Advanced tactic · 1 of 15
Attraction
A sacrifice drags a piece, usually the king, onto the square where your next move wins.
- Learn how it worksThree examples with Capra. You play each one yourself.Three examples with CapraStart the lesson
- Practise on real puzzlesPractise on puzzles80 attraction puzzles, from easy to very hard.0 of 80 solvedGo to the puzzlesGo to the puzzles
The sacrifice chooses the square
The sacrifice wins nothing by itself. It puts an enemy piece on the square where your next move works.
The king is dragged into a mate
The queen checks from b7. The king has to take her, and the pawn promotes with mate.
The queen is dragged into a fork
The rook checks on d8. The queen has to take the rook, and the knight forks the king and the queen.
The king is dragged into a double check
The queen checks on d8. The king has to take her, and that puts him in front of the bishop and the rook.
Attractions in numbers
Counted from the 4,085 attractions in our puzzle library, all taken from real games- 1 in 70
of our puzzles has an attraction in it.
- 35%
of them end in checkmate.
- 49%
of them come in the endgame.
Which piece makes the first move
- Rook56%
- Queen28%
- Bishop8%
- Pawn6%
- Knight2%
What it wins
- Checkmate35%
- Queen23%
- Rook23%
- Bishop4%
- Knight2%
Good to know
Attractions: common questions
What is attraction in chess?
Attraction is a sacrifice that forces an enemy piece, usually the king, onto a particular square. On that square the piece walks into your next move, such as a fork, a pin, a skewer or a checkmate.
What is the difference between attraction and deflection?
Deflection pulls a piece away from something it is guarding. Attraction pulls a piece onto a square where it becomes the target. Many combinations do both at once.
Is attraction the same as a decoy?
Yes. Decoy is another name for the same idea: bait that an enemy piece has to take, on a square that is bad for it.
How do I find an attraction?
Work backwards. Ask which fork, check or mate you would have if an enemy piece stood on a different square, then look for a check or a capture that forces it there.