What is Removing the defender in chess?
Capturing or chasing away the piece that guards an important target.
Once the guard is gone, the target is free. You can remove a defender by capturing it (sometimes as a sacrifice), deflecting it with a threat, or decoying it to a worse square.
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Analyze my games →More chess terms
- BatteryTwo pieces lined up on the same file, rank, or diagonal to multiply their force.
- WindmillAlternating checks from a rook and bishop that force the king back and forth while picking off material.
- X-ray attackA piece attacks or defends through another piece that stands in the way.
- DesperadoA piece that is going to be captured anyway, so it grabs as much material as possible before it dies.
- InterferencePlacing a piece on a square to cut the communication between two enemy pieces.
- Clearance sacrificeSacrificing a piece to vacate a square or line so another piece can use it.