Avni Amatzia The Amazing Chess Adventures of Baron Munchausen PDF

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AmatziaAvni
THE AMAZING
CHESS ADVENTURES
of
BARON MUNCHAUSEN
© 20 1 1 Amatzia Avni
All rights reserved. No part ofthis book may be reproduced

or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an
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permission from the Publisher.
Publisher: Mongoose Press

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www. MongoosePress. com
ISBN 978 - 1 -936277-32-2

Library of Congress Control Number: 20 1 1925050
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Editor: Sean Marsh

Cover design: Al Dianov
Layout: Andrey Elkov
Proofreader: Jorge Amador
Cover and interior illustrations: Elite Avni-Sharon
Portions of this work first appeared in CHESS Monthly (U.K.), and are
reprinted here with permission.
Printed in China
First English edition

09876543 2 1
Acknowledgements
Hearty thanks to Jimmy Adams and Malcolm Pein ofthe British magazine CHESS
Monthly. Jimmy edited my pieces; Malcolm gave it a place under the sun. Both were
always positive and encouraging towards everything I wrote.
Eli Amit is a childhood friend and a major Baron fan, who urged me repeatedly
over the years to publish a Baron collection. Well, Eli, here it is.
The late Raaphy Persitz was a dear friend. His contribution to my chess writing
is immeasurable.
My niece Elite Avni-Sharon accompanied the CHESS Monthly Munchausen
series with her fabulous illustrations; it was only natural that she would contribute to
the artistic aspect of this book. Her group portrait at the end of this work admirably
catches the spirit that I'd had in mind.
My wife N aama and my children Yuval, Ohad and Yael should be praised for
being there and for letting me spend considerable time with the Baron.
Finally, I owe all of the tales in the book to Baron Munchausen himself. I only
present his chess experiences to the public, while he actually lived them through.
Amatzia Avni,
Ramat-Ilan, Israel
August 20 1 1
5
Introduction
In the late 1 990s I published some fantasy chess stories in the Israeli chess
magazine Schahmat, ofwhich I was the editor at the time. They got a good response,
so I thought of producing bizarre tales on a regular basis. I took the legendary
character of Baron M unchausen and built my episodes around him.
The Baron series appeared in the British magazine CHESS Monthly from August
1 999 up to June 2008, almost without a break. Sometimes it was accompanied by
a nice drawing by Elite (my niece). After about 20 episodes I asked readers to send
me feedback. It turned out to be all positive, so I kept going. On the 50'h column the
magazine held a contest in which readers tried their hand in composing their own
episodes for the Baron. Some nice stories were received and published. In January
2004 a full-colored Baron made the front cover of CHESS Monthly.
In 2008, upon the 100'h column, I decided to stop. For the present book I
selected the better stories from the old columns, revised them and added 16 new
ones, obtained many fresh illustrations from Elite and organized it all in chapters,
according to content. Thus, this book constitutes a mixture of both old and new.
The adventures depicted are varied, when known facts are interwoven with sheer
imagination. With the Baron's help I succeeded in getting acquainted with some
extraordinary characters and traveling to captivating times and places.
Enjoy!
The copyright ofthis work is protected by an ancient spell ofthe Maya people. Anyone
who uploads part ofthis work to the web, or downloads itfrom the web is committing an
act ofpiracy and will consequently suffer horrible, endless pains.
6
CONTENTS
Chapter 1. AMAZING TRAVELS .................................................................... 11

Traveling into the Deep Ocean .......................................... ................. . 12
On Government Service ........................................................................ 14
Running Amok ...................................................................... ................. . 16
A Journey to Heaven . .
................. .............. ............................. . .. ...... . ..... 18
A Visit to Hell . ............................. . . .
.. ........... .............................................. 21
Tolstoy Rediscovered .
............................ ................................................. 25
Chess in a Parallel Universe .................................. ................................. 28
The King's Journey .................................................................... ............. . 31
Chapter 2. RECORDS AND UNUSUAL FEATS ................................................ 34

Chess and Dice .
............................ . . . ................... .......... . . . ...... . . ........... . 35
..
Against All the Odds ............ . .......... .. ........ ........ . .

............ ............ . . ......... 38
Cutting the Gordian Knot ............................. . .
.............. ......................... 41
Some Records ................................................................. .. .................. . . . . 44
Modesty ........................................................................ . ......................... 47
Cross Checks .............................................. . . ................ . ......................... 49
Deciphering the Code ............................ . .......... . .................................. 52
The Saddest Moment in a Game ........................................... . ............. 54
His Great Predecessors .
............ .................. . . ...... . ............ . ........... . ....... .. 57
Chapter 3. CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS 60

............................................................
The Baroness .......................... . .

