Knight In Chess

Knight in Chess & How it Moves?

The chess knight is a powerful piece in the game of chess represented by the upper body of a horse. They are great for both attack and defence.

Knights are dangerous when they are outposted near the enemy king. They are great to control the squares in the center of the board. Knights are not as good at the edge of the board.

In this article, we’ll explore the chess knight, and how to use it effectively in a game of chess, and some of its most common moves.

Well, let’s Get Started…

 

What Is Chess Knight?

Knight: 3 Points

Knight is a powerful chess piece that traditionally resembles a horse. Players get to start with two knights. In the beginning of a game, knights are positioned between the rook and the bishop.

Since knights are particularly strong when attacking towards corners (or squares) with either their king or queen, they should be placed there so as not to weaken your own defences elsewhere.

However, if playing against three opponents then placing your knights too far away may leave some weaknesses around the back rank which might allow checkmate through G for instance, so always keep this in mind.

 

How Knights Move In Chess?

The movement of a chess knight forms a shape of “L” unlike the conventional moves made by other chess pieces, a knight can move two squares in any direction vertically followed by one square horizontally, or two squares in any direction horizontally followed by one square vertically.

The knight is unique among other chess pieces because it can “jump over Other Pieces” and its ability to jump over other chess pieces makes it a formidable piece on both attack and defence. This versatility means that it has many different uses depending on where you need them.

Always Remember, If a Knight beginning on a white square will always end up on a black square, and In case if it’s beginning from black square, then it will end up on a white square.

 

How To Use Your Knights In Chess?

The most common strategy with using a chess knight is to capture pieces by jumping over other pieces.

There are two ways to use your knights to attack enemy pieces from the back row:

  1.  From the second rank, you can move one square and jump over an opponent’s piece in order for it to be captured on the next empty square. For example, if there is an open square directly behind your opponent’s pawn on their third rank (i.e., fifth column), you would move one of your rooks or bishops up two squares so that it could then take that pawn when it captures diagonally backward at its own third rank (Note: You cannot do this if the open space was instead occupied).
  2. Beware of traps: Knights are limited to only a few moves. They can’t move the same way as pawns. If they’re on a light square, their next move must be to a dark square. This makes them vulnerable to bishop traps like when the bishop cuts off the ways that they can move and capture them quickly with pawns.

Develop your knights early: When starting to play chess, many players like to develop their knights early on. The knight is the only piece in the game which can be developed before your own pawns–a white knight move can even be one of the first moves of the game.

In chess, the knight piece is available from the onset and moves differently than bishops or rooks. While developing your knight early will help you control the centre of the board, they can move in different directions during their turn from a bishop or a rook.

When you have two pieces right next to each other, they can be attacked by your piece. This is called a fork. You can also do this with the knight that moves in different ways. So always take advantage of the fork.

 

Conclusion

The Chess Knight is a powerful piece with different moves unlike other chess pieces.

It can be used to defend as well as attack in a game of chess. Whenever you play chess next time, keep this article in your mind and use your knights wisely.

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