Pawn moves and queen moves near the king that open the way for an attack, or pieces that leave the king when it is under pressure.
Questions to ask before each move
Which squares will my pawn move leave undefended?
Which of the opponent's pieces already point at my king?
Is the piece I move away one of the few that guard the king?
Can I bring another piece closer instead of moving one away?
Examples
8 featured positions, newest first. 2 from 25 October 2026; 3 from 23 October 2026; 1 from 21 October 2026; 1 from 20 October 2026; 1 from 17 October 2026.
Before the move: +7.5After the best reply: mate in 4 against the author
Clock: this move took 14.4 s, and 2:48 were left after it.
At move 8 Black was clearly ahead (+7.5), but the queen on b3 and the knight on g5 both attacked f7, and only the king on g8 defended it. 8...Kh8 took that defender away, and 9.Nf7+ attacks the king and the queen on d8. The engine also finds the smothered mate 9...Kg8 10.Nh6+ Kh8 11.Qg8+ Nxg8 12.Nf7# (mate in 4 against the author).
In the game, 9...Kg8 10.Nxd8+ Kf8 11.Qf7# followed. 8...d5 blocks the diagonal from b3 to g8 and keeps the lead (+7.5). 8...Kh8 took 14.4 seconds, with 168.4 seconds left.
When a queen and a knight both aim at f7, keep it defended and close the queen's diagonal, for example with ...d5.
Before the move: −0.5After the best reply: mate in 1 against the author
Clock: this move took 1.9 s, and 2:42 were left after it.
At move 12 Black's queen on d6 and bishop on c7 stood on the same diagonal to h2, and only the king defended h2, so 12...Qxh2# was threatened. 12.cxd5 did not stop it, and 12...Qxh2# ended the game.
12.Qg3 meets the threat and keeps the game level (−0.5). The clock was not the problem: 12.cxd5 took 1.9 seconds, with 162.7 seconds left.
After every opponent move, ask what it threatens next to the king. A queen with a bishop behind it on the diagonal to h2 means mate if h2 has only the king to defend it.
Clock: this move took 23.1 s, and 2:08 were left after it.
Black's queen on h4 and bishop on g4 were already aimed at the kingside. 11.g3 attacked the queen but weakened f3 and h3: after 11...Qh3 White has no good defence (−5.1), and the bishop is ready to jump to f3. 11.Qf4 keeps the balance (+0.3).
A pawn move next to your king cannot be undone. Before g3, h3 or g4, check which pieces will use the new holes.
Clock: this move took 15.4 s, and 2:06 were left after it.
White's pieces were ready to attack Black's king. From d8 the queen guarded g5; 22...Qd4 gave that up, and 23.Qg5+ came with check and then won the knight on h5 (−4.5). 22...a5 keeps the queen where it covers g5 (−0.7).
Before moving the queen away from your king, list the squares it was guarding.
Clock: this move took 27.7 s, and 58.9 s were left after it.
Black's pieces were all aimed at White's king: a knight on f4, a bishop on d4, and the pawn push ...h5 was coming. 21.Nb5 took the knight to the edge of the board. After 21...Bxa1 22.Rxa1 h5 the white queen is driven back and Black is clearly better (−4.0).
21.Ne2 brings the knight toward the defence and keeps +1.9.
When the opponent attacks your king, bring pieces closer. A move to the rim is rarely the answer.
Before the move: +0.8After the best reply: mate in 6 against the author
Clock: this move took 15.2 s, and 2:00 were left after it.
White's pieces were already aimed at the kingside. The engine finds that 19...Qe8 allows 20.Rxg7+ Kh8 21.Rxh7+ Kxh7 22.Qh4+ Kg6 and a forced mate. Moves such as 19...g6 or 19...Re8 hold the position (about +0.8).
When the opponent's pieces point at your king, check every check and capture before moving the queen away.
Before the move: −0.2After the best reply: mate in 3 against the author
Clock: this move took 5.3 s, and 1:10 were left after it.
At move 30 the black king on h8 had little room: the white rook on b7 controlled g7 and the king's own pawn stood on h7, so a rook check on the back rank would also cover g8. 30...Rd2 took the rook further away, and 31.Rc8+ forces mate, because Black can only block: 31...Rd8 32.Rxd8+ Rf8 33.Rxf8#, or 31...Rf8 32.Rxf8# (mate in 3 against the author).
Black resigned after 31.Rc8+. 30...Rd8 brings the rook back to the back rank and holds the game (−0.2). The move took 5.3 seconds, with 70.2 seconds left.
When the king has no free square, keep a rook on the back rank or make room with a pawn move such as ...h6.
Before the move: +1.3After the best reply: mate in 1 against the author
Clock: this move took 7.8 s, and 1:09 were left after it.
At move 24 Black's queen on c6 gave check along the long diagonal to the king on h1, and the rook on g8 already aimed at g2. 24.Kh2 left the diagonal but allowed 24...Qg2#, because the rook on g8 protects the queen on g2. This is how the game ended.
Blocking the check was the answer: 24.f3 keeps the game in White's favour (+1.3), and 24.Nf3 and 24.Qf3 also hold. The king move took 7.8 seconds, with 69.9 seconds left.
When in check, list all three answers: move the king, block, or capture. Before moving the king, ask which squares around it the opponent already controls.