Free Chess Lessons
Every lesson in the Grandmaster Academy, free to read and free to play.
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Piece Drills 24 lessons
- The Pawn Marches Pawns move straight ahead one square — or two on their very first move. March th…
- Pawns Capture Diagonally A pawn captures one square diagonally forward — never straight ahead. Capture an…
- Promotion When a pawn reaches the last rank it becomes a queen, rook, bishop or knight. Pu…
- The Pawn Gauntlet Combine it all: capture your way through, then march to the end of the board. Hi…
- The Knight's "L" Knights move in an L: two squares one way, one square sideways. Leap to the ★.…
- Knight Star Tour Visit all three ★ squares. Notice how the knight always lands on the opposite co…
- Knights Jump! The knight is the only piece that leaps over others. Jump past the pawn wall to …
- Knight Raid Capture all three enemy pawns — each one is a knight's-move from the last. Plan …
- The Bishop's Diagonal Bishops slide any distance along diagonals. Glide to the ★.…
- Changing Diagonals Reach both ★ squares — you'll need to switch from one diagonal to another.…
- One Color Forever This bishop starts on a dark square and can NEVER touch a light one. Travel to t…
- Bishop Sniper Capture both pawns along the long diagonal. Distance means nothing to a bishop.…
- The Rook's Lines Rooks slide along ranks and files. Visit both corners marked ★.…
- Rook Breakthrough Capture the pawn in your path, then continue to the end of the file.…
- Rook Sweep Capture both pawns. Rooks love open ranks and files.…
- The Rook Lift Rooks often swing up and across — a "rook lift." Follow the path: up to h3, then…
- Her Majesty Moves The queen combines rook and bishop. Trace her power: visit all three ★ squares.…
- Queen Harvest Capture both pawns — file first, then rank.…
- Even Queens Can't Jump Your own pawn blocks the file. Find a route around it to the ★.…
- The Grand Tour Circle the whole board: e8, a8, a1, h1. Feel the queen's reach.…
- The King's Step The king moves one square in any direction. Step to f2, then f3.…
- Check! Now What? You're in check from the pawn — but it's undefended. Capture it with your king!…
- Never Into Danger The enemy pawn guards e4 and c4 — your king may not step onto attacked squares. …
- March of the King In the endgame the king is a fighting piece! Walk him to the center: e2 → d3 → d…
Rules & Special Moves 10 lessons
- Setting the Board Every game starts the same way. Where does the WHITE queen begin?…
- Who Moves First? Which side always moves first in chess?…
- Castle Kingside Castling is the only move where two pieces move at once: the king slides TWO squ…
- Castle Queenside Now try the long side: the king still moves two squares, this time toward the a-…
- When Castling Is Illegal Which of these does NOT prevent you from castling?…
- En Passant Black just pushed the d-pawn two squares, landing beside your pawn. For ONE move…
- A New Queen Push your pawn to the final rank and promote. You may choose ANY piece — 99% of …
- Escaping Check You're in check! There are only three ways out: move the king, block the attack,…
- Checkmate vs Stalemate Your opponent has NO legal moves but is NOT in check. What happens?…
- The Draw Rules Which of these is NOT an official draw?…
Checkmate Patterns 16 lessons
- The Back-Rank Mate The black king is trapped behind his own pawns — his fatal weakness. Deliver mat…
- Scholar's Mate The famous 4-move attack on f7 — the weakest square on the board. Finish it.…
- The Smothered Mate The king is smothered by his own pieces — and only a knight can exploit it. Mate…
- The Ladder Mate Two rooks work like a ladder: one cuts off a rank, the other checks. Climb the f…
- The Queen's Kiss March your queen right next to the enemy king — protected by your own. Mate in o…
- The Arabian Mate One of the oldest recorded mates — rook and knight in perfect harmony. Mate in o…
- Queen & King Teamwork Your king boxes in his rival; your queen finishes. Two mating moves exist — find…
- Rook & King Teamwork The same idea with a rook — this is how you finish a K+R endgame. Mate in one.…
- The Two Bishops Two bishops rake adjacent diagonals — a deadly crossfire in the corner. Mate in …
- Mate by Promotion Your humble pawn is one step from glory — and the promotion itself is checkmate!…
- The Epaulette Mate The king's own rooks sit beside him like epaulettes on a uniform — blocking his …
- The Anastasia Mate Knight and rook conspire against a king on the h-file. Mate in one.…
- Blind Swine Two rooks rampaging on the 7th rank were nicknamed "blind swine." Here they see …
- Queen & Bishop Battery The bishop on b2 secretly controls g7 and h8. Use that to mate on the back rank.…
- The Pawn Delivers Even the humblest soldier can deliver the final blow. Mate in one — with a pawn!…
- Kiss of Death, Guarded by a Pawn Your f6 pawn is the unsung hero — it guards g7. Deliver the queen's final blow.…
Tactics 18 lessons
- The Royal Fork A fork attacks two things at once. Find the knight move that attacks BOTH the ki…
- The Pawn Fork Even a pawn can fork. Advance it one square to attack knight AND rook simultaneo…
- The Skewer A skewer attacks a valuable piece, forcing it to move and exposing one behind it…
- The Pin A pinned piece cannot move without exposing something worse behind it. Pin the k…
- Discovered Attack Move one piece to unleash another hiding behind it. Capture the queen WITH CHECK…
- The Double Attack Queens excel at attacking two targets at once. Find the square that checks the k…
- Skewer on the Rank Skewer along the 8th rank this time: check the king, win the rook behind it.…
- Take What's Free Before anything fancy: is anything simply hanging? The rook is undefended. Take …
- Pin vs Skewer What's the difference between a pin and a skewer?…
- Remove the Defender An enemy knight is defended only by a bishop. What's the classic plan?…
- The Overloaded Piece One enemy rook is defending BOTH the back rank and a knight. It is……
- Luft — Air for the King Why do strong players play a quiet move like h3 in the middlegame?…
- The Trapped Piece An enemy bishop has wandered where it has no safe squares. You should……
- Zwischenzug You capture a piece; instead of recapturing, your opponent plays a CHECK first, …
- The Battery Lining up queen and bishop on the same diagonal aimed at the enemy king is calle…
- Counting Attackers An enemy pawn is attacked by 2 of your pieces and defended by 2. If you capture,…
- Check Every Check A famous tactical habit: on every move, examine all……
- Desperado Your knight is doomed no matter what. Before it dies, it should……
Endgames 12 lessons
Strategy 12 lessons