The Complete Guide to Chess Tactics

Learn how combinations arise from the downsides in your opponent’s position and how to exploit them decisively.

Develop a practical understanding of all major tactical patterns and when to apply them.

Detect hidden opportunities with tools like In-Effect squares and forcing move prioritization.

Train to always seek checks, captures, and threats of mate to create calculable trees of variation.

Use recurring ideas like weak back ranks, king safety issues, or hanging pieces to spark combinations.

Shift your mindset to actively look for imbalances and convert them into material or mating gains.

Some of the best tactical shots occur in calm positions — you’ll learn to sense and execute them.

Use real master games to form a visual and intuitive tactical library in your mind.

Explore aesthetic, high-accuracy tactical sequences and learn how to calculate them yourself.

Use multiple lenses like “overloaded pieces,” “loose pawns,” and “opposite-colored bishops” to sense tactical triggers.

Sharpen your reflexes and recognition skills to capitalize on fast time controls or fatigue-based mistakes.

Move from “hoping” a tactic works to “knowing” it does through the training in this course.

Use downloadable material and interactive lessons to drill core ideas and build muscle memory.

Back-rank mates, smothered mates, and more — you’ll know them and how to force them.

Tactics win games. This course helps you spot and seize those chances in every phase of play.

• Forks & Double Attacks – Learn to threaten multiple pieces with one move, often with knights and queens.
• Battery – Set up long-range alignment between queen and rook or bishop for tactical pressure.
• Pins – Master both absolute and relative pins to paralyze your opponent’s pieces.
• Discovered Attacks – Reveal hidden threats by moving an obstructing piece with purpose.
• Removing the Guard – Identify and eliminate key defenders that hold your opponent’s position together.
• Decoy & Deflection – Lure pieces onto vulnerable squares or away from critical duties.
• Interference – Block lines of defense or communication to unleash tactical power.

• Morphy’s Opera Game – A clean tactical showcase of classical piece activity and sacrifice.
• Tal vs Larsen – Discover the art of intuitive sacrifices and explosive combinations.
• Petrosian vs Spassky – Learn how subtle tactics blend into long-term strategy.
• Kasparov vs Karpov – See modern tactics under extreme pressure and positional tension.
• Fischer vs Myagmarsuren – Watch a young Fischer punish positional mistakes with direct tactics.

• Checks, Captures, and Threats – Always consider forcing moves first to simplify your calculation.
• Kingcrusher’s 3 Golden Tips – Unique heuristics for improving tactical calculation speed and accuracy.
• Weakness of Last Move – Detect newly vulnerable squares created by your opponent’s last move.

• Smothered Mate – A knight checkmates a blocked-in king, often with help from the queen.
• Back-Rank Mate – Punish opponents who neglect luft for their king.
• Anastasia’s Mate – Use rook and knight together to trap the king on the edge of the board.
• Arabian Mate – A rook and knight cooperate in a corner checkmate pattern.
• Hook Mate – Set up a queen and pawn combo to trap the king’s escape square.
• Cozio’s Mate – Learn this rare and elegant knight-based checkmate pattern.

• PGN Quiz Downloads – Practice with 9 levels of tactical quizzes to reinforce learning.
• Hint-Free Puzzle Solving – Build true calculation skill by solving without assistance.
• Kingscrusher’s Own Tactical Games – Analyze personal games with commentary to see tactics in practical play.

A knight checks the king on the edge, while a rook delivers mate by cutting off escape squares.

Classic corner checkmate using a knight and rook working together, often trapping the king on h8 or a8.

The king is trapped behind its own pawns and mated by a rook or queen along the back rank.

A knight delivers checkmate to a king completely surrounded by its own pieces, usually on the edge.

Two bishops checkmate the king on criss-crossing diagonals, usually after a castling weakness.

The queen mates the king with the support of a pawn or piece cutting off its escape square like a hook.

A rarely seen mate pattern using a knight and rook in combination to trap the king on the edge.

The king is mated while trapped between two of its own rooks, with no escape sideways.

An early trap involving a knight sacrifice followed by a queen or bishop mate, exploiting weak development.

Famous from Morphy's Opera Game, this pattern uses development and tactics to trap a king quickly.

Two rooks penetrate the 7th rank and deliver mate, often against an exposed king.

Often features sacrifices leading to a rook or bishop finishing the king near the center.

The queen mates a king surrounded by its own pieces forming a V-shaped barrier.

Uses a queen and bishop to checkmate a king early on f7 or f2, exploiting undeveloped defenses.

The fastest possible checkmate in chess (1.f3 e5 2.g4 Qh4#).

A simple beginner’s mate involving queen and bishop targeting the weak f7/f2 square.

A powerful example of using tactical sacrifices to lure a king into a mating net.

A queen and bishop (or pawn) create a box around the king, cutting off escape squares before delivering mate.

Two rooks (or queen and rook) force the king to the edge with a series of back-and-forth checks.

Includes a knight and queen/bishop combining to restrict the king’s mobility and deliver mate.

A diagonal attack from bishop and queen targeting f7/f2 while a knight blocks escape.

A piece delivers mate with direct support from another piece guarding escape squares.

Similar to Kill Box but with a rook hemming in the king and a second piece delivering mate.

Queen and knight combine to trap a king with help from opponent’s own pawns or pieces.

A queen and bishop cut off the king’s squares and deliver mate from different angles.

A classic endgame mate where bishops and king slowly force the enemy king to the corner.

Technically not possible without cooperation, but can appear in practical games with trapped kings.

Usually features a minor piece delivering mate with the opponent unable to recapture due to tactical motifs.

A non-standard pattern involving multiple tactical ideas like decoys and forks to finish the game.

The king is driven into the corner and mated using limited space and one or two attackers.

Named after the opening tactician, it usually involves a bishop and queen targeting f7/f2 after rapid development.

The king is mated by a queen with its escape blocked by its own pawns, shaped like a bird’s tail.

The king is surrounded with no mobility, typically involving knights and pawns restricting escape.

This course is ideal for beginners to intermediate players who want to master tactical patterns like forks, pins, and discovered attacks.

The course includes over 21 hours of detailed video lessons and model games.

You’ll learn tactical motifs such as forks, pins, decoys, discovered attacks, and checkmate patterns like the smothered mate and back-rank mate.

Yes! PGN downloads, quizzes, and annotated games are included to help reinforce your tactical skills.

The course is taught by Tryfon Gavriel, also known as Kingscrusher, a popular chess educator with a passion for tactics.

Improving tactical vision takes consistent exposure to patterns. This course builds your recognition skills through annotated model games, targeted motifs, and structured practice.

Yes! Many examples and tips are applicable to faster time controls, helping you spot tactics quickly and punish common mistakes in blitz and rapid games.

Absolutely. The course features famous tactical games from players like Morphy, Tal, and Fischer, alongside Kingscrusher’s own instructive encounters.

Definitely. The course sharpens your ability to recognize tactical errors from opponents and convert them into winning positions in practical online games.

No memorization is required. The focus is on intuitive understanding and pattern recognition so you can apply tactics naturally during your games.