Initiative (chess)

The initiative in chess is the player who determines what happens on the board with his actions. His opponent is forced to react. A strong excess of initiative is often synonymous with the possibility of attacking play.

Initiative arises from FIG activity. For this it is necessary not only that the characters have many possible moves, but they also need to - up threats - positional or tactical. Farmers contribute to the initiative often in that they curb the activity of opposition figures and keep avenues for own characters open.

In positions of open struggle, the initiative prove crucial and even material sacrifice can be justified. Less important is the initiative in positions in which both opponents slowly improve positionally.

From a psychological perspective, many chess players feel more comfortable if they have the initiative, as if they have to fight against them. The effects of an error are for the party that fights against the initiative, often more serious than for the party who has the initiative.

Sometimes one has the initiative as compensation for another kind of drawback. In some positions, the initiative tends to evaporate when one does not attack consistently or if the opponent is exactly defended. In other situations, one has to deal with long-lasting initiative due to static position advantages.