done by Positional play. A player practicing positional play keeps long term goals in mind, letting go of short term advantages. This type of player is called a Positional
Player. Promotion is one thing that can be a result of positional play. This happens when a pawn has advanced to the eighth rank and is able to convert itself into a queen. In cases where the player chooses to convert the pawn into a piece other than the queen,
it is called Under Promotion.
If a pawn is not protected, positional problems may occur if it is captured by the opponent. In worse cases, this can also result in material loss. Such an unprotected pawn is called a Poisoned Pawn. Tactics that can influence and jeopardize the plans of
the opponent are known as Prophylaxis. The opponent is frustrated to such an extent that she is forced to make a mistake. Such manoeuvring requires deep analysis and planning. Another “P” term that requires a lot of thought is the Prepared variation. This
is used in reference with the opening game. The player has done a lot of homework to come up with a different opening, one that is completely unexpected by the opponent. This opening is a variant of an existing opening strategy.
As opposed to the opening strategy, an important endgame position is called the Philidor position. It is a tactic which is used to draw the game. In this position, one player has a king, rook and a pawn while the defender has a king and a rook only. Another
way of obtaining a draw is by placing the opponent under Perpetual check. A player initiates a series of checks on the opponent’s king which are potentially endless in nature. With no apparent way out of it, a draw is mutually agreed upon. Chess also has a
Post-mortem. Fortunately, the only end involved here is that of the chess game. It is the name given to the analysis conducted of a chess match once the game has ended. A post-mortem may be conducted by one or both the players. Sometimes the spectators also
participate in the activity.
With that, we come to the end of our two part article explaining the more important chess terminologies that start with the letter P. By now you should be well equipped to enter the black and white jungle of chess and understand its many twists and turns.
We will leave you with a quote by a famous chess grandmaster, Bruce A. Moon. He stated, “A Chess game is a dialogue, a conversation between a player and his opponent. Each move by the opponent may contain threats or be a blunder, but a player cannot defend
against threats or take advantage of blunders if he does not first ask himself: What is my opponent planning after each move?”
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