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Bishop endgame

Opposite-Coloured Bishops

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With bishops fixed to opposite colours, the stronger side cannot trade the defender’s bishop or challenge it directly. That gives the defender blockade resources that a material count can miss. Some positions with two extra pawns are drawn; others are won. The useful questions concern pawn colour, king access and whether the defender must answer threats on both wings.

On this page
  1. Why opposite bishops draw
  2. What the attacker needs
  3. The defensive recipe
  4. Try to hold the draw
  5. Keep learning

Why opposite bishops draw

Neither bishop can attack the other, so a secure blockade may be impossible to exchange. The defender tries to fix the pawns on squares controlled by its bishop and uses the king on the complementary colour. In the diagram White’s c- and e-pawns are not connected: one file separates them. Both stand on dark squares, allowing Black’s dark-squared bishop and king to organise a blockade. Syzygy gives a draw.

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Black to move draws against two separated passers on c5 and e5. The exact blockade matters more than the two-pawn advantage.

What the attacker needs

Passers on both wings are useful because one bishop may not hold two distant fronts while the king also blocks entry. They are not an automatic win. Before pushing, identify the defender’s ideal blockade and ask whether a pawn move fixes a target on that bishop’s colour. The attacking king needs an entry route, or one passer must force the bishop away from the other.

The defensive recipe

Defending, seek a blockade on squares your bishop controls and keep the king near the entry points. Work out in advance which passer the bishop could eventually sacrifice for and whether the remaining material would then be a draw. With rooks or queens still present, opposite-coloured bishops can instead amplify an attack because one bishop cannot defend squares of the other colour; the pure-ending plan does not transfer unchanged.

Try to hold the draw

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Black to move and draw. Keep both pawns under control and deny the white king an entry square.
Are opposite-coloured bishop endings always drawn?No. Opposite colours give the defender additional blockade and sacrifice resources, but king position, pawn colour and passers on both wings determine whether those resources work.
How does the defender hold?Aim to fix the pawns on your bishop’s colour, use the king to cover entry squares, and avoid being stretched across two fronts. Do not assume a bishop can stop connected pawns indefinitely; calculate the pawn breaks and king route in the actual position.
Why are opposite bishops sometimes good for the attacker?With major pieces still present, an attack on one colour complex may be hard for the opposite bishop to contest. The defending side can answer with counterplay on the other colour, so evaluate king safety and the remaining pieces rather than importing the pure-bishop ending rule.

Practise bishop endings vs Stockfish

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