Lesson 4 of 8

Tactics II: Remove Defenders, Overload, and Finish the Attack

Break defensive structures and convert tactical advantages into checkmate patterns.

Practice puzzles

Lesson 4 — Tactics II: Removing Defenders, Deflection, Overloading, and Finishing Attacks

Last week you learned to spot forks, pins, and skewers. This week you learn to manufacture tactics by attacking the pieces that hold the enemy position together.

By the end of class, you should be able to:

  • Find the defender that guards a key piece or square
  • Remove, deflect, or overload that defender
  • Finish the job with a back-rank or mating-net attack
  • Chain two ideas together into a short winning combination
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