Chess piece hierarchy

Piece hierarchy

You probably know by now that on the chess board there are 6 types of pieces, each one moving and capturing according to different rules. The value of a piece is given by its ability to capture other pieces and by its importance for the game.

A piece's ability to capture other pieces is given by its mobility, or range of action, in other words by the number of squares on which the piece could move on. From this point of view the queen is the most powerful piece on the board because it has the biggest range of action.

But although the queen is the strongest piece it is not the most important. The most post important piece on the chess board is the king because the entire game revolves around checking the opponent's king.

Many beginners make the false assumption that the value of a piece remains constant throughout the game. That is not true. The fact is that the value of the piece depends a lot on the surrounding pieces and their position. The more pieces there are on the board the more limited they are in their movement. Because the number of pieces decreases throughout the game the mobility of most remaining pieces increase and thus, so does their value.

Although a piece's value may change during the game it will always have a potential value, a so called absolute value. This is the main reference that indicates to you whether a piece is normally more valuable than another. The absolute value of a chess piece is estimated by analyzing its range of action if it were alone on the chess board. Here is the piece hierarchy constructed by taking in consideration the absolute value of each piece:

• The queen : it has the biggest range of action of all pieces, being able to move along the diagonals, ranks and files;
• The rook;
• The bishop and the knight are both at the same level. The fact that the knight has fewer squares on which to move is compensated by the fact that it can jump over other pieces;
• The king: it has a small value because it doesn't have a great mobility but it is the most important piece in the game;
• The pawn ;

Beside the absolute value, a piece also has a relative value given by its position on the chess board and by the current phase of the game.

There are certain ratios between the relative values of the pieces that change while the game passes from one phase to another.

In the opening and the central game:

• the knight and the bishop have the same value, each of them being a little more valuable than three pawns. Many players have the prejudice according to which the bishop is a little more valuable than the knight. That couldn't be more false! As I said earlier the knight compensates its small range of action with the fact that it can jump over other pieces.
• The rook is somewhat equivalent with a knight or a bishop plus two pawns.
• The queen's value is equal with that of two rooks but is smaller than that of three bishops or knights.

In the end game the ratios change :

• the pawn's value increases;
• Three pawns are equivalent with a bishop or a knight;
• The rook has the same value as a bishop or knight and a pawn;
• Two rooks are more valuable then a queen;
• A queen is equivalent with three knights or bishops;
• A queen is equivalent with a rook a bishop or a knight and a pawn;
• The closer a pawn is to the promotion square the more valuable it is ;

It is very important that you know the values I've presented earlier. By knowing the value of each individual piece you will be able to evaluate whether you should exchange a piece or whether you should capture a piece. You'll also know wether you have more material resources than your opponent.

The conclusion is that the value of a piece is dictated by its strategic position and by its ability of working together with other pieces. So the fact that a player has less pieces could be compensated by their superior position on the board.

You will see how to apply what you've learned here in your game in the next article.