Endgames
Avoiding Stalemate: Don't Let a Won Game Slip Into a Draw
Stalemate happens when the side to move is not in check but has no legal move. Under the rules of chess the game ends immediately in a draw. That rule turns some of the most painful results in chess into draws: a player with an extra queen can throw away half a point in a single careless move. The good news is that stalemate is almost always avoidable once you know the patterns and get into the habit of checking for it.
Why stalemate is a draw
The modern rule has been standard for well over a century: if the player to move has no legal move and is not in check, the game is drawn. It does not matter how much material the other side has. The FIDE Laws of Chess end the game at once, just like a dead position. For the stronger side this means checkmate is the only way to win; taking away every move from the enemy king without giving check is not enough.
The most common stalemate: king and queen against king
Almost every player has seen this one happen. The defending king is pushed to the corner, and the attacker, eager to finish, plays the queen one square too close.
White only needed a little care to finish the job. With the queen on g6, the black king has no squares at all, so the queen move that put it there was the mistake. Had White kept the queen on g5 instead, Black would have to shuffle between h8 and h7 while White prepared mate with the king's help. The lesson is that when the enemy king is in the corner with only one or two squares left, you must count its legal moves before you play. If your move takes away the last square without giving check, it is stalemate. You can study the full technique on our king and queen checkmate page.
Stalemate tricks for the losing side
If you are lost, stalemate is your best friend. Strong defenders deliberately aim for it. The common tricks are worth knowing from both sides of the board.
The desperado piece
If your king has no legal moves and your only remaining mobile piece is a rook or queen, you can throw that piece at the opponent's king with check after check. If he captures it, you are stalemated. If he does not, you keep checking. A rook that does this is often called a mad rook or desperado rook. One of the most famous cases came in the US Championship of 1963-64, when Larry Evans saved a lost position against Samuel Reshevsky by offering his queen and rook so that capturing them would leave his own king stalemated.
Burying your own king
The defender can walk his king into a corner or edge position where it is boxed in by his own pawns, then get rid of the remaining mobile units. Pawns that are blocked head to head have no moves, so a king surrounded by blocked pawns is a stalemate candidate as soon as all other pieces are gone.
Offering material that cannot be accepted
Sometimes the defender leaves a pawn or piece hanging, knowing that capturing it removes his last legal move. The attacker sees free material, grabs it, and the game is drawn. The habit to build is simple: before you take anything near a cornered king, ask what the opponent can move afterward.
Queen against a pawn on the seventh: the exceptions
A queen normally beats a lone pawn even on the seventh rank. The winning method is to check the defending king or attack the pawn until the king is forced to step in front of its own pawn, which gains a tempo for the attacking king to approach. Repeat the process until the king arrives and the pawn falls or the enemy king is mated.
Two pawns are exceptions when the attacking king is far away: the rook pawn (a- or h-pawn) and the bishop pawn (c- or f-pawn). Both rely on stalemate.
The rook pawn
With a rook pawn, the defending king simply goes to the corner. When it stands in front of its own pawn, the queen has to release the pressure at once, because the king has no other moves. White never gains the free tempo needed to bring the king closer.
With the white king this far away, the ending is a draw.
The bishop pawn
With a bishop pawn the trick is different. When the queen checks the king next to the pawn, the defender does not step in front of it. Instead he goes into the corner, leaving the pawn hanging. Capturing it is stalemate.
See the bishop-pawn stalemate on the analysis board →
If White does not take, Black threatens to queen, and White never finds time to bring the king. The exceptions only apply when the attacking king is far away. If it is already close, the queen and king can usually build a mating net in time. That is why, in a race where you queen first, you should note where your king is before assuming you are winning.
How to check for stalemate before every move
When you are winning, the danger is not ignorance but haste. A quick routine before each move in a winning ending prevents almost every stalemate:
- Look at the enemy king and count its legal moves after your planned move.
- Count the moves of every other enemy piece and pawn, including blocked pawns, pinned pieces and pieces that can only move into check.
- If the total is zero and your move is not check, do not play it. Find a waiting move, a king move or a check instead.
- Before taking material near a cornered king, repeat steps 1 to 3 for the position after the capture.
Leaving the opponent a single legal pawn move can also be useful. A defender with a spare pawn move cannot be stalemated, so with an overwhelming material advantage it is sometimes wise not to capture the last enemy pawn until the mating net is ready.
Key takeaways
- Stalemate is a draw, so the winning side must give checkmate, not just restrict the king.
- King and queen against king is the classic accident. Keep the queen a knight's move away from the cornered king and bring your own king in.
- Queen against a rook pawn or bishop pawn on the seventh is often a draw when the attacking king is far away, because of stalemate.
- When losing, look for desperado checks, bury your own king and leave poisoned material.
- Practice the basic mates on the analysis board and with puzzles until the technique is automatic.