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Queen against a bishop's pawn

Besides the rook's pawn there is a second exception in queen against pawn: the bishop's pawn (on the c- or f-file) on the seventh rank. Here the stalemate idea saves the day - checking the king in front of the pawn walks into stalemate, and the tempo needed to bring the king up cannot be won.

Here White has the king on d6 and a pawn on f7; Black has the king on b3 and the queen on a1. White to move, and it is a draw (per the tablebases): the f-pawn is a bishop's pawn, Black's king is far away, and the stalemate mechanism holds the position.

In sum: the queen wins comfortably against a central or a knight's pawn, but against a rook's or a bishop's pawn on the seventh only if her king can get across. These two exceptions have to be known by heart.

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How to play against a bishop's pawn

  1. 1Approach with the queen along the diagonals, forcing the king in front of the pawn.
  2. 2Watch for stalemate: with the king driven into the corner, check that it still has a move.
  3. 3Spend the tempi you gain on bringing your own king closer.
  4. 4Once the king is right up, take the pawn or deliver mate.

Common mistakes

  • Putting the queen on a square that gives the opponent stalemate.
  • Trying to win without the king - with a bishop's pawn that does not work.
  • Letting the pawn reach the seventh rank with its king beside it.

Common questions

What makes a bishop's pawn dangerous for the queen?

Like a rook's pawn, it offers stalemate resources: the king hides in the corner and the next check leaves it with no moves - a draw.

How do you win it after all?

By bringing your own king up: while the queen ties the opponent down with checks, the king approaches and removes the stalemate defence.

And against a pawn on the other files?

There the queen wins with the standard technique: check, blockade of the queening square, king move.

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