In “The Silicon Road to Chess Improvement” I devote a whole chapter to engine sacrifices. In particular I noted the astonishing pawn sacrifices that engines make for long-term dynamic compensation. Stockfish’s pawn sacrifice against AllieStein is right up there in terms of mystery and superhuman judgement! Knowing this idea and the reasoning behind it will broaden your understanding of chess and open up a whole new range of possibilities in many positions!

ck article is in our Engine Snacks series! Leela counters a positional squeeze from Stockfish by transposing into a double-rook endgame a pawn down. To my shock and surprise, this endgame – with Stockfish having a far-advanced a-pawn – was a simple draw!
Knowing this position and its unexpected result might save you a half point or two in your career!

Some moves make an impression on you forever, and this is certainly one of them. Stockfish was a piece for a pawn up and completely winning against Leela Zero’s baby sister: Leela CPU. Many moves would finish off the job, but none so powerfully as Stockfish’s…

Stockfish sacrifices a piece for compensation that is not clear to a casual glance: the black king is exposed but there are no immediate threats. A series of powerful moves with the major pieces coordinates the white pieces into an unstoppable attacking force!
After reading this article, you will have gained the tools to better assess such long-term piece sacrifices and hopefully be inspired to use them in your own games!