Imagine a pawn with bulging eyes, outstretched hands and with an open jaw trying to land a bite on fellow pieces. How funny would it be if pieces could actually roam around the board like zombies when they become “infected”?
Odd, isn’t it? It’s good that there weren’t any zombie-based movies a millennium (or so) ago, when the inventors of chess were pondering about which pieces would go into the board.
I read a chapter from this interesting book called “Under the Surface” (Quality Chess) by GM Jan Markos on “Infected Pieces” a couple of nights ago when I was alone in my house. Only the cold monsoon winds were around to give me company, as I was gulping down one page after another until I landed on that fateful page (below). Ever since then the image of a zombie pawn wouldn’t leave my mind, and it always seems to be floating around even when I play online these days.
Let’s define a Zombie Pawn – A zombie pawn is a weak pawn that is so infected that it creates other direct or indirect weakness in your position.
Take this position for example:
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Charlize