4/4/2023 – Middlegame secrets are revealed - in a series of articles featuring videos by Jan Markos. Next we'll discuss the Rook, exploring things like the impact of the 7th rank or the difference between rooks and light pieces! If you wish to know more, we recommend the full course by Jan Markos: Middlegame Secrets Vol.2: The Potential of the Rook| Photo: Benjamin Smith/Unsplash
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Let us explore together how the rooks should enter the game in the early middlegame, how they operate on open files and how they sometimes join a deadly attack, being transferred in front of the pawn chain and many more topics!
GM Blohberger presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
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Middlegame Secrets Vol.2: The Potential of the Rook
For a chess player, chess pieces are like specific tools in a toolbox. We need to know how to use them best, like a craftsman knows their tools. We shouldn’t use a screwdriver to hammer in a nail; and we shouldn’t use the queen just for defence. This series will show you in great detail the specific qualities of each chess piece, so that you can maximize their effectiveness and thus improve your game. Everyone knows that a rook is dangerous on the 7th rank, and that it belongs behind the pawn. However, there is so much more to learn about this inconspicuous piece! Let us explore together how the rooks should enter the game in the early middlegame, how they operate on open files and how they sometimes join a deadly attack, being transferred in front of the pawn chain. We will also discuss the cooperation of the rooks and many more topics.
Let us explore together how the rooks should enter the game in the early middlegame, how they operate on open files and how they sometimes join a deadly attack, being transferred in front of the pawn chain and many more topics!
The 7th rank
The rook can be very effective on open files. The 7th rank plays an important role in the advanced middlegame. In this example, Jan Markos shows how to use the rook on the 7th rank to the best advantage.
In spite of simplifications, White maintains unpleasant pressure. With his next move, Ponomariov tries to solve his problems by unblocking the d4-square and activating the a8-bishop (something Nimzovich would certainly recommend from general point of view) but misses Kamsky's spectacular reply. The video clip from the video course will give you insights.
Meet the Fritztrainer
Jan Markos is a grandmaster from Slovakia.. He is the author of numerous excellent books and for some time has also been a writer for ChessBase. Besides his column in ChessBase Magazine "Practical tips for the tournament player" he writes a column for ChessBase News "The Winning Academy". With his new video series "Middlegame Secrets" the specific qualities of each piece are explained in detail. Each piece has certain tasks for which it is better suited than others. With the help of rules of thumb and principles, The Queen and the Rook are dealt with in the first two volumes. Markos knows how to break down the complexity of the pieces into simple rules of thumb. This makes it easier to learn and apply. On the occasion of the publication of the courses, we have made a nice interview with the author:
Let us learn together how to find the best spot for the queen in the early middlegame, how to navigate this piece around the board, how to time the queen attack, how to decide whether to exchange it or not, and much more!
You will learn how Black's dynamic piece activity and structural counterplay more than compensate for White's extra tempo in the colour-reversed setups.
In this course, you’ll learn how to take the initiative against the London and prevent White from comfortably playing their usual system by playing 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 Nh5.
London System Powerbase 2026 is a database and contains in all 11 285 games from Mega 2026 and the Correspondence Database 2026, of which 282 are annotated.
The London System Powerbook 2026 is based on more than 410 000 games or game fragments from different opening moves and ECO codes; what they all have in common is that White plays d4 and Bf4 but does not play c4.
In this course, Grandmaster Elisabeth Pähtz presents the London System, a structured and ambitious approach based on the immediate Bf4, leading to rich and dynamic positions.
Opening videos: Open Spanish (Sipke Ernst) and Classical Sicilian (Nico Zwirs). Endgame Special by Igor Stohl: ‘Short or long side’ – where should the defending king be placed in rook endgames? ‘Lucky bag’ with 35 master analyses.
YOUR EASY ACCESS TO OPENING THEORY: Whether you want to build up a reliable and powerful opening repertoire or find new opening ideas for your existing repertoire, the Opening Encyclopaedia covers the entire opening theory on one product.
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