Fork in chess
One piece, two targets. On Lichess, more puzzles turn on the fork than on any other motif, over twice as many as on the pin. It is the first tactic worth mastering.
A fork is a single move that attacks two or more enemy pieces at once. The opponent can usually save only one, so the attacker wins material.
The types of fork
- Knight fork: the most dangerous kind. A knight's attack cannot be blocked, and none of the pieces it attacks can capture it unless one of them is also a knight. If nothing can take a knight on e6 that hits a queen on d8 and a rook on c7, the queen has to move and the knight takes the rook.
- Pawn fork: the cheapest kind. A pawn push that attacks two pieces usually wins one of them, and even if the pawn is lost afterwards, a pawn (worth 1 point) for a knight or bishop (worth 3) is a good trade.
- Royal fork: a fork of the king and queen. The check has to be answered first, so the queen is usually lost, and any fork that gives check works the same way. The family fork is a knight fork of the king and queen that takes in a rook as well.
- Queen fork: the queen attacks in eight directions, so it can fork from across the board. It is worth so much that its targets usually have to be undefended, and a typical queen fork picks up a loose piece with check.
How to spot forks in your own games
Three habits help you find them:
- Look for loose pieces, meaning anything undefended. A fork needs two targets, and an undefended piece is always a valid one.
- Check every knight-move square near the enemy king and queen. Ask: if my knight stood there, what would it attack?
- A knight always attacks squares of the opposite color to the one it stands on, so it can only fork pieces that share a color. When two enemy pieces do, look for a square a knight's move from both, then work out how to get a knight there safely.
Many forks in real games are created a move earlier, by a check, a capture or a threat that drives the opponent's pieces onto squares where they can be forked. Strong players win a lot of material this way.
Defending against a fork
- Defend or move a loose piece before the fork exists.
- Watch the squares a knight could reach in one move as well as the square it stands on now.
- If the fork is already there, look for a way to capture the forking piece, a counter-check, a bigger threat, or a move that defends both pieces.
Practice the fork
Reading about a pattern is not the same as spotting it under time pressure. The free chess puzzles trainer serves rated positions from real games and adjusts to your level as you solve. When you get one wrong, press Analyze once the puzzle is over to open it on the analysis board and see what you missed.
Related tactics
Pin
A pinned piece cannot move without exposing something more valuable behind it, so it can no longer be trusted as a defender.
Skewer
A pin turned around: the valuable piece is in front, it must move, and the piece behind it falls.
Discovered attack
Move one piece and a different piece behind it makes the threat. The piece that moved can make a threat of its own, so one move often creates two attacks.
Frequently asked questions
What is a fork in chess?
A move that attacks two or more enemy pieces at the same time. Since only one can usually be saved, the player delivering the fork wins material.
What is the difference between a fork and a double attack?
They are almost the same idea. "Double attack" is the broader term for any move that creates two threats, including a threat of mate or promotion, or attacks by two different pieces as in a discovered attack. A fork is one piece attacking two or more targets.
Which piece forks best?
The knight. Its attack cannot be blocked, and none of the pieces it forks can capture it unless one of them is a knight. It is also worth less than a rook or queen, so even giving it up for one of them is a good trade.