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Knight vs Bishop
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walden15
22-Sep-05, 04:21

Knight vs Bishop
Greetings Red Rookers!

Just wanted to open a topic for discussion, that of the age-old debate - "Which is the better piece, Knight or Bishop?"

Personally, I prefer to hang onto my Knights, as I find them far more flexible, and less apt to be blocked by a wayward pawn, but I'm wondering how you all feel about it, and what causes you to feel that way.

Cheers, everyone! Have a great day!
picks357
25-Sep-05, 12:32

I would take a bishop in endgame over a knight if your playing someone good. Bishops have better mobility across the board. Knights are only really usefull when you can check the king and take another piece or pick 2 pieces which is hard against someone good. In middle game I would take knights though just because i like them. =]
jellycake
18-Oct-05, 18:00

I like.....
...the bishop because of the long range attack power.
vortx
25-Oct-05, 09:33

This is an old argument, and it really does depend on the position, generally speaking, a knight is better in closed or highly tactical positions because of its ability to reach beyond intervening pieces and ability to combine effectively with other pieces - particularly the Queen, whose powers it complements perfectly - and it is often better for producing 'surprise' moves.
The bishop will prove superior in open positions with play on both sides of the board, because of its' long range ability.
This is often the deciding factor in endgames for instance, where a bishop may hold back an 'enemy' pawn on one side of the board while supporting a 'friendly' one on the other.
One of its' more obscure advantages in the endgame arises from those instances where one side needs to 'lose a move' (i.e. repeat the position with the other player to move) in order to put the opponent in zugzwang.
A peculiarity of the way a knight moves means that it can only ever return to the same position in an even number of moves and therefore cannot 'lose' a move.




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