Chess Tactical Motifs - The Discovered Attack

A Discovered Attack occurs when one piece moves, and uncovers an attack by another piece.

White to Play.

A particularly effective type of Discovered Attack is the Discovered Check. This occurs when the uncovered piece checks the opposing King. In the diagram to the right, white has a deadly plan: 1. Bd4+. This move uncovers an attack by the Rook on the King - discovered check. But wait, there's another attack: the Bishop that moved attacks the black Queen at the same time! Black is forced to move his King out of check. The white Bishop then captures the black Queen.

White to Play.

Here's an another example of a discovered attack. White can play the sacrifice 1. Bxa7+, which uncovers an attack by the d3 Rook on the black Queen. After black captures the checking Bishop, the black Queen will fall.

Notice the difference between these two examples. In the first, the uncovered piece checks the King. This is a discovered check. In the second, the moving piece delivered check. This is a discovered attack. The naming isn't really important. What matters is that you understand the difference between the two patterns.

Discovered attacks don't have to involve check! However, cases involving check are the most critical for beginners and novices. They will be our focus.

The next page has some discovered attack problems to work on.