................ ................ 61 . ..
. ..... . ...... ...............
Miss Doubtful Talks . 63

............................................................................ .....
The Zulu Way 66

...........................................................................................
Mr. Grumble . ... . ... ..

........................................... . . .
...... 69.... ...... ... ....... ..........
A Drunk Friend and a Strict Arbiter 71

........................................................
Playing with Beginners .......................................................................... 73

Charlie 76
.....................................................................................................
The Psychiatrist .
................................... . ........... . 79
.................................. .....
Half-Master .............................................................................................. 82
The Kibitzers . ..
..................... .......... . .......... 85
...............................................
The Cyclops ..
....... ..
......... . . . . . .. .
............ ........... . .
.. .... .... 88
... . ..... ........ .. ....... ...
Exciting an Alien ..................................................................................... 90

New-Old Friends ..................................................................................... 94
Chapter 4. SPECIAL RULES, BOARDS AND PIECES ....................... . . . ............ 97
The Dance Maestro ....... ......................................................................... 98
Incarnation ........................................................................................... 102
Half a Board and a Handful of Pieces ........... . . . . ................................. 104
The Exhibition ........................................................................................ 106
The Mad Queen Disease ..................................................................... 108
Convincing Draw .................................................. . . ............................. 111
Playing by Command .......................... ..................... ........................... 114
Chapter 5. TECHNOLOGY AND INVENTIONS ........................................... 116

A Revolutionary Device for Spotting Traps .... ..................................... 117
Adventures on the Net ......................................................................... 120
LOL ......................................................................................................... 122
A Candidate for a Nobel Prize ............. ................................... ............ 125
The Kennedy-Munchausen Principle ................................................ 128
Practical Chess-Computer Psychology ............................................. 130
The Baron's Opening ........................................................................... 132
Lost Connection and a Loose King .................................................... 134
Chapter 6. HISTORICAL EVENTS ................ ....................................... ......... 137

Ah. Those Were the Days .................... ................................................ 138
History Revisited .................................................................................... 140
The Cage, or: Starting the French Revolution .................................... 143
The Human Side of Chess .................................................................... 145
The Interview ......................................................................................... 148
The Proof ................................................................................................ 151
The New Melody Amber ................................................................ ...... 153
A Glimpse Into the Future of Chess ..................................................... 156
Chapter 7. TRICKS AND MAGIC ................................................................ 158

The Fortune Teller .................................................................................. 159
Meet Harry ............................................................................................ 162
Recurring Magic ................................................................................... 164
The Elbow Trick ...................................................................................... 167
Outsmarting Mr. Smart ......................................................................... 170
Chapter 8. DISTINCTIVE CHESS STYLE ....................................................... 173

Focus ..................................................................................................... 174
Calculation: Advanced Training ......................................................... 176
Surprise! ................................................................................................. 179
The Beauty of Complications .............................................................. 181
The Baron School of Chess. or: The Conquest of Happiness ............ 183
Annotate Like a Grandmaster ............................................................ 185
To Attack or to Defend? ..................................................................... 188
Chess Boxing ......................................................................................... 190
Work vs. Fun ........................................................................................... 193
Chapfer9. AESTHETICS .............................................................................. 196

The Temptation of Symmetry ............................................................... 197
Backwards ............................................................................................. 200
The Baroness's Mind ............................................................................. 203
Chess as a Sea .................................................. ............................ . . ...... 205
Evaluating Beauty in Chess ................................................................. 209
The Asymmetrical Nature of a Chessboard ....................................... 212
Troy ......................................................................................................... 215
Chapter 10. MISCELLANEOUS ................................................................... 217

The Truth is Out There . . . ......................................................................... 218
A Murder Case(?) ................................................................................ 221
Nuts ........................................................................................................ 223
Pointless ................................................................................................. 226
The Most Important Organ of a Chess Player .................................... 228
They Like Me, They Like Me Not.. ......................................................... 230
The Tea Party ......................................................................................... 233
Meet Baron Munchausen
One day he knocked on my door.

"Yes?" I looked at the strange, unfamiliar face. "Can I help?"
"My name is Baron Munchausen," he said, and walked inside.
Just like that.
I wish I could make it more dramatic and add a flavor of excitement. But
the truth was mundane. This bold adventurer, who made trips to the sun and
to the moon, who was swallowed by a giant fish, who raced on half a horse and
found a floating island made entirely of cheese, simply walked into my place,
as if it was the most natural thing to do.
"Why should we be interested?" the readers may well ask.

