As I mentioned at the opening of this article, the mid-game is where any
questions of who controls what are decided. But, how the games are
decided is determined by the opening game each player commits to, which will
determine what options are even available to the player to use!
So I will leave you with a word regarding game pace. At some point, probably
between the fourth and the eighth exchanges, you will be asked to make a
decision regarding what pieces you are willing to sacrifice, (and in what
order), in your quest to establish control of as much of the board as you can.
You already know the absolute value of each piece, (a Queen is more valuable
than a Rook, which is more valuable than a Bishop or Knight, which is more
valuable than a pawn…). Here are a few “relative values” to help guide you into
and through your mid-game.
First; Rooks. A Rook is an extremely powerful piece to have during the end
game. However, during opening game it is virtually useless. Likewise, a lot of
people are under the impression that the Bishop and Knight are of equal value.
They are not.
Pacing is what determines that a Knight is much more useful during the
opening and mid game, but the Bishop is much more powerful during the end game.
Something else you may wish to keep in mind regarding the relationship between
Bishops and Knight is this: either Knight can potentially cover two of the four
center squares; likewise, either Bishop can cover two of the four as well.
And it is much worse to lose both
Knights or both Bishops than it
is to lose one of each.
You will want to keep this firmly in mind as, no matter what opening you or
your opponent choose, the odds are very high that the middle game will begin on
one of those four middle squares.
And if you control all four of those squares, how could you loose?