Equal Chess Pieces Might Not Be So Equal

Sep 23
21:17

2009

John Skelly

John Skelly

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Learn how to distinguish which chess piece is better when each has the same numeric value. Stated another way, not all chess pieces are created equal, even if they seem to be equal.

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If you haven’t been playing chess for a long time,Equal Chess Pieces Might Not Be So Equal Articles you might be wondering which of the following two pieces is a “better” chess piece: the knight or the bishop. Many novice chess players think that they know the answer, but do they really?

Everyone seems to have a different clever answer. Some people think that just because each has a value of three that the pieces themselves are of the same value to a won chess game. The answer to the question of which piece is better depends completely on the way the players are playing the game and which chess pieces remain on the chess board.

The bishop and the knight are two chess pieces that work very differently and have different advantages and disadvantages. The bishop clearly has a longer range and mobility is very important in the development of a chess piece. The weakness of the bishop is that its mobility is essentially useless if the player does not have control of the center. This is when the knight becomes more valuable because of the unique “L” shape in which it moves. It is an excellent piece to have with a closed center. This is when the knight has more mobility.

In positions where the bishop is in an open center, it can really do some damage because of its long range to move over the board. On the other hand, the knight’s advantage of being able to hop over pieces isn’t much use with an open center and its disadvantage is one of slow movement. The knight is more valuable in the beginning and the middle of a chess game because there are far more chess pieces on the board and this causes the spaces to become crowded. Towards the end of the game, when each piece has more mobility, the knight’s weakness is more exposed.

Another aspect that should be taken into account, when discussing whether a bishop is a more valuable piece than a knight, is how bishops and knights work differently in pairs. These kinds of combinations have to be considered not only with their similar pair, but with pairs of other chess pieces. For example, you should consider whether it is better to have a rook and a knight versus a rook and a bishop.

Ultimately, the value of any chess piece is subject to its position on the chess board as well as the position of the chess pieces surrounding it.