Pin in chess: how it works
A piece cannot move safely because doing so would expose a more valuable piece behind it.
A pin happens when moving one piece would expose a more valuable piece behind it to capture. The pinned piece is stuck in place, or at least very costly to move.
An absolute pin is against the king - the piece literally cannot move because it would put the king in check, which is illegal. A relative pin is against a queen or other valuable piece - moving is legal but loses material.
Pins are powerful because they restrict your opponent's options. A pinned piece cannot help defend other squares, which opens up attacks elsewhere on the board.
Pin examples
White bishop pins the knight to the black king
The white bishop on b5 aims directly at the black knight on c6. Behind the knight sits the black king on e8. If the knight moves, the bishop would be attacking the king - which is illegal. This is an absolute pin: the knight is frozen in place for as long as the bishop keeps the pressure on.
White bishop pins the knight to the black queen
Here the white bishop on g5 pins the black knight on f6 to the queen on d8. The knight can legally move, but doing so lets white take the queen for free. This relative pin means the knight cannot comfortably leave f6, giving white extra control of the center.
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