Bughouse and Zhouse (Scroll down to see entire post)

Why did White here resign?   The immediate threat is that if White plays Kd1, R@e1 is mate as White's Bishop on d2 is pinned by the Queen on d8.  But what if White plays Ke2?  Even if Black gets a Knight, both bishops cover f4.  If she places a Knight on d4, she blocks her own pin, and White can retreat with Kd1.  With the King on e2, If she puts a pawn on d3 it blocks her pin.  White she can play dxc2, after Kc2 there is no mate.  If instead of p@d3 she gets a bishop and plays Bc4+, if White plays Kd1, R@e1 is mate. But say White plays p@d3 and Black takes with either the Bishop or the Pawn.  Again she has broken her own pin and White can play Kd1.

This is how it ended with my partner giving mate. It started with Black playing Nge7.   This is a suspect move, though I have seen some good players play the Knight there and going to f5 with it as soon as possible.  Now f6 and f7 are both very weak.   I sometimes play f6 instead of Nge7.  That also has some problems, though it is more robust than it looks. So what should Black play on the first few moves?   1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 is an option,. but you can see the problem with f6 in this game.   1.e4 e5 is possible.  Note that if 2.Bc4, White is not threatening the Bishop sac immediately as there is no square to place the Knight for a followup check.  There is 1.e4 d5 after 2.exd, some players play 2..Qxd5.  This is probably the easiest continuation for beginners.  Some play 2..e6 which is called the Leaf.  Is it any good?  Don't be silly. It loses a pawn.  Some go for 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d6 which is pas...

This may not really be the best checkmate of the day, but it occurred at the end of my session. It is quite instructive because it illustrates a common error.  Let's start at the key juncture: Black is certainly not losing.  He has a strong attack with p@e3.  Is he afraid of losing the rook or of B@d6?   Where would you play for Black?A rook is seldom critical this early in the game.  In any case he makes the usual mistake of Kxf7.  Its best not to lose the pawn on f7, but if you do, it is usually not correct to recapture.  Black, by the way is a 1900 player. One of the strongest players ChickenCrossRoad, had an opening where he recaptured on f7, but I think he played it only to prove that he was fast enough to get away with almost anything. Unfortunately in next few moves, White takes the bishop on g5 with check.  Black goes to f8, presumably hoping to avoid the dreaded p@f7+.  White plays b@d6.  It may be more significant...

This blog is going to be about bughouse misconceptions.  What follows are spur of the moment opinions only: Example #1: This was a rather quick loss.  Let's see how it came about: Black placed a pawn on g4.  His idea is to build a pawn chain to attack White's king.  He should have played a e6.  It is essential for Black to play an early e6.  Notice also how Black's pieces are not developed.  Black needs to control e6 and e5 before White gets there.  Some beginners only use the pieces given to them.  This means they are sitting for pieces when they should be developing their own pieces.  White more or less turns the tables on Black by playing Ne5. A friend suggested p@f6 instead of p@g4.  That is not the best move.  White still may be able to place a pawn on e6 and attack f7.  While p@d6 makes it harder for a knight to come in, it does not make it impossible, as white can form a battery of knights at some po...