TacticsPlay as White

Trading Pieces

A trade is good when you give less than you get. Learn to tell a good trade from an even one and a bad one.

Introduction

You take a piece. Your opponent takes back. That is a trade: each side gives something and gets something. The piece values tell you who got more: pawn 1, knight 3, bishop 3, rook 5, queen 9. Give less than you get, and the trade is good. Give the same, and the trade is even. Give more, and the trade is bad. This lesson is about the good ones: a pawn for a knight, a knight for a rook, a rook for a queen. They work even when the bigger piece is defended.

Lesson Content

Try this position

Look at the black rook on d6. Your pawn on c5 attacks it. The black king on c7 defends it. So if the pawn takes the rook, the king takes back, and your pawn is gone. Is that bad? Compare. You give a pawn, worth 1. You get a rook, worth 5. That is a good trade: four points for you. Before it, Black had a rook and five pawns against your six pawns. After it, the rook is gone: five pawns against five. "It is defended" only means that you lose the piece that takes. When that piece is worth less than the piece it takes, you can let it go.

Favorable Trade

Try this position

36. gxf5

One of your pawns attacks the black knight. A black pawn defends the knight. Make the trade if you give less than you get.

gxf5 gives a pawn (1) for a knight (3): a good trade. Black takes back, exf5+, and here you get a bonus: ♔︎xf5 takes that pawn too. Before the trade, Black had a knight and four pawns against your five pawns. Now you have four pawns against three, and that wins the game.

Favorable Trade

Alternative Moves

g5 — g5 walks past the knight and takes nothing. Black keeps the knight, and a knight is worth three pawns. You have only one pawn more, so Black is two points ahead and wins.

♔︎d3 — ♔︎d3 takes nothing. The knight jumps away, ♘︎h6, and attacks your pawn on g4. Black keeps the knight and stays two points ahead: Black is winning.

Try this position

26. ♘︎xe4

A black rook stands where one of your knights can take it. A black knight defends the rook. Compare what you give with what you get.

♘︎xe4 gives a knight (3) for a rook (5): a good trade, two points for you. Black takes back with the knight from c5. Now nothing defends that knight, so ♔︎xe4 takes it too. In the end you gave a knight and took a rook and a knight. Before the trade, Black was one pawn ahead. Now you are four points ahead.

Favorable Trade

Alternative Moves

♖︎ad1 — ♖︎ad1 takes nothing, and the chance is gone. Black moves the rook away, ♖︎a4. Black is still a pawn ahead, and the rook now attacks your pawn on a3.

Try this position

The black queen on b2 stands right next to your queen. The pawn on a3 defends it. Your rook and your queen can both take it. Which capture is a good trade?

Favorable Trade

Try this position

Your bishop on a2 attacks the black rook on f7. The knight on h6 defends that rook. Should the bishop take it?

Favorable Trade

Try this position

18. fxg6

One of your pawns attacks the biggest black piece. A black pawn defends it. Does that stop you?

fxg6 gives a pawn (1) for a queen (9): eight points for you. The pawn on h7 defends the queen, but that only costs you a pawn. Black does not take back at once. First the rook on f7 takes your rook on f1.

Favorable Trade

Alternative Moves

♕︎f3 — ♕︎f3 takes nothing. The black queen steps away, ♕︎h6, and the material stays level. The chance to win a queen for a pawn is gone.

f6 — f6 pushes past the queen and takes nothing. Black takes the pawn, ♖︎xf6, and keeps the queen: you have lost a pawn for nothing.

Try this position

19. ♕︎xf1

Black has just taken your rook, and your king is attacked. Make the trade even.

♕︎xf1 takes the rook back. A rook for a rook is an even trade: 5 for 5. Black then takes your pawn on g6. Now count the pieces. You have a queen, a rook and a knight. Black has a rook and a bishop.

Favorable Trade

Alternative Moves

♔︎g2 — ♔︎g2 saves the king but leaves the black rook on the board. The rook takes your queen, ♖︎xd1. You have lost a queen and a rook for a queen, and now Black is ahead.

Try this position

You are far ahead: a queen, a rook and a knight against a rook and a bishop. Later in the game, Black offers an even trade: a rook for a rook. Should you take it?

Favorable Trade

Key Takeaways

Before you trade, compare: what do I give, and what do I get?
Give less than you get, and the trade is good: a pawn for a knight, a knight for a rook, a rook for a queen.
"It is defended" does not matter when your piece is worth less than the piece it takes.
Same for same is an even trade. More for less is a bad trade.
When you are ahead, even trades help you.

Now play it through

Step through every move on a real board, try the wrong ones, and ask Knighty why they fail.

Practice Interactively

Related Lessons

Counting Attackers

Hanging Pieces

The Fork

Summary

A trade is good when you give less than you get: a pawn for a knight, a knight for a rook, a rook for a queen. When your piece is worth less than the piece it takes, it does not matter that the piece is defended. A queen for a queen or a rook for a rook is an even trade. Giving more than you get is a bad trade. And when you are ahead, even trades help you: the fewer pieces your opponent has, the less your opponent can do.

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Practice Interactively

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