Pin — the piece that cannot move
Learn absolute and relative pins, and how to exploit them to win material.
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How It Works — Step by Step
Absolute pin — cannot move
The bishop on g5 pins the black knight on f6 to the king on e8. The knight cannot legally move — any move would expose the king to check. This is an absolute pin.
Relative pin — costly to move
The bishop on b5 pins the c6 knight to the queen on d8. The knight CAN move (it's not the king behind it), but doing so loses the queen. This is a relative pin — moving is legal but very costly.
Attack the pinned piece
White piles up on the pinned f6 knight with d5 — threatening to win it because it cannot move. When a piece is pinned, add attackers until the defender runs out.
Break the pin
Black plays ...h6, attacking the g5 bishop and forcing it to decide. This is the most common way to break a bishop pin — drive it away with a pawn and free the pinned piece.
Find pins in my games
Kingsights scans your real games to find pin opportunities you missed — and pins your opponent created.
✓ Interactive boards ✓ Step-by-step ✓ Free forever