Answers.Body: <p>A toughy and a great example of the intrinsic value of studies at home and then reproducing over the board.</p>
  <p>One crucial line after e5 involves checking from g1, forcing the king to the h-file where it's open for a mate, and once Kh5 is played, giving you the option to play pawn to e4, unprotected, but poisoned since you escape check with Kf5! in a way that attacks whites rook and threatens mate next move with Rh1#.</p>
  <p>That's some pattern recognition for you, else good luck finding that motive over the board (OTB).
  To my (1900ish) best OTB advice: it is asking myself questions.</p>
  <ul>
  <li>In the given position, what's my plan to evade checks from the queenside?</li>
  <li>While cutting off whites king looks superb, there is no need to hurry, so are there moves that make progress and leave myself the option to cut off later?</li>
  <li>Is there a way for my opponent to bring his king behind my passer?</li>
  <li>How am I stopping their plan?</li>
  <li>Also, since pushing a passer should always rank among my first candidate moves: can I find a line for my opponent to outright win the pawn or at least stop its advancing further, granting tempi to consolidate (see above, king behind passer)?</li>
  </ul>
  <p>That being said, Rf5 was my instinct move as well.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2022-01-21T13:25:23.570Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2022-01-21T13:58:58.220Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2022-01-21T13:58:58.220Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: starrin
Answers.Body: <p>And here we have those who have read tons of endgame books (me) and everyone else (you) - just kidding. Also, I had the general theme in a training session as a kid and thus know by heart. But I can explain everything from general principles.</p>
  <ol>
  <li>The white king <em>is</em> already cut off! I think Karsten Müller highlighted that we tend to overlook a horizontal cut off, and that it is even worse than a vertical.</li>
  <li>That said, Rf5 is so bad that you can have a black extra move - none wins!</li>
  <li>The minimum checking distance for a R: If the pawn is on e5, the distance may be already too short (depending on whether the bR protects it). If it is on e4, and the wK cut off, the bR doesn't even have to bother, K and P just march - try it out!</li>
  <li>Sorry, starrin, but the mating motive you mention is unadulterated red herring :-) You can verify by moving all pieces one to the right. No more mates, but suddenly (almost) every move of Black wins!</li>
  <li>White to move would lose with Kg6, but Kh6 is OK (wat?), Re3 draws (I play that without thinking, and Rg4 (son of wat???) is the third drawing move. Here is some fun variant: 1.Kh6 Rd8 2.Ra3 Rg8 (got you cornered, ha!) 3.Ra1 e5 (triumph, go play Re1 and again the distance is too short) 4.Ra6!! (neener neener, two can cut off!)</li>
  <li>I only got a hunch why moving everything to the right drastically changes the position - now the <em>side</em> is too short for White to give safe R checks! I made rather silly looking draw moves for White and came to Kg3 Ra3 - Ke2 Rf1 Pe3, still White is cut off, still no way for Black to win as the Ra3 is exactly far away enough. (Rb3 Ra1, win)</li>
  </ol>
  <p>It is very enlightening to experiment with the position and a tablebase.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2022-01-22T18:11:37.927Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2022-01-23T17:59:19.737Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2022-01-23T17:59:19.737Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Hauke Reddmann
Body: <p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/qVVTx.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/qVVTx.png" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>
  <p><strong>Black to move here.</strong></p>
  <p>I played 1... Rf5. Intending to cut off the king.</p>
  <p>But the only winning move in this position is e5.</p>
  <p>My question is, how do you find such a move? Is it pure calculation, or is it some general principle, that I missed in this case? What is the method of solving these kinds of positions?</p>
  <p>Currently rated 1650 on chess.com</p>
  <p>Check out the game:<a href="https://www.chess.com/a/2UsLVrAfGjcDc" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.chess.com/a/2UsLVrAfGjcDc</a></p>
  <p>Move 53.</p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2022-06-11T19:45:12.220Z
Comments.Text: Tons of practice in rook endgames. I guess if you have such an aversion to endgames, you could always try to avoid them entirely by deciding games in the midgame.
Comments.UserDisplayName: DdogBoss
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2022-01-21T14:16:04.620Z
Comments.Text: usually there's a principle but there are some exceptions. this applies to tactics in general. however, for endgames eg rook endgames, see Karsten Müller [here](https://chess.stackexchange.com/a/36829/)
Comments.UserDisplayName: BCLC
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2022-01-23T06:48:26.413Z
Comments.Text: Fun fact: This is a 2 move puzzle after e5, there's a unique best move for  white and then again a unique best move for black! See [here](https://lichess.org/analysis/standard/8/4k1K1/4p3/3r4/8/6R1/8/8_b_-_-_0_1#1)
Comments.UserDisplayName: BCLC
Tags: <endgame><rook-endgame>
Title: How to find only-winning moves in the endgame?
ThreadText: # How to find only-winning moves in the endgame?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2022-01-21)
  
  [![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/qVVTx.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/qVVTx.png)
  
  **Black to move here.**
  
  I played 1... Rf5. Intending to cut off the king.
  
