The next Checkmate to be learnt is probably the most common one: Queen against sole King. It is not much more complicated than the checkmate with two Queens against lone King..
However, here, the help of your King is going to be necessary, as the Queen cannot checkmate alone.
The goal is now to be able to get to this final position from any position.
Ooops ! Again, be very careful when the opposing King is on the edge of the Chessboard. A draw by Stalemate is always possible instead of a checkmate.
To sum up, checkmating with one Queen against a sole King requires the following plan:
- Try to bring your King to the center. If you are blocked by the enemy King, you should use your Queen to clear the way.
- When your King is in the center, push the other King to one side of the board, switching between Queen moves (to trap the King in virtual rectangles) and King moves (to get closer for the final mate)
- Once the King is trapped on the side, avoid any possible Stalemate !
- Then get your King close and on the last move, deliver the checkmate with your queen, protected by the King
This checkmate is the most common one, be sure to know it perfectly because you should never let an opponent escape when he is one Queen down ! Next we will see how to checkmate with two Rooks against the lone King and (harder) how to checkmate with one Rook against the lone King.
