Endgame preparation

 One of the three areas where I suck is the endgame. Since I manage to screw up positions where I'm a piece ahead, I suppose that this is the area where I can gain the most with a little effort.

This position came from round 5 in the tournament:

Black to move

8/8/p7/PpKnk3/1P6/6P1/8/8 b - b3 0 37

I'm black, a piece ahead, and totally clueless. I was lucky to draw this position. After the game, my 14 year old opponent showed me an easy way to win for black: 37. ... Nxb4.

I felt pretty silly. Since the resulting position is familiar to me. But we already noted long ago that being familiar is not enough, we need absorption.

I have the feeling that the endgame is about a finite amount of scenarios, which are in general not rocket science, but can be hard to SEE when you haven't ABSORBED them. And since we are talking about LONG lines, you can't visualize them by just being familiar with the scenarios. You can't SEE them without having them absorbed before.

This position invites to have a closer look. Stockfish says:

As you can see, there are 8 ways to win this position and 4 ways to lose it. Drawing is not even an option. The proposed Nxb4 is not the fastest way to win the game.

37. ... Nxb4 is a clear scenario. By creating a protected passed pawn, black can take his time to pick up the pawn on g3. Whether he does that in 10 moves or in 45 is up to him, as long as he stays under 50.

This means that the endgame is about plans. About scenarios. The exact moves are less important, as long as you don't compromise your plan.

The only means to lose this game, is to lose the knight with no compensation.

Other scenarios?

Let me see whether 37. ... Ne3, which Stockfish proposes as the fastest way, makes use of other mechanisms than 37. ... Nxb4

• 37. ... Ne3
• 38. Kb6 Kd6
• 39. Kxa6 Kc6
• 40. Ka7 Nc2

White to move

Here we see another scenario. Black has given up the protection of his passer, and has given white a passer instead. But:

• black can now create his own passer with Nxb4
• sacrifice his knight against whites a-pawn
• promote his own passer b5

This scenario is more precise than the blunt yet riskless 37. ... Nxb4

In practical play, the simple and riskless continuation is preferred of course.

But in the study room, I want to find the elements of the scenarios.

So let me generalize:

Black must create a passer (b5)

Black can sac his knight for creating a protected passer

Black can sac his knight for whites passer (a5)

Black must prevent the passer g4 from promoting by one of the following methods:

• Arrest the g-pawn with his knight
• Stop the g pawn by keeping his king in the square
• Promote with his b pawn first

Black must assure that his b pawn stays on the board.

All these elements of endgame scenarios are familiar. But since being familiar is not enough, I must absorb them. No visualization without absorption!

In the meantime, it becomes apparent that it takes time to prepare the endgame scenario-elements for absorption. A position like this takes a few hours to get the hang of it. On the other hand, the amount of elements seems to be fairly limited. Time to fiddle around!