Well, it became apparent that the remarkable Baron was an accomplished
exponent of the noble game of chess and had broken more than a few records
in this feld. We became friends, and soon held frequent meetings, in which
the great Munchausen revealed some of his extraordinary and unbelievable
explorations on the chess board.
A selection is hereby presented, for your enjoyment.
Amatzia Avni
P.S. The Baron assures me that every single word of these extraordinary
tales is absolutely true.
Chapter 1
Amazing Travels
The Baron is engaged in a chess duel with a hammerhead

-goes to a remote island on a secret mission-escapes from
huge bears in his dream-makes a trip to heaven to fetch a
deceased champion for consultation-finds salvation from
being grilled in Hell-discovers a remarkable ancient chess
book in anAfrican cave-holds a tour in a parallel universe
-sends his king to a breathtaking penetration into the
enemy s hinterland.
CHAPTER 1
TRAVELING INTO THE DEEP OCEAN
It was some weeks before I saw Munchausen again. I suspected that he was on
one of his famous trips, and when he reappeared I found out that I was right.
"Which country have you been to?"
"None."
"Okay, I stand corrected; which world or galaxy have you been to?"
"None."
Evidently, he was teasing me. Then he confided that he made a trip to the bottom
of the Pacific Ocean.
" . . . and I played some chess there, too."
How is it possible to play chess under the sea? This was unclear to me.
The Baron sympathized as he was reading my thoughts. "Yes, it is possible. Dif
ficult, though."
We sat in the Baron's veranda and sipped some delicate wine. Munchausen de
scribed his wonderful voyage into an unknown territory.
"Now, the Pacific may be nothing special, compared to the oceans on Jupiter;
but it is the largest of Earth's oceans, covering one-third of its total surface area. I
dived with modem equipment and headed to the lowest known point on Earth, the
Mariana Trench, near the Philippines - almost 1 1 kilometers below sea level. It took
me a full half-hour to get to the bottom. "
I was astonished.
"I walked between octopuses, jellyfishes, sea-turtles, flatfishes. . . I even noticed a
white shark. Fabulous creatures."
I'm sure they are.
Following his colorful description he came to talk about his chess encounter.
"My opponent, a scary looking Hammerhead, had brought out of nowhere a chess
set, and made a gesture of what I interpreted as 'let's have a game, shall we'?Natu
rally, I accepted the challenge. I don't recall ever playing in such uncomfortable con
ditions. First of all, it was extremely cold, perhaps minus 300 degrees Celsius. . . "
I reflected that this is below the absolute zero point.
"Secondly, the sun is so far away that I was in complete darkness. Thirdly, the
water pressure was enormous; I thought that I might be ripped apart. Another thing
is that the white shark didn't seem particularly friendly. .. "
He went on and on to illustrate the hazards he took upon himself.
"We began to play and eventually reached the following position. . . "
12
AMAZING TRAVELS
BARON MUNCHAUSEN - HAMMERHEAD

Pacific Ocean
White to play
" Believe me, I felt so uneasy, because of the terrible playing conditions. I just
made a simple developing move without thinking:
1.L'Lla3
':.\8 soon as I
played it my rival went vezy red and I realized that by chance I was sud-
denly win, as Black is unable to defend all his pieces and cover his back rank as well."
l...L'Lld2
l . ..L'Lle5 2.Mxd4. l . ..Mxd l 2.Mxd l also leaves him helpless.
2.l:Ia2!
This little move has a crucial effect.
2... l:Ic7 3.Maxd2! Mxb7
3. . . l:Ixd2 4.l:Ixd2 is of no avail.
4.l:Ixd4 Black resigned.
The weakness of Black's back rank decides. "It is really amazing - I made a natural
move ( l .L'Lla3) and suddenly it was all over!" said the Baron, expressing his astonishment.
The Baron was evidently satisfied. I had a lot of puzzling questions: how were
the board and pieces kept stable under water? How did the Baron manage to see the
board, let alone his opponent turning red, in absolute darkness? But I thought it was
better to keep silent.
'�er the game I boarded a nearby submarine and we ascended to sea level. "
This was too much. I could keep silent no longer and demanded t o know: "How
did you enter the submarine?"
Munchausen was puzzled. "Why, I knocked on the door and they let me in. " He
shrugged his shoulders. "What a funny question you've asked. "
The under-the-sea position is Rodshtein - Negi, YGM Biel, 2010. In the game Black tried
2. ..CiJf3 but lost immediately after 3."flxd4 tjxd4 4."fld2.
13
CHAPTER I
ON GOVERNMENT SERVICE
A white pigeon landed on my doorstep. It brought a note from the Baron.

