Topic 5 (More basic stuff) - Piece Trading
I will begin by defining a vocabulary word (make sure to learn this!)
Trade-happy
Adj.
- Desiring to exchange or trade chess pieces regardless of the position.
- Exchanging or trading chess pieces regardless of the position.
Synonyms: Poor player, Newbie, Moron, "destined to lose"
See also: stupid chess play, purple belt, idiocy, George W. Bush
Ok, now that you know the terminology, I will discuss piece trading.
- To trade or not to trade? That is the clichéd Shakespeare allusion.
The situation: Black has just played his knight to d4. White is ahead by an extra knight and bishop.
Devilant’s advice: Trade! White should take the knight with his bishop. When you have more pieces than your opponent, it is a good idea to exchange pieces, as it is easier to win with 3 pieces on the board than with 15 pieces on the board.
The situation: Black has just played his knight to d4. White is behind by a bishop and a queen.
Devilant’s advice: Don’t trade! It is more likely you’ll be able to pull out a victory when there are a lot of pieces still on the board. Trading bishop for knight in this position just decreases your chances of winning.
The situation: Black has just played his bishop to d7. Material is even.
Devilant’s advice: Don’t trade! This is a very common instance of trade-happiness on the part of white. Trading knight for bishop in the position weakens white! That knight is kicking black in the face on its most excellent central square. The bishop is blocked in by its own pawns, and is not threatening white at all. White is threatening combinations and attacks galore and should not give up his attack by trading for the worthless bishop.
The situation: Black has just played his knight to d5. Material is even.
Devilant’s advice: Trade! That knight will crush you if you allow it to remain on d5. Bishop takes knight is the only option. Then read my topic about the opening; black should not be given such an advantage!
The situation: Black has just played his knight to d3. Material is even.
Devilant’s advice: Trade! Playing bishop takes knight will force black to recapture with his pawn. You can then win the pawn!
The situation: White has just played his bishop to d5. Material is even.
Devilant’s advice: For heaven’s sake, don’t trade! White has weak doubled pawns (one pawn directly behind another pawn). Taking the bishop will allow white to recapture with his pawn, eliminating the disadvantage of the doubled pawns. As a general rule, don’t trade if it will allow your opponent to un-double his doubled pawns.
The situation: White’s bishop will recharge just in time to take black’s rook before it recharges. White’s queen has just moved to b3. (And yes I realize this position is pretty unrealistic, but similar positions are common.)
Devilant’s advice: Don’t trade! Even though chess books will tell you that trading a bishop for a rook is a good idea, it is definitely not in this position. Observe:
Note: White could have won a piece by playing his pawn to a4 as the black rook was moving to c4 (see topic 1).
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