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Tactic

Skewer

An attack on a high-value piece forces it to move, exposing a less valuable piece behind it to capture.

Starting position

The Setup

The skewer is the mirror-image of the pin. Here, Black's king and queen are lined up on the e-file, but the most valuable piece (the king) is in the front.

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Move sequences and interactive tour paths for Skewer

Starting Position (FEN): 4q3/4k3/8/8/8/8/8/R5K1 w - - 0 1

The Skewer

  • The Setup - The skewer is the mirror-image of the pin. Here, Black's king and queen are lined up on the e-file, but the most valuable piece (the king) is in the front.
  • Re1+: The Skewer - White's rook checks the black king. Because the king is the most valuable piece on the board, it MUST move, exposing whatever is hiding behind it.
  • Kd6: The King Retreats - The king steps to safety out of the rook's path, but leaves the queen completely undefended on the same file.
  • Rxe8: Capturing the Queen - With the king out of the way, the rook gobbles up the queen. A skewer is often called an x-ray attack because the attacking piece looks right through the target to the piece behind it.
For experienced players

Skewers are incredibly common in rook endgames, often appearing when a defending king steps in front of its own promoting pawn. The attacking rook checks the king, forcing it away, and then captures the newly-promoted queen behind it.

See also:Pin·How the Rook Moves·Discovered attack

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