" I'm on duty, serving the world's peace; will be back tomorrow; come and visit. "
This certainly raised m y curiosity, and within several days I paid him a visit. I
soon found myself listening to another story.
Munchausen was visibly satisfied. "My work was well-received and it bore hand
some fruits! "
I encouraged him to give me some details.
At first he was somewhat reluctant. "This is a secret kind of business, " he said,
apologetically. However, after much pleading he agreed to say what it was all about,
although he was initially reluctant to go into great detail.
"The government asked me to help them," he whispered, looking around to en

sure that nobody was watching or listening. "Two tall guys, with black sunglasses and
a tough look came and took me to the secret service offices. "
H e paused, waiting for me t o ask him t o elaborate . . . which I did.
It transpired that a mega-terrorist, who was kept in confinement on a distant
island, had escaped from his cell. The authorities organized a comprehensive chase
after him, but no one had a clue where he was hiding.
"It was feared that he might leave the island, without trace. And nobody knew
which island's beach he was heading for. This is where they needed me. "
"What was your contribution?"
"I envisaged a plan to employ the forces in such a way, that wherever this villain
would opt to go, they were ready to nail him. To prepare the troops for this task, I
demonstrated a chess simulation. "
I was amazed.
Then the Baron presented the sophisticated simulation he had created, and I was
even more amazed. See for yourselves:
White to play and win
14
AMAZING TRAVELS
l.I! h4+
Now the play splits into several branches:
A) l . . .'.!?f5 2.li:le3+ '.!?g6 3.I!g4+ '.!?h7 4.li:lf6+ '.!?h8 5 .I!g8#

B) I .. .'.!idS 2.li:le3+ '.!?c6 3.I!h6+ '.!?b7 4.I!b6+ '.!laS 5 .I!b8#
C) I . . . '.!idS 2.li:le3+ '.!?c6 3.I!h6+ '.!?b5 4.I!b6+ '.!?a4 5 .li:lc5+ '.!?a3
6.li:lc4+ '.!?a2 7.I!b2+ '.!?al 8.li:lb3#
D) l . . .'.!?f3 2.li:le5+ '.!?g3 3.I!g4+ '.!?h2 4.li:lf3+ '.!?hl 5 .li:lxf2#
Stunning, indeed. The black monarch is mated on whichever comer of the board
he chooses to try and escape.
"My advice was adopted and the troops were stationed at the right positions, ac
cording to my plan. Thus they were sure to capture the fugitive, no matter where he
was heading."
" Did they catch him?" I asked.
" Of course. "
"Who was he?"
To this query M. remained silent. This would have been a juicy piece of gossip,
but after all, he was now in possession oftop secrets and Baron Munchausen was not
going to betray the authorities.
The position is takenfrom a composed study by S. Varov and S. Kasparyan, 1"-2'd honorary
mention, Bimov MT 1991. Thefirstfour moves of the study were omitted.
15
CHAPTER 1
RUNNING AMOK
The Baron came to our weekly meeting with red, swollen eyes.
"I've had a terrible nightmare," he complained. "Two huge bears stormed after
me in the snow forests of Alaska. Although I overcame them ... "
"Naturally. "
" .. .it was quite a fight. I had to use all my ingenuity and inventiveness."
"What did you do?"
"I slowed down deliberately, and let them come close ... then I hit as hard as I
could on the ground, made a hole in the snow, and dived into it. The bears bashed
their heads into each other, and they lost consciousness. When I saw this I pulled
myself out of the hole, and calmly walked away. It was an exhilarating spectacle, I
must say," he explained, as he wiped his sweaty face.
Miss Doubtful, the Baron's loyal housekeeper, entered the living room with some
icy fruit juice. M. sipped and calmed down somewhat.
Eager to hear of another adventure, I tried my luck. ''Any chess-related memory,
regarding this dream?"
"Let me see ... " He sank into thought. After some deliberation, his eyes were
gleaming, and I knew that I was going to have a treat.
"It was nine and a half years ago," so began Munchausen. "My adversary was Mark
Sprinter, who was not only a capable chess master, but a strong 200-meters runner as
well. After a tense struggle, we'd reached a position that appeared to be desperate for me."
SPRINTER- BARON MUNCHAUSEN
Black to play
''As you can see," the Baron went on, ' 'White has a formidable passed pawn, which
16
AMAZING TRAVELS
sometimes is enough in itself to achieve victory, notwithstanding White's extra bishop!

The pawn advances, and apparently there is nothing to stop it from promoting. "
"But. . . ? "
" Excuse me?"
I made a scanty attempt to explain my intrusion. "I'm waiting for the 'but' sen
tence . . .
"
"But the great Baron Munchausen never gives up!" exclaimed M. triumphantly.
" I raced this pawn with a speed that has never been seen in our world; and that against
Sprinter, of all players! I stopped the pawn from behind!! Can you believe it?"
77 ... � g4! 78.g6 � g5!

