Question:
What is worth more in chess, a Queen... or a rook + bishop/knight (on a full board)?
Blaine M
2006-12-28 09:42:01 UTC
What is worth more in chess, a Queen... or a rook + bishop/knight (on a full board)?
Eight answers:
anonymous
2006-12-28 09:47:07 UTC
Queen.
dutchday
2006-12-29 04:49:34 UTC
A queen will generally be stronger, but really it all depends on the position. If you have a queen on a full board (as little as possible is traded off) you can probably get a good attack whith the queen while the opponents extra rook is still blocked by his own pawns. Now, if the rook and bishop have compensation, such as a passer on the sixth row, they might be able to put on the pressure and lead the pawn to victory.

In conclusion, the queen is better if the other side doesn't have compensation. Note that you don't want to trade off too many pieces, many endgames with Q vs 2 pieces can still be drawn.
anonymous
2006-12-28 13:10:46 UTC
There is a point system where the queen = 9 points, rooks = 5, knights and bishops = 3 and pawns =1. It's a good way to evaluate what to trade off during a game but it can also be misleading. I rather believe that the pieces change in point value as the game progresses due to the player's ability to use them plus their position on the board. For instance, you might be extremely good with knights and not so good at mobilizing your bishops. So, for you, you might want to rate your knights at 4 instead of 3. Also, a 1 point pawn on the 7th rank is just about to be queened. Certainly that pawn is worth much more then than it was when it started out as a 1 pointer. Likewise, you will need to adjust the point value system to match your opponents abilities with certain pieces. They may be exceptionally good with bishops, so trading a rook for a bishop might be more disabling for him than a rook for rook exchange.



Keep in mind that when one bishop is captured, the remaining one is always on the same color throughout the rest of the game which can be extremely limiting. Where as knights alternate colors on every move which in my mind is a little more valuable. So, a lone knight can still capture on any color, but a lone bishop cannot.



It's probably best to start with the standard point system mentioned, and then after learning your strengths and weaknesses, customize the point system to suit your own game play. I hope this helps. Good luck and castle early!
banpeikun
2006-12-28 10:03:37 UTC
The classic points system put a Queen at 9 points, a Rook at 5, and Bishops and Knights at 3. So that puts the queen a point higher than a rook+bishop/knight.
oceansoflight777
2006-12-28 09:54:16 UTC
The queen would be the most powerful piece, but the advantage of having a rook and bishop, or knight, would be that two pieces could be placed at two different locations on the board. The knights unique L-shaped move could not be accomplished by a queen either.
Moondog
2006-12-28 13:12:42 UTC
Banpeikun is correct. Queen is 9, Rook is 5, Bishops/Knights are 3. So, Q= 9 while R+B/K = 8. Though later in the game, they say Knights lose their value while Bishops raise theirs, due to their long range striking ability.
anonymous
2006-12-28 10:34:46 UTC
Queen cuz it can move in any directions and any distance
anonymous
2006-12-28 09:50:35 UTC
i guess a queen as it can move in more ways.


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