Let's talk about the king. It is supposed to be a weak piece. Actually, it can be a fairly strong piece, since it guards all the circumambient squares. On its inherent merits, a king is slightly stronger than either a bishop or knight, and slightly weaker than a rook. But it is always on the board, and in the endgame its use can be decisive. Many tactics truly depend on the active help of the friendly king. There can be mating nets, piece traps, and other nasty things once the attacking king gets going. Now the king's involvement does not have to be a big production. Sometimes it makes a small move, which translates to a big advantage. And that is the case here. For each of the problems in … [Read more...]