78 .. .'ijf3 + would fail to 79.'ijb3 'iYxf2 80.g7 'iYa7+ 8 1 .'iYa4+!
79.g7
79.ii.h4+ Wxh4 80.'iYt7 �g5 8 l .g7 � h6! 82.g8='iY (or 82.g8=Il:) 'iYb4+!
83. �xb4, draw by stalemate.
79 ..� g6
.
"White cannot prevent perpetual check, or else, the fall of his proud pawn, " ex
plained the Baron.
Play resumed as follows:
80.'iYf8 'iYd3+ 81.Wb4 'iYd2+ 82.Wc4 'iYc2+ 83.Wd5 'iYa2+ 84.We5 'iYe2+
85.Wd5 'iYa2+ 86.�e4 'iYc2+ 87.Wt3 'iYc3+ Yz- Yz
"Come to think about it, this save was an even tougherjob than escaping from the
bears, " confessed the Baron.
And he went to the fireplace, to warm himself up after the bloodcurdling snowy
nightmare.
The "Sprint " after the advanced pawn is taken from the game Keller -Smyslov,
Lucerne 1985.
17
CHAPTER 1
A JOURNEY TO HEAVEN
The Baron and I were spending a quiet evening in each other's company. The
news headlines on TV had reported the Prime Minister of Madalsua's confessions to
his people concerning a major act of treachery.
" ... apropos confessions," - started the Baron - "I have a heavy burden that I
want to get off my chest."
My face bore a sympathetic expression.
"I once sought expert advice during a chess game," continued M . , who was
clearly embarrassed for being involved in such a violation of rules.
I kept silent.
He almost apologized. "I had to! It was such a mess. Even the famous Baron
Munchausen could not handle it without assistance."
With their backs to the wall, some people start referring to themselves in the third
person.
"I had a completely winning position, and I mean completely, " he said. "It was
some years ago, in Venice. My opponent, a weak player but quite crafty, should
have thrown in the towel long ago. We reached this position, in which I prepared
myself for the final kill . "
BARON MUNCHAUSEN - SLY
White to play
l:�h5+ 'it>g8
"Now I intended to continue 2.'1t>g6 with 3.�h7# to follow. I glanced again at
the position just to be sure, and to my horror I discovered a nasty surprise: After
2.'\t>g6 Black plays 2 .. .ttle5+! 3.fxe5 llxg4!+ 4.ihg4 �e4+ 5.dxe4 �xg4+ 6.�xg4
and it is stalemate!"
18
AMAZING TRAVELS
"To be frank," said the Baron, "I almost had a heart attack at this point. I could have
killed myself for missing many earlier chances in the game. Now, what am I to do?"
I could sympathize with Munchausen. Turning victory into a draw (or worse),
was a state I knew only too well.
"I believed that my huge attack, combined with my obvious advantage in playing
strength, should be enough to win this position. But as much as I racked my brains, I
couldn't see the light."
I assumed the win had evaded him. ''And so, you agreed to split the point?"
"Whatever made you think that?' Munchausen asked in astonishment.
"What, then?"
"I felt I had to seek help from superior minds, " whispered M . , and for a moment
I felt I was part of a grand scheme.
"The scarcity of players within my league was a real problem," he went on, dis
playing his characteristic modesty. ''Anand, Aronian, Kramnik and Carlsen were
busy, playing (and winning) one of those super tournaments; and Kasparov was re
tired. There was only one man who could save my position."
I doubted that this could be true. " Only one man on the entire Earth?"
The Baron coughed. "I didn't say he was on Earth, " he muttered.
"I beg your pardon?"
" Don't be a fool. Only Misha Tal could make his way out of this position, and as
we all know, he passed away in 1 992. "
I was amazed. " Do you mean that...?"
" Exactly. I had to fetch him from Heaven. "
The reader can imagine my feelings during this conversation. I've heard some
strange stories in my time, but this. . . !
" I got into my spaceship and took off to the skies. As we all recall, I was the first,
and the only man to reach the sun. Now, Heaven is a billion miles further. "
I was speechless.
"I arrived at the skies, opened the gate, and it wasn't long before I found the chess
magician. He was playing speed-chess, of course. "
"I said: 'Misha, I have a problem - only you can solve it'. Without a second's
thought, Tal picked up a packet of cigarettes and escorted me to Earth. 'I'll be back
in an hour'- he notified his Guardian Angel. "
"We landed i n Venice within 2 0 minutes. The ex-champion took one look at the
board, and snorted: 'This is what you brought me herefor?' He quickly unleashed the
following sequence:
Hi'h7+! �fl 3.'1l1Yg6+ � g8 4.l:Ih8+! �xh8 5.'1l1Y h5+ � g8 6.�g6 lle5+ 7.fxe5
l:Ixg4+ 8.i,xg4 i,e4+ 9.dxe4
19
CHAPTER 1
The rook sacrifice prevents the stalemate and Black appears helpless.
"So simple!" The Baron confessed that he felt embarrassed, intruding on Tal's
Heavenly existence . . .
"I apologized to Tal: 'I didn't pay attention; I should have known better, sorry.
Should I take you back to Heaven '?
"Tal suggested that we better wait for Black's rejoinder. "
9 . .'iVh3!!
.
Blast. Another stalemate scheme. l O.'iV(or j,)xh3?=; I O.j,f3? 'i¥g2+ l l .'i¥g4

