Double Threat

Welcome to my fourth lesson about well-known tactical patterns. We are slowly going through all the patterns an intermediate player must be able to recognize instantly.
Remember the Fork ? This lesson is about the double threat, which is a generalization of the fork, in a sense.

 I have taken the screenshots from my app, Chess Trainer, download it to get even more free lessons.

Let's start with the definition: a double threat (or attack) is a single move after which the opponent faces two dangers. The idea is that the opponent only has time to address one of these threats. Fork, as seen before, is an example of a double threat, but the topic of this post is to detail other types of double threats that are not exactly forks (but very much alike).


As usual, here is a little puzzle for you (Don't jump too fast to the solution !):

And here is the solution:

The following moves are easy to find:

1. Qd5
This double threat wins on the spot !
1... Rf8
Of course the checkmate threat must be addressed first !
2. Qxa8
Capturing the Rook. It is important to note that Black has no way to capture the a8-Queen afterwards (Nc6 can be met by Bd5 for example)


Are you ready for another similar example ? Take some time and find the winning move here:

First, analyze the position:

Solution:

1... Qh4
2. g3
The checkmate threat first, as usual!
2... Qxh5
Black is a Bishop up, with no compensation for White



Sometimes a double threat is not enough and one of the players sets a triple threat ! What do you think about the following position ?

The triple threat seems nasty...

However, Black has a solution !

Look at the final position:

To conclude, when some enemy pieces are unprotected, always look for a fork or a double threat attack.
Be very careful not to expose yourself to a double attack at the same time: keep your pieces protected, or be sure to be able to reply to a multiple threat, similarly to the last example.
Please use the comments if you have any question, I will be happy to asnwer them.


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