  But the only winning move in this position is e5.
  
  My question is, how do you find such a move? Is it pure calculation, or is it some general principle, that I missed in this case? What is the method of solving these kinds of positions?
  
  Currently rated 1650 on chess.com
  
  Check out the game:<https://www.chess.com/a/2UsLVrAfGjcDc>
  
  Move 53.
  
  **Tags:** endgame, rook-endgame
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_2**: usually there's a principle but there are some exceptions. this applies to tactics in general. however, for endgames eg rook endgames, see Karsten Müller [here](https://chess.stackexchange.com/a/36829/)  
  > **username_2**: Fun fact: This is a 2 move puzzle after e5, there's a unique best move for  white and then again a unique best move for black! See [here](https://lichess.org/analysis/standard/8/4k1K1/4p3/3r4/8/6R1/8/8_b_-_-_0_1#1)  
  > **username_1**: Tons of practice in rook endgames. I guess if you have such an aversion to endgames, you could always try to avoid them entirely by deciding games in the midgame.  
  
  ---
  
  ## 2 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2022-01-21. Score: 3
  
  A toughy and a great example of the intrinsic value of studies at home and then reproducing over the board.
  
  One crucial line after e5 involves checking from g1, forcing the king to the h-file where it's open for a mate, and once Kh5 is played, giving you the option to play pawn to e4, unprotected, but poisoned since you escape check with Kf5! in a way that attacks whites rook and threatens mate next move with Rh1#.
  
  That's some pattern recognition for you, else good luck finding that motive over the board (OTB).
  To my (1900ish) best OTB advice: it is asking myself questions.
  
  * In the given position, what's my plan to evade checks from the queenside?
  * While cutting off whites king looks superb, there is no need to hurry, so are there moves that make progress and leave myself the option to cut off later?
  * Is there a way for my opponent to bring his king behind my passer?
  * How am I stopping their plan?
  * Also, since pushing a passer should always rank among my first candidate moves: can I find a line for my opponent to outright win the pawn or at least stop its advancing further, granting tempi to consolidate (see above, king behind passer)?
  
  That being said, Rf5 was my instinct move as well.
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_4 on 2022-01-22. Score: 3
  
  And here we have those who have read tons of endgame books (me) and everyone else (you) - just kidding. Also, I had the general theme in a training session as a kid and thus know by heart. But I can explain everything from general principles.
  
  1. The white king *is* already cut off! I think Karsten Müller highlighted that we tend to overlook a horizontal cut off, and that it is even worse than a vertical.
  2. That said, Rf5 is so bad that you can have a black extra move - none wins!
  3. The minimum checking distance for a R: If the pawn is on e5, the distance may be already too short (depending on whether the bR protects it). If it is on e4, and the wK cut off, the bR doesn't even have to bother, K and P just march - try it out!
  4. Sorry, username_3, but the mating motive you mention is unadulterated red herring :-) You can verify by moving all pieces one to the right. No more mates, but suddenly (almost) every move of Black wins!
  5. White to move would lose with Kg6, but Kh6 is OK (wat?), Re3 draws (I play that without thinking, and Rg4 (son of wat???) is the third drawing move. Here is some fun variant: 1.Kh6 Rd8 2.Ra3 Rg8 (got you cornered, ha!) 3.Ra1 e5 (triumph, go play Re1 and again the distance is too short) 4.Ra6!! (neener neener, two can cut off!)
  6. I only got a hunch why moving everything to the right drastically changes the position - now the *side* is too short for White to give safe R checks! I made rather silly looking draw moves for White and came to Kg3 Ra3 - Ke2 Rf1 Pe3, still White is cut off, still no way for Black to win as the Ra3 is exactly far away enough. (Rb3 Ra1, win)
  
  It is very enlightening to experiment with the position and a tablebase.
  
  
  ---
  
  