Discovered Check

How This Tactic Works

A discovered check is a discovered attack where the revealed piece gives check to the enemy king. Since the opponent must address the check, the moved piece — which may be delivering its own threat simultaneously — is free to capture material or create additional threats. A double check (discovered check where both the moved piece and the revealed piece check the king simultaneously) is even more powerful: the king must physically move since it's impossible to block or capture both checking pieces at once. Double checks often lead to forced checkmates.

How to Spot It

• →A piece stands between your attacking piece and the enemy king
• →Moving the blocking piece will reveal check
• →The moving piece can simultaneously capture, threaten another piece, or itself give check (double check)

Practice Tips

• →After each game, review positions where a Discovered Check was possible — either you played it, your opponent played it, or it was missed by both sides.
• →Focus on the key signal: A piece stands between your attacking piece and the enemy king. Train your pattern recognition until you see this automatically.
• →Upload your games to chess.rodeo for free Stockfish analysis — it will highlight exactly where tactical opportunities were missed in your games.

Related Basic Tactics