Fork in chess: attack two pieces with one move

The knight is the master of forks. It jumps in an L-shape and attacks squares that are not on a line with it, so the pieces it attacks cannot attack it back.

A pawn attacks the two squares diagonally in front of it. If two enemy pieces stand there, one of them falls: the pawn is worth less than either, so giving a piece for it is always a loss.

The queen moves in every direction, so it forks often too, especially with check. Look for a square where your queen gives check and attacks an undefended piece at the same time.

• Look for undefended pieces. A piece with no defender is the best target: a fork only has to hit it and one more.
• The king is always a target. A check must be answered, so the other attacked piece gets no help.
• Check the knight squares. When two enemy pieces are a knight’s move away from the same empty square, look for a way to bring a knight there.
• Mind your own pieces. Before each move, ask whether two of your pieces could be forked.

• A fork is one piece attacking two or more enemy pieces at once.
• Knights, pawns and queens fork most often, but any piece can, even the king.
• The strongest forks come with check: the opponent must save the king and loses the other piece.