King, Bishop & Knight vs King

Block the king from escaping toward the kingside.

♘︎g6 — The knight leaps to g6, cutting off the e7 and f8 squares. This forces the black king toward the queenside — exactly where we want it, heading toward the a8 corner (a light square matching our bishop). Notice that the knight also controls h8, preventing the king from fleeing to the wrong corner. The knight's role throughout this endgame is to control key squares and herd the king in the right direction.

Activate the bishop to control key diagonals.

♗︎c4 — The bishop activates on c4, controlling the a6-f1 and a2-g8 diagonals. From c4, the bishop exerts pressure toward both the a-file and the kingside, working with the knight to create a net the king cannot escape. This move also sets up a key diagonal barrier — the bishop on c4 and knight on g6 together control most of the king's potential escape squares.

Advance your king to take opposition and restrict the opponent.

♔︎d6 — The white king advances to d6, taking direct opposition with the black king. From d6, the king controls c7, d7, and e7 — sealing off the black king's retreat toward the center. The squeeze intensifies.

Reposition the bishop to aim at the target corner.

♗︎d5 — The bishop repositions to d5, strengthening the diagonal barrier. From d5, it controls c6, b7, and a8 along one diagonal — covering the entire path to the target corner. The bishop is now aimed directly at a8 like an arrow.

Advance the diagonal barrier to squeeze the king further.

A powerful move — the bishop advances to c6, tightening the diagonal barrier even further. ♗︎c6 controls b7, a8, d7, and e8. Combined with the king on d6 and knight on g6, the black king is now trapped in a shrinking box. This is the hallmark of the B+N technique: the bishop and knight take turns restricting the king's squares while the king closes in.

Reposition the knight — it needs to reach the queenside for the final attack.

♘︎f4 — The knight repositions to f4, preparing to jump into the action on the queenside. From f4, the knight controls d5, e6, and d3 — maintaining pressure while getting ready to leap toward the a8 corner. This is the beginning of the knight maneuver — the knight must reposition from the kingside to the queenside to help deliver the final checkmate. The knight's journey often traces a "W" shape across the board.

Follow the defending king — keep your king close.

♔︎c5 — The white king follows the retreating black king, moving to c5. The king must shadow the defending king, always staying close enough to prevent escape. From c5, it controls b6, b5, and c6 — cutting off the black king's last hope of returning to the center.

Keep shadowing — control the escape squares around the king.

♔︎b5 — The king continues to shadow, moving to b5. Now the white king controls a6, b6, and a4 — all critical escape routes for the black king. The cordon tightens with every move.

Seal a7 — but watch out for stalemate!

♔︎b6 — A crucial move — the king advances to b6, sealing a7 and tightening the cage to just two squares (a8 and b8). The black king is now trapped in the corner area with no hope of escape. Be careful here: ♗︎b7 would be stalemate if the black king is on b8 later! The king on b6 keeps a7 under control while avoiding the stalemate trap.

Bring the knight to a dominant square that controls the escape routes.

♘︎e6 — The knight arrives at e6 — a powerful outpost from which it controls c7, d8, and f8. The knight now prevents the black king from escaping via c7 or d8, forcing it back toward the corner. This is the knight's critical destination in the mating maneuver. From e6, it can jump to c7 next move to deliver check and help seal the cage.

Move the bishop to make room for the knight's mating maneuver.

♗︎d7 — The bishop repositions to d7, vacating c6 for its own mating return while maintaining control of key squares. From d7, the bishop controls c8, c6, e8, and b5 — it continues to restrict the black king. This is a typical pattern in the B+N checkmate: the bishop and knight take turns controlling squares, leapfrogging each other as they close the net.

Check with the knight to force the king to b8.

♘︎c7+ — Check! The knight jumps to c7, attacking the king on a8. This drives the king to b8 — the only legal square. The knight on c7 also controls a8, a6, and b5, creating a tight cage. The mating pattern is emerging: the knight's checks force the king back and forth between a8 and b8 until the bishop delivers the final blow.

Give check to force the king back to the corner.

♘︎a6+ — Check! The knight leaps to a6, checking the king on b8. This forces the king back to a8 for the final time. The knight on a6 controls b8, completing the cage — the black king will have no escape on the next move. This is the penultimate blow — the bishop will deliver checkmate on the next move.

Deliver checkmate with the bishop!

Checkmate! The bishop slides to c6, delivering the final blow along the a8 diagonal. The king on a8 is attacked by ♗︎c6 (via b7-a8), and every escape is sealed: a7 is controlled by ♔︎b6, b8 is controlled by ♘︎a6, and b7 is controlled by both ♔︎b6 and ♗︎c6. The classic ♗︎+N mating pattern: knight on a6, king on b6, bishop on c6 — three pieces creating a perfect net in the corner. In 14 moves, the defending king was driven from d8 all the way to a8 and checkmated with flawless precision.