Staircase maneuver

The staircase maneuver (or staircase movement[1]) is a tactical motif that employs the idea of a series of checks, or alternation between pins and checks, to advance a queen, rook, or king along a diagonal via a series of stepped orthogonal moves.

Examples

Staircase maneuvers tend to occur in queen and pawn endgames, where the defender has advanced pawns on the seventh rank. Here the attacking queen alternates between black and white squares giving pins and checks until it reaches an open file to deliver the final mate.

abcdefgh
8
a2 black pawn
b2 black pawn
c2 white queen
d2 white king
e2 white pawn
f2 white pawn
g2 white pawn
a1 black king
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
White mates in 12.

In the diagram, if Black's pawn on b2 had already queened on b1, the game would be drawn. White mates in 12, however, using the staircase maneuver:

 1.Qc3 Kb1 2.Qd3+ Ka1 3.Qd4 Kb1 4.Qe4+ Ka1 5.Qe5 Kb1 6.Qf5+ Ka1 7.Qf6 Kb1 8.Qg6+ Ka1 9.Qg7 Kb1 10.Qh7+ Ka1 11.Qh8 Kb1 12.Qh1#[2]
abcdefgh
8a8b8c8d8 black rooke8f8g8h8 black king8
7a7b7c7d7e7f7 black rookg7 black pawnh77
6a6b6 white queenc6d6 black bishope6 black bishopf6g6h66
5a5b5c5 black pawnd5e5f5g5 black queenh5 black pawn5
4a4b4c4d4e4 black pawnf4g4h44
3a3b3 white pawnc3d3e3 white pawnf3g3h3 white pawn3
2a2 white pawnb2 white bishopc2d2 black pawne2f2 white pawng2 white pawnh22
1a1 white rookb1c1d1 white knighte1f1 white knightg1 white kingh11
abcdefgh
Tarrasch resigned after 34.Kh1 Bxh3 35.gxh3 Rf3 36.Ng3 h4 37.Bf6 Qxf6 38.Nxe4 Rxh3+.
abcdefgh
8a8b8c8d8 black rooke8f8g8h8 black king8
7a7b7c7d7e7f7g7 black pawnh77
6a6b6c6d6 black bishope6f6g6h66
5a5b5c5 black pawnd5 black bishope5f5g5h5 black pawn5
4a4 white queenb4c4d4e4f4g4h44
3a3b3 white pawnc3d3e3 white pawnf3 black rookg3h3 white pawn3
2a2 white pawnb2 white bishopc2d2 black pawne2f2 white pawng2 white kingh22
1a1 white rookb1c1d1 white knighte1f1 white knightg1h11
abcdefgh
37...Rg3+ begins a staircase.

In the game Tarrasch–Alekhine, Piešt'any 1922, after 33...Be6 (first diagram), if play had continued instead 34.Qc6 Rf3 35.Qxe4 Bd5 36.Qa4 Qxg2+ 37.Kxg2 (second diagram), a staircase maneuver resulting in mate is possible:

 37...Rg3+ 38.Kh2 Rg2+ 39.Kh1 Rh2+ 40.Kg1 Rh1#[3]

See also

References

  1. ^ Hooper & Whyld (1996), p. 387. staircase movement.
  2. ^ George Huczek (2017). A to Z Chess Tactics. Batsford. pp. 1–349. ISBN 978-1-8499-4446-5.
  3. ^ Hooper & Whyld (1996), p. 8.

Bibliography

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