'i¥h3! draws. 10.'i¥g5?? even loses: IO . . . 'i¥h7#.
"I turned again to Tal, trembling. 'Misha '? "

Tal shrugged and played:
IO.'i¥h8+!! 'i¥xh8
IO . . . Wxh8 l l .j,xh3 Wg8 l2.j,xe6+ W h8 1 3.Wt7, winning.
II .j,xe6#!
The Baron concluded his story. "I thanked Tal heartily and sent him back to
Heaven. A true miracle," he said, admiringly.
By this he referred to Tal's chess moves, naturally.
The game-like position is a study by the Russian N. Ryabinin, ]'1 prize Zadachy & Etyudy,
2006.
20
AMAZING TRAVELS
A VISIT TO HELL
One of the beloved pastimes of Munchausen and myself, when we get together,
is going over interesting games from tournaments. The last time we met, we were
scrutinizing a strange tussle:
LAREN - EDWARDS
USA 1988 (corr.)
An intriguing position arose after the sequence l.d4 tt'lf6 2.c4 e6 3.tt'lc3 iL.b4
4.e3 cS S.tt'le2 cxd4 6.exd4 dS 7.a3 1Le7 8.c5 b6 9.b4 aS lO.tLla4 bxcS l l.dxcS axb4
12.axb4 tt'lc6 13.iLd2 tt'le4 14.tt'lb6?
Here Jon Edwards, a U.S. Correspondence Champion, found a spectacular win

ning line: 14 ...tt'lxb4! (threat - 15 . . . tt'ld3#) 1 5 .1Lxb4 �xb6!. Beautiful.
After throwing another glance, he decided to play an even better move: 14 ...
iL.xcS! (threat - 15 . . . iL.xf2#) 1 5.bxc5 �f6 when White resigned, unable to defend
both f2 and a l .
When Edwards brought this position to his teammates at the local chess club,
they found - in no time at all - another path to victory: 14 ... 1L.h4! ( 1 5.g3 �f6),
which does the trick as well.
In short, (almost) everything wins.
The Baron said: "This reminds me of something. "

Of course.
"In one of my travels I had reached Hell, to visit Satan. "
I raised my eyebrows: "Didn't know you had business with such characters. "
He chuckled. "Well, never mind. Satan introduced me to his son, Satan Junior.
21
AMAZING TRAVELS
"Play with him " - he said - and I felt that he wouldn't take "no" for an answer.
I tried to lose, be it for reasons of either politeness or fear. However, I found Satan
Junior to be an extremely weak player. As much as I was trying to lose, I was not able
to achieve that goal."
"This is odd," I remarked. "He could have found a host of Grandmasters in his
proximity, who would be only too willing to teach him a lesson, in return for lower
ing the fire."
The Baron concurred. "Indeed. But the fact remains: Junior (not to be confused
with the software of the same name, which would also go to Hell in due course) was
losing, in spite of my considerable efforts. I was afraid that Satan would lock me in
Hell; I had to do something. "
Black to play
"Here I could have mated in one by l . . .l:Ig8#, but as you understand, I was
searching for ways to lose."
l .. .'iVg6+! 2.�xg6 l:Ig4+
"I thought that this was it: 3.lbxg4+ mates (with the rook on f3). But the silly
goat played 3.�f5?.
So I tried 3... I:td5+!. Surely the little devil would spot that he could take my rook:
any capture mates immediately. However, patzers* have their own way:"
4.�e4??
"Now I had to find the only 'winning' - er, I mean losing - move:"
4 .. J:c5!!
*A "patzer " is a nicknamefor a very weak player.
23
CHAPTER 1
''After that, my opponent had no choice. He did try 5.tz:la7?! and 5.f5?! but had
to retract those illegal moves. As you can see, each one of White's 29 legal moves
delivers mate in one!"
"Congratulations!" I was still curious. " How did it end?"

