Outflanking

A composition from Jan Drtina, 1907.

The first step is to identify the key squares.

White to move

8/4k3/3p4/3P4/2P5/8/8/5K2 w - - 0 1

From there we can identify the attacking squares 

White to move

b5 and f5 are the attacking squares, while b7 and f7 are the defensive squares. If white manages to reach b5 or f5 while getting the opposition, he wins.

The opposition battle is played along the f-file. Getting the opposition is half of the technique. The other half is outflanking. Opposition without outflanking is useless.

In this position, you must realize that white is in the middle of the process of outflanking. That's the downside of compositions. It are freak positions of some sort.

The upside is that you can learn a lot from it what is transferable to other positions. It just takes a bit of discipline to dissect matters.

Once you see that you are outflanking the black king with the f-file as center line, matters become more clear.

• 1.Kg2

It makes no sense for black to stay on the e-file, because white simply walks over the g-file to g6

• 1. ... Kf8 2.Kf2 seizing the opposition When black gives up the opposition, white outflanks the king with Kg3.

Another try by black

The diagram below is the position after

• 1.Kg2 Kf6
• 2.Kf2 Ke7
• 3.Kg3 Kf7
• 4.Kf3 Ke7
• 5.Kg4 Kf6
• 6.Kf4 Kg6

Black tries to keep the white king at bay by controlling f5 and g5. Outflanking via the e-file is not possible because e5 is an obstacle.

White to move

But the g-file is off limits for black, since now his distance to the defensive square b7 is too long. So white changes to the invasion on the queenside.

White to move

White can outflank the black king via a5.

Odds and ends

• The h-file is forbidden for the black king because it is out of the square of the d-pawn
• The g-file is forbidden for the black king because it is too far from b7
• The e-file is not suited for the opposition battle because it contains the obstacle e5
• If black tries to capture c4, white must make sure that he captures d6 and promote the d-pawn
• Notice that when the white king is on d4, he cannot push the c-pawn. Since black will be in time to take the opposition and stop the d-pawn from promotion

I guess these are all scenarios that can happen frequently. Impossible to calculate if you have not seen these scenarios before.