Safer moves · 4 min read

Stop giving away your pieces.

A hanging piece is a piece your opponent can take without an adequate reply. The usual cause is simple: you followed your own idea and missed theirs.

Check the landing square

Before moving a piece, imagine it on its destination. Which enemy pieces attack that square? If one takes it, can you legally recapture? A square that was safe a moment ago may no longer be safe after the opponent’s last move.

Do the same for the square you are leaving. Your moving piece might be the only defender of a bishop, or might be blocking a rook’s attack on your queen.

“Defended” does not always mean safe

Counting attackers and defenders is a useful first look, but it does not settle an exchange. Their values, the order of captures and whether a defender can legally move all matter.

A bishop is usually worth about three pawns. In this example, being able to recapture does not make losing the bishop a fair trade. Moving it to a safe square, such as e2 here, avoids that exchange. Piece values are a guide; checks, checkmate and other tactics can change the decision.

Use a final safety check

1. My king: does this move leave my king safe?
2. My destination: can the moving piece be captured, and what happens next?
3. My other pieces: what stops being defended when this piece leaves?

Practise this slowly before trying to make it fast. In a timed game, use your clock sensibly; a short deliberate check is more useful than panicking after the move.

Turn one loss into a habit

When you lose a piece, return to the position just before the mistake. Name the attacker, the target and the defender you overlooked. “I missed the pawn’s diagonal attack” gives you something specific to check next time. “I am bad at chess” does not.

In Oh My Chess, “Take back” lets you revisit a move in an active game. In Review, inspect what happened and choose one mistake to understand. Signing in also gives you access to practice from your saved mistakes, within your displayed training allowance.