A king behind pawns on f7, g6 and h7 with a bishop on g7 is solid until the bishop disappears. This lesson teaches the standard recipe from the Yugoslav Attack against the Dragon: Be3, Qd2 and Bh6 to trade the bishop, then h4 and h5 to open the h-file, then remove the last defender.
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Castle on opposite wings and the game becomes a race. Against a king on g8 behind a bishop on g7, White’s recipe has three steps: trade that bishop with Be3, Qd2 and Bh6, open the h-file with h4 and h5, then remove whatever still guards h7. The Yugoslav Attack against the Dragon is the model.
What you will learn
01Why the bishop on g7 is the key defender and how Bh6 trades it.
02How h4 and h5 open the h-file, and what to do after ...Nxh5 or ...h5.
03How to remove the last defender of h7, usually a knight on f6.
04Why speed matters more than material when the kings are on opposite wings.
The recipe
Four sections. The Yugoslav Attack after White castles long: pawn on f3, bishop on e3, queen on d2, all aimed at h6. The bishop arriving on h6 to trade itself for the bishop on g7, so that the queen can recapture close to the king. The Soltis Variation, where Black stops the h-pawn with ...h5 and White turns to g2 to g4. And the finish, with the queen on h6, the rook on h1 and a knight on d5 removing the knight on f6 that guarded h7.
The club mistake is to attack with pieces only. A queen on h6 does nothing against a king that still has its bishop, and a rook on h1 does nothing behind a closed h-file. The pawns open the lines. The opposite mistake is to stop for a pawn when Black is pushing ...b5 and ...b4 against your own king: in a race, a tempo is worth more than a pawn.
How to practise it
Three quiz positions: start the attack, open the h-file, then remove the last defender of h7. One move each, by voice or tap, and every good first move counts. This lesson is in Pro.