Good bishop - chess concept
Good bishop
Definition
A good bishop is a bishop that is not obstructed by its own pawns and therefore has broad scope and influence. Classically (following Nimzowitsch), a bishop is “good” when most of its own pawns are fixed on squares of the opposite color to the bishop. This keeps lines open for the bishop and lets it target the color complex that the pawns do not cover.
Another practical test: a bishop that operates outside its pawn chain, actively pressuring enemy weaknesses and key diagonals, is typically a good bishop—even if, by pawn-color theory, it might look “bad” on paper.
Usage in Chess
Players and annotators use “good bishop” to assess piece quality and guide decisions like pawn placement, exchanges, and long-term plans. Typical phrases include:
- “White kept the good bishop and traded the bad one.”
- “Black’s dark-squared bishop is good because the pawn chain sits on light squares.”
- “Improve your good bishop: open the diagonal with a pawn break.”
Strategic Significance
Recognizing which bishop is good has large strategic consequences:
- Pawn structure planning: Place your pawns mostly on the opposite color of your intended key bishop to maximize its activity.
- Exchanges: Preserve your good bishop; trade off the opponent’s good bishop if possible.
- Targeting weaknesses: A good bishop attacks pawns fixed on its own color in the enemy camp and can dominate a “bad” opposing bishop.
- Endgames: In bishop endgames, a good bishop can penetrate, create zugzwang, and support passed pawns; in opposite-colored bishop middlegames, a “good attacking bishop” can create powerful mating threats even with reduced material.
- Dynamic exceptions: A bishop that looks “bad” (same color as its pawns) may still be excellent if it stands outside the pawn chain or if it performs a vital defensive role.
Examples
1) Advance French – the dark-squared bishop as White’s “good” bishop
After 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5, White often supports the pawn chain with c3 and d4. Since White’s pawns sit on light squares (c3, d4, e5), the dark-squared bishop (often developed to d3 or g2 via a fianchetto) tends to be the “good” bishop, eyeing h7 and controlling dark squares around Black’s king. A typical development might be:
Here, White’s dark-squared bishop on d3 is unencumbered by own pawns, points at h7, and often coordinates with a kingside pawn storm (h4–h5) or piece maneuvers (Ng5) to attack.
2) The Catalan – the fianchettoed bishop as a model good bishop
In the Catalan, White fianchettos the light-squared bishop to g2 and places pawns on dark squares (c4, d4, e3). The g2-bishop becomes a quintessential “good bishop,” bearing down the long diagonal and pressuring the queenside:
The bishop on g2 influences b7, c6, d5, and sometimes the a8–h1 diagonal becomes a decisive factor in opening play.
Endgame Patterns
- Good vs. bad bishop: If you can fix the opponent’s pawns on the same color as their bishop, your own bishop (on the opposite color) becomes superior. Typical plan: create a passed pawn, force the enemy bishop to blockade, then infiltrate with the king on squares your good bishop controls.
- Opposite-colored bishops: With queens and rooks on, the side with the initiative may have a “good attacking bishop” bearing directly on the enemy king’s squares (often the color of the defender’s weak squares). Without heavy pieces, opposite-colored bishops tend to be drawish—but even then, a good bishop can dominate if it targets fixed weaknesses and your king can invade the opposite color complex.
- Outside the chain: Even a nominally “bad” bishop becomes good if it sits outside its pawn chain (e.g., Black’s French bishop escaping via …b6 and …Ba6 to trade off or activate).
Historical Notes and Anecdotes
- Aron Nimzowitsch (My System, 1925) popularized the language of “good” and “bad” bishops as part of his positional framework. He showed how pawn structures create long-term strengths and weaknesses for bishops.
- In the French Defense, Black’s light-squared bishop on c8 is notorious for being “bad” if hemmed by pawns on light squares; players joke about the “French bishop,” and Black often plays …b6 and …Ba6 to trade it off—an admission of how important bishop quality is.
- Anatoly Karpov’s positional wins often feature nursing a good bishop against an inferior minor piece, fixing weaknesses on the right color complex, and winning a seemingly “equal” endgame by slow squeeze.
Practical Tips
- Build your pawn chain on the opposite color of your intended key bishop. For a dark-squared good bishop, fix many of your pawns on light squares.
- Preserve your good bishop with prophylaxis: avoid trades that relieve the opponent’s color-complex weaknesses.
- Create a good bishop: use pawn breaks (c4–c5, f4–f5, …b5–b4, …f6) to open diagonals and move the bishop outside the pawn chain.
- Make the opponent’s bishop bad: fix their pawns on the bishop’s color with well-timed exchanges and pawn locks; then attack those squares with your good bishop.
- In opposite-colored bishop middlegames, attack squares of your bishop’s color near the enemy king; bring heavy pieces to the same color complex.
Common Pitfalls
- Over-simplifying: A bishop that’s “bad by color” may be the best defender of key pawns. Don’t trade it carelessly.
- Ignoring dynamics: A temporary pawn break can instantly convert a bad bishop into a monster; reevaluate after every structural change.
- Wrong exchanges: Trading your good bishop for a passive knight can backfire if it leaves you with a bad bishop versus a healthy minor piece.