Mate with rook and king is a compulsory technical ending. The rook cannot mate alone: it is the pairing - the king takes squares away, the rook cuts off and checks - that decides. The enemy king is pushed methodically towards the edge.
Here White has the king on h1 and the rook on g1; Black has a lone king on e4 in the centre. White to move, and the position is won (per the tablebases): White first cuts the king off with the rook, then brings up the king and squeezes the enemy towards the last rank.
The key technique is the opposition of the kings: when they face each other, the rook checks and the enemy king retreats a rank nearer the edge. That is how the mate is delivered.
Drag a piece onto the board, or click a piece and then click the squares. The cross beside the pieces sweeps every piece of that colour off the board, and a single piece can be dragged off the edge.
The pieces will be arranged into the chosen pattern.
It is the mating side to move. Find mate in one.
Openings, endgame positions and breakthrough studies - the set-up appears on the board.
Cut the enemy king off with the rook, bring your own king up, take the opposition and push the enemy king a rank nearer the edge with a check. Repeat until mate on the last rank.
With accurate play, no more than sixteen from any position.
Placing the rook so that the enemy king cannot cross the line: he is shut into a part of the board that shrinks with every move.
Build your own position in the board editor, read up on the rules of chess or run a tournament on your own positions in the free app.
The Vibe Chess app is built for an evening over the board, not for online play: it keeps the sign-up list, the pairings and the table while you deal with people and the venue. All of it free.
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