Chess Calculation Training, Volume 2: Endgames Romain Edouard (K-5306)

As in Volume 1, a lot of calculation will be required. The major diff erence between middlegame and endgame training is, of course, the limited material on the board. This means the patterns you discover in training are much more likely to appear in your games — so you should try to imprint them somewhere in your memory!

With ordinary tactics, the purpose of exercises is almost solely to improve your calculation skills. Solving the exercises of this book will help the reader improve on his endgame knowledge and understanding as well. There is a lot to learn from studying each solution, even if you failed to fi nd it yourself; this is why answers here are even more detailed than in Volume One. Nevertheless, the solutions are always concrete.

This book contains 10 chapters. The fi rst, as in Volume 1, is a warm-up. Then we will work on endings from all possible angles: technical wins, tactical wins, drawing moves, and so on. Another very important chapter is “Test your refl exes!”. I believe refl exes are a key element in becoming a good endgame player. The more good refl exes you develop, the more other things become refl exes too!

To prepare this book, I looked at a huge number of games and pre-selected around 800 positions. By analyzing them more deeply than I would normally do just watching a game online, I discovered an incredible number of new ideas. These I pass on to you!

Throughout the book, the most challenging exercises are marked with a (*). The theoretical positions, which it is essential to memorise, are marked with PREFACE a (T). You will fi nd a help section at the end of the book, giving guidance (if needed) for any exercise marked with an asterisk.

I hope this book will be an excellent complement to the pure knowledge you may gain from other more general endgame books!

CONTENTS:
005 - KEY TO SYMBOLS

007 - PREFACE

009 - CHAPTER 1: WARM UP

023 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 1

029 CHAPTER 2: TEST YOUR REFLEXES! 

049 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 2

069 CHAPTER 3: FIND THE TECHNICAL WIN! 

081 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 3

097 CHAPTER 4: UNEXPECTED BLOWS!

109 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 4

119 CHAPTER 5: FIND THE DRAW!

133 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 5

151 CHAPTER 6: MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE!

161 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 6

171 CHAPTER 7: IN SECONDS!

179 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 7

185 CHAPTER 8: FIND THE MISSED MOVE!

193 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 8

199 CHAPTER 9: EVALUATE THE POSITION!

207 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 9

219 CHAPTER 10: A SIXTH SENSE FOR ENDGAMES?

229 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 10

245 CHAPTER 11: SPECIAL SECTION

271 SOLUTIONS – CHAPTER 11 257 HELP SECTION