"Satan was proud of his offspring. He shook my hand warmly and expressed his
wish to see me again soon. I left quickly, trembling."
Laren - Edwards is lifted from The Chess Analyst by Jon Edwards I Thinkers'
Press, 1998.
The last position is a construction task by H. H. Cross, Problemist Fairy Supplement
1936, in Chess Braintwisters by Burt Hochberg/ Sterling Publishing, 1999.
24
AMAZING TRAVELS
TOLSTOY REDISCOVERED
Munchausen had been away on a two-week tour ofAfrica. An expedition ofworld

famous experts was sent to excavate the ancient biblical city of Shilo, and naturally
the Baron was invited to join.
He was back last Monday, excited and enthusiastic. Holding a small parcel under his
arm, he greeted me: "Hello, dear friend. You wouldn't believe what I had found there ... "
With trembling hands I helped him to open the package; a small, yellow-paged
book was in it. With a king illustrated on its front cover, I quickly grasped what it
was - a chess book.
"Imagine this" - M. was thrilled - "to discover a lost chess book in the continent
of Africa!"
The book - which Munchausen discovered in a concealed grave, five meters deep in
the ground - was titled Playing Chess in the Dinosaur Age. It was authored by a certain
" Lo Yeuman," a Hebrew equivalent for "unbelievable" . After just a casual reading
I can attest to the fact that the book contains many concepts which are unknown in
modem chess. We disclose a few ofthem here, to the beneft of readers ofthis book only.
The Heller Stratagem

"It was love at frst sight. The first time Evgeny saw the Sicilian move . . . e5, he fell
madly in love with it. "
LEVCHENKOV - SVESHNIKOV
USSR 1 969
l .e4 c5 2.1:Z'lf3 Ci:lc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Ci:lxd4 Ci:lf6 5.Ci:lc3 e5 6.Ci:ldb5 d6 7.il.g5 a6 8.il.xf6
gxf6 9.Ci:la3 f5 10.�h5 b5 1 1.Ci:laxb5 axb5 12.il.xb5 il.b7 13.�xf5 il.g7 14.0-0-0 0-0
15.il.xc6 il.xc6 16.l:d3 il.d7 17.�h5 il.e6 18.l:e l il.xa2 19.b3 il.xb3 20.cxb3 �a5
21.l':g3 l':fc8 22.<t>d2l:xc3 23.l':xc3 d5 24.exd5 e4 25.�h3 l':d8 26.l':cl e3+
25
CHAPTER 1
27.fxe3 .lixc3+ 28.�c2 '!i'xd5 29.'!i'g4+ .lig7 30J!dl '!i'c6+ 0- 1

[Other illustrations of the Heller stratagem are: the first time Ulf Andersson saw
a rook endgame; the first time Simon Williams saw the word " Dutch"; the first time
John Nunn laid his eyes on a computer printout; the first time Genna Sosonko wrote
an obituary and so on ... ]
Ihe Tolstoy Paradigm
"Happy winners are all alike; every unhappy loser is unhappy in his own way. "
CHUCHELOV - SCHEBLER
German Bundesliga 2005
Black to play
27 . . J�c3??
27 . . llcd8 is equal.
.
28.llh4+ 1 -0
The book closes with a depressing truism about the game of chess:
26
AMAZING TRAVELS
Jhe Ecclesiastes Motivator
"Vanity of vanities " - says Qoheleth - "All is vanity!" [Absolutely pointless, ev-
erything is pointless.]
"This is also true regarding the game of cheese," I said.
" It also reflects the universe at large, " opined the Baron.
With this cheerful observation we put the book aside and headed for the local
pub.
1) "It was love atfirst sight. Thefirst time Yossarian saw the chaplain hefell madly
in love with him " - Catch-22 by Joseph Heller.
2) "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way "
- Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy.
3) The Qoheleth is an original quotefrom the Bible.
4) The dramatic Sveshnikov game is the earliest game in the online New in Chess
database, in which Sveshnikov played "his " opening.
27
CHAPTER 1
CHESS IN A PARALLEL UNIVERSE
The editor called me to his office.

