Flying kings: choose the landing square after a capture
A flying king can choose a square beyond the captured piece. This advantage requires calculation: the same capture with a different destination can reverse the result. Do not stop at “what will I take?” Ask which mandatory reply the opponent gets after your chosen landing.
In this article
List the legal destinations first
White's a1 king sees Black's d4 man along the clear b2–c3 diagonal. Beyond the target, e5, f6 and g7 are empty; another black piece occupies h8. The king must take d4 and may finish on one of those three squares. It cannot jump both black pieces at once: there is no board square beyond h8. Do not look for continuations off the board.
Compare the reply after f6
Choose a1×f6. Black's h8 man cannot yet capture the king: empty g7 separates them, and a man captures only an adjacent target. Black's only reply here is h8–g7. Now the f6 king must take g7 and land on h8. No black pieces remain, so White wins. The line is short because the teaching position deliberately contains only three pieces.
Check the g7 trap
The move a1×g7 is also legal, but gives Black's h8 man the mandatory h8×f6 capture. White's king disappears and no other white pieces remain, so Black wins. A king's strength does not protect it from a man. Being close to the edge does not mean safety: inspect adjacent diagonals and the empty square beyond your piece. Initial e5 is also legal; our f6 line is not claimed to be the only winning choice.
Exercise: name the reply before landing
Write Black's first reply for e5, f6 and g7 without moving. Then replay the safe line and separately test the trap. In your next game, compare replies before choosing a king's destination. If another capture is available after landing, it is mandatory and belongs to the same sequence; you cannot stop for a convenient picture. This example has no continuation on the first move, separating landing choice from a multi-jump calculation.
Your move now.
Practise the idea on the board. You can make mistakes, try again and start over.
Open exerciseRules and sources
Use these links to check the rules and explore the topic further.