Practical Endgames for Composing Inspiration.

This article will show practical chess endgames which contain remarkable positions or maneouvres

which hopefully inspire Endgame study composers to create new Endgame studies.

Anyone who knows that a certain key position is already in an Endgame study, let me know !

 Latest add 8feb2026

Anyone who has an interesting endgame with surprises in it, could send it to the Webmaster of Arves.

(look for the email address at the Board page).

 See also: Inspiration for Study Composers II

 

Some examples are found by myself, others are from the website of Tim Krabbe: Chess Curiosities and in his two books (written in Dutch):

   

and many from this book:

 

Endgame Tactics, by (ICCF-GM), Ger Van Perlo (1932-2010).

Issued by New In Chess.

This book in its 3rd new edition from 2014 contains 1375 endgames on 600 pages with interesting analyses and comments.

It is also very usefull for practical players.

 

 

1) The first position is from my own practise.

White is clearly winning but chooses the obvious wrong first move.

The Black response is a sudden surprise.

2) The second example is from a game of clubmate with white who was almost resigning,

but black chose wrong and suddenly a Zugzwang position occurs.

Black is having a winning position, but suddenly.

(See also the comments at: https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/diary14txt.htm) 

3) The 3rd example is (diagram 227) from the mentioned New in Chess book.

White looks to have good prospects to win but black is able to hold the draw and keep it with a fortress!

4) Black surprises White with a neat liquidation combination:

5) Liquidating the defender of square h1

6) Black manages a draw because of Stalemate threats.

This position will be in the 6-pieces tablebase.

7) Black finds a nice stalemate way to keep the draw:

8) Black again manages to keep the draw by a brilliant idea:

10) A nice break through by white:

11) White ingeniously wins this rook endgame !

At the end white is mating Black soon.

12) In this example a nice mate threat is possible. Black in the game played 1...h5?

But after 1...Kf8 white should not try to win.

13) A nice drawing method. Black cannot take the rook.

14) A nice trick by Black with its 2nd move:

15) Black missed two ways to win.

The 2nd check-move of white answered by a Black check: Bg3+ is beautiful :

16) Black position seems hopeless but the liquidation to a draw is nice:

17) Black finds a perfect way to win:

18) White sacrifices all for a Queen:

19) A novotny combination:

20) White marches forward into a tricky draw by Black:

21) A nice drawingtrick by white (Bishop against Rook is a draw in that corner):

22) A nice fight ending in a draw by repitition:

23) The position looks without finesses, but then suddenly:

24) White saves himself with a nice breaktrough and sacrifice of the rook:

25) A very well calculated liquidiation by black with a surprise at the end:

26) Black blunders into a suprising drawing position:

27) White manages to promote a pawn getting a draw:

28) A clever sacrifice with a nice maneouvre by white;

29) White grabs wrong and is counted out:

30) A nice liquiditation by Black:

31) Black lures White into a pin:

32) Getting the pawn to promote!:

33) Not to deep but you need to see the trick:

34) Vidmar in a demonstration game:

35) White increasing its advantage on a original way:

36) Black prepares a nasty trick:

37) Beautiful technical pawn sacrifice:

38) Boldly getting trough:

39) The same way now by White:

40) A surprising winning move by White with an Underpromotion Mate!:

41) It all fits needly wel for Black:

42) Black can't get through or his Rook is trapped:

43) A stalemate combination:

44) A sudden mate on an open board:

45) White resigned in a winning position:

46) Larsen missed a mating attack by Kapov:

47) Black missed a nice win:

48) Black tried for a stalemate, but white was awake:

49) White has some nice moves:

50) A pointed Bishops endgame:

51) Black is counted out in pointed way:

52) 3 consecutive pawns sacrifices to break through;

53) White first makes his bishop very bad, but breaks through:

54) A typical breakthrough often seen in pawn endgames:

55) Black did find the win:

56) Black unluckely resigned but has a fortress with the knight on h2:

57) Black reactivates his bishop in time to reach a draw:

58) Black sacrfices his knight twice at the same square and wins.

It cannot be taken because the two pawns will outtempo the White King. 

59) A surprise move by Black:

60) Zugzwang with a Knight at h8:

61) White missed this nice liquidation?!:

62) A study like endgame:

63) Also a beautiful played endgame with the finesses:

64) A nice surprise in a correspondence game:

65) More like a puzzle, but still need to know:

66) Black finds a way out of the dangers and White must also watch out:

67) White 4th move is beautifull:

68) White chose the wrong move order and lost in a drawish position:

69) Running for the draw;

70) Black forces the win by prisoning the White king:

71) Black went wrong and missed the nice 1...Nd5 move:

72) White resigned in a drawish position.

The famous Lasker against Tarrasch (Sint Petersburg 1914) maneouvre:

73) The right way to draw:

74) A precise rook endgame by Black:

75) A nice 4th move by the Worlchampion by then:

76) A nice a precise win in analyses:

77) Black gives a Rook to promote his pawns:

78) Black spoils his win overseeing Whites minor promotion:

79) Black careless again:

80) White manages into a positional draw:

81) Mating net to remember:

82) Fine combination with a small second move:

83) Black missed this fine move threatening Ng2#:

84) Black did not see the danger:

85) Curious final position:

86) After the natural take, Black saves himself nicely:

87) Precise and wonderfull play by White:

88) The follwoing combination already has inspired composers, see: Archived news messages

89) In the recent Tata Steel Chess tournament 2026 this high quality endgame was played: