Removing Defender - Chess Tactic

 "Removing the Defender" (Removing The Guard) Chess Resources

Unlock Hidden Attacks

Forget brute force attacks! The "Removing the Defender" tactic, also known as "Removing the Guard," is a sneaky chess weapon that lets you exploit weaknesses and snag valuable pieces.

 Imagine a heavily guarded treasure chest – by eliminating the guard (the defender), you open up a path to capture the riches within (the valuable piece). This tactic doesn't rely on overpowering your opponent, but rather exploiting their defenses for a material advantage.

Mastering it will sharpen your tactical vision like a laser, leading to more wins and improved overall chess skills.


Undermining (chess) Wikipedia Page

Undermining (also known as removal of the guard, or removing the defender) is a chess tactic in which a defensive piece is captured, leaving one of the opponent's pieces undefended or under-defended.

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BOOKS (FREE)

Chess Tactics and Combinations - 84 page PDF - Really Nice PDF Created By the Exeter Chess Club on tactics.

Internet Archive

• Mastering Chess Tactics - 192 Page PDF - (Page 117-118 Removing the Defender)
  
  
• A Course In Chess Tactics - 193 page PDF - (Chapter 5 "Removing the Defender")

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Removing the Defender Chess Articles

Removing The Defender - Chess.com Article - with Explanations, Examples , Famous Games w/ Remove the defender Tactic and puzzles to test you knowledge at the end.

How to Identify and Remove a Defender in Tactical Combinations - ChessFox -Nice In-depth Article (Teaches two ways to remove defenders w/ multiple examples of each)

Removing The Defender: What It Is and How To Do It - Chess journal Article - Teaches Capture, Distract, Block or Interfering.

Removing the Defender - IM Mateusz Bobula - Blog Post - 4 Puzzles w/ 6 Min Embedded Video Lesson by Him.

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LiChess Studies

• Removing the Defender -  Interactive Study with 50 Chapters (50 Examples)
• Remove the Defender - Interactive (9 Examples)

New to Lichess studies? These interactive tools allow you to explore chess concepts and variations move-by-move, perfect for testing your understanding and deepening your knowledge.

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Games Databases

Chessgames.com

15 OTB Exercises - From Historic Games 

Deflection/Undermining Tactics-- OTB Examples - 21 games

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Tactics & Puzzles

Capture The Defender Lichess Tactics - 30,000 + Puzzle Tactics Under this Heading

Chess Tactical Motifs - Removing the Guard Exercises - 5 Exercises to Practice

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Remove The Defender Chess Video Lessons

Chess Kid Series

• Remove the Defender 1 - 4 Min - introduces the idea of "Removing the Defender", but first the Hamster reviews Attackers, Defenders, and Taking Pieces for Free.
• Remove the Defender 2: Destroy the Defender - 4 Min - Destroy all Defenders, and then devour the undefended pieces left behind.
• Remove the Defender 3: The Overworked Piece - 3 Min - One of the most common "Remove the Defender" tactics happens when you can identify that one defender is "overloaded" or "overworked" with too many defensive jobs.
• Remove the Defender 4: Deflection - 5 Min - PinkHamster ramps up the difficulty this week and shares a position from his own recent game to illustrate the idea of Deflection.

Chess Tactics: 2 Removing the Defender  - 4 Min Video 

Chess Tactics: Removing the Defender - 6 Min - IM David Pruiss - presents the important "Removing the Defender" tactic, and all of its different facets. (New - 5/30/24)

Chess Tactic: How to Remove the Defender!! (win a piece!)  - 3 Min 

Remove the Defender! - Chess Middlegame Strategies Tutorial - 13 Min - Jozerv's Chess Channel - chess tutorial videos with the subject of removing defenders to gain great attacking possiblities.

Removing the Defender | Chess Beginner Tactics 13 Min - IM Astraneh - What is removing the defender? Removing the defender is a chess tactic in which a defensive piece is captured/ removed, leaving one of the opponent’s pieces or squares undefended or under-defended. Video below