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Learn Chess Endgames

Convert winning positions and save lost ones with core endgame technique.

Free to start. Built from a single prompt. No credit card.

Endgames are the phase of chess with few pieces left, and they reward precise knowledge more than any other part of the game. A handful of positions come up again and again: mating with king and rook, king and pawn endings decided by the opposition, and rook endings where the Lucena and Philidor positions separate a win from a draw. Knowing them turns half points into full points. Learnr builds a personalized endgame course from one prompt and teaches each technique in short interactive lessons, from the basic mates up to practical rook endgames.

How to learn Chess Endgames, step by step

Master king and queen, then king and rook mates. Use your king and major piece together to push the enemy king to the edge. Practice until you can mate against any defense within the fifty-move limit, and watch for stalemate when the lone king has no moves.
Learn the opposition and key squares. In king and pawn endings, having the opposition means your king faces the enemy king with one square between and it is their move. Pair this with key squares, the squares your king must reach for a pawn to promote.
Use the square of the pawn and outside passers. Draw an imaginary square from a passed pawn to its promotion rank to see whether the defending king can catch it. Learn why a passed pawn far from the action pulls the enemy king away and decides many pawn endings.
Study the Lucena and Philidor positions. The Lucena shows how to promote with a rook and pawn by building a bridge with your rook to shield the king from checks. The Philidor shows the defender how to hold a draw by keeping the rook on the third rank, then checking from behind.
Activate the king and keep rooks active. Once queens are traded, the king becomes a strong attacking piece, so march it toward the center. Place rooks behind passed pawns, yours or your opponent's, where they gain power as the pawn advances.
Play out positions against a partner or engine. Set up each studied position and play it from both sides until the technique is automatic. Reinforce the ideas with short Learnr lessons, then check your own games for endgames you mishandled.

What you'll learn

Checkmate a lone king with a queen or a rook quickly
Use the opposition, key squares and the rule of the square
Win with the Lucena position and defend with the Philidor
Activate your king early in simplified positions
Judge when trading into an endgame wins or draws

What's inside your Chess Endgames course

A sample path Learnr builds for Chess Endgames. Your real course adapts to your goal and level.

1. Basic mates: queen, rook and two bishops
2. King and pawn endings: opposition and key squares
3. Outside passed pawns and triangulation
4. Rook endings: Lucena and Philidor
5. Minor piece endings and wrong-colored bishops
6. Practical endgame principles and converting advantages

How long does it take to learn Chess Endgames?

The basic mates and the opposition take a couple of weeks of short sessions. Reliable rook endgame technique, including the Lucena and Philidor, usually takes a few months of study and play. Endgame skill keeps deepening for years, so treat it as ongoing work.

What you need before you start

Know the rules of chess, including stalemate and the fifty-move rule, and be comfortable playing full games. Basic tactics help, since endgames still contain forks and skewers.

Common mistakes to avoid

Leaving the king at home once queens come off. In the endgame, bring it to the center so it supports pawns and attacks.
Stalemating a lone king while mating. Before each move, check that the defending king still has a legal move.
Placing rooks passively in front of passed pawns. Put them behind passers, where they grow stronger as the pawn advances.

How Learnr builds your course

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Chess Endgames questions, answered

Which chess endgames should I learn first?

Start with king and queen versus king and king and rook versus king. Then learn king and pawn basics like the opposition, followed by the Lucena and Philidor rook positions.

Do I need to learn the bishop and knight checkmate?

It is rare in practice and difficult, so most players leave it until their other endgame fundamentals are solid. Rook endings arise far more often and deserve priority.