I took a five-hour flight, two-hour ride, 1 5-minute walk, and entered.
"We have some reservations about your friend, the Baron," he said, as he handed
me a letter that had just arrived.
Dear Sir,
I have been playing chess for some twenty years now, and I can hardly recall any
thing exciting that happened in my games. I once sacrificed a pawn in the Sicilianfor a
bit ofan initiative, but that's about it.
Now this 'Baron Munchausen 'ofyours reports extraordinary stuffon a regular basis!
With all due respect, !find it hard to take his adventures seriously.
Yours sincerely,
Mr. Little Skeptic
"See if you can get the Baron to respond to this," said the editor, and left the
room, leaving me hurt and insulted.
* * *
"I just came back from a tour on Htrae" - said M. - "you know, the parallel
universe of Earth. "
Right.
"I was struck by an odd phenomenon, " he refected. "The technology on Htrae
is very advanced, ahead of us by more than two centuries. But the chess level is quite
low. "
Now this is peculiar indeed. Developed technology of a culture is supposed to be
benefcial to chess, not a hindrance.
"That is correct. So I looked into things, and . . . you won't believe it. "
"What?"
"The parallel universe approximately follows our own history. But on Htrae, nei
ther AdolfAnderssen, nor Bobby Fischer, were among the World Champions!"
I followed his breathtaking tale closely.
" I looked into the matter," said Munchausen. "With my time machine I was able
to bring myself to witness some significant moments in the history of chess on Htrae.
Look what I have found:
28
AMAZING TRAVELS
ANDERSSEN - KIESERITZKY
London 1 851
White to play
18 .1i.d6
.
One of the most famous moves of all times. On Earth, our world, the game went
on 1 8 . . .�xal + 19.�e2 .1l.xg1 ? (19 . . .�b2!) 20.e5! tt'la6 21 .tt'lxg7+ � d8 22.�f6+!
tt'lxf6 23 . .1f.e7#.
On Htrae, however, the game was watched live on the Internet. Here are the
viewers' comments after 1 8 . .1i.d6:
Blood27: "What a patzer!"

EvilS: ''A shame! 18 .d4 and l8 . .1f.e3 wins easily. "
RubbishlsMyName: " l 8.IIe1 is also good enough. This Anderssen stinks. "
GreatPiayer: " Fritz says -0.75 now, after 1 8 . . . �xal + 19.�e2 �b2! It was +2
before this lemon. How could anyone be so stupid?"
LittleGirl: "I am six years old and I spotted l 8.d4 in two seconds. "
"The game was abandoned at this point, " revealed the Baron. ''Anderssen was a
sensitive soul and when some 'friend' told him about the reaction of the viewers he
just left the table and didn't touch the pieces again. "
"What about Bobby?"
Munchausens's face became very, very sad.
Without a word, he set up the following position, with which almost every chess
fan is familiar.
29
CHAPTER !
DONALD BY RNE - BOBBY FISCHER

New York 1 956
Black to play
17 iie6!!
...
THE MOVE of the 20'h Century, right? Well, not on Htrae! Instead of 1 8.iixb6
iixc4+ 19.�gl CZ'le2+, White pulled ' :.\ Danailov":
"He called the arbiter and argued that the 1 3-year-old player of Black produced
his 17'h move much too quickly, which attested to the fact that something was defi
nitely 'fshy. ' Besides, Fischer was chewing gum, which was in effect a method of
transmitting signs to an electronic device outside the tournament hall. Moreover - "
I could hardly suppress a groan. " I suppose you are going to tell me that Fischer
was visiting the toilet* . . . "
The Baron stared at me with a blank face. "Visiting the toilet? Why does Black
need to do that?
·�yway, the arbiter defaulted Fischer, after which the lad ran to the woods, never
to be seen again.
"This is why chess has not progressed so much on Htrae, " explained M. ':.\d-
vanced methods do not necessarily lead to improvement. "
Very exciting.
. . .And true .
. . .And let all non-believers eat their hats.
* "Danailov " and the "toilet " are references to the infamous scandal in the World
Championship match between Topalov and Kramnik, Elista 2006
30
AMAZING TRAVELS
THE KING'S JOURNEY
Some days ago, while chatting on the phone, Munchausen provided me a with
hint that he was soon going to share with me an incredible, excited voyage that he
had made recently.
So, it was with high expectations that I went to visit him yesterday.
In retrospect, I should say that my hopes were fulfilled, although the journey was
very different from what I had expected.
" Lately I feel a bit tired of traveling," the Baron said, as he opened his heart to
me. ''After all, I've been everywhere and seen everything. To some extent, I fear that
I am losing my adventurous spirit, my natural curiosity of the world. I thought about
it and fortunately I have found a splendid solution. I can continue with my eternal
quest, but attain it through my chess pieces!"
I gave him a confused stare. It was difficult to imagine how one can replace per
sonal adventures with wooden (or plastic) ones.
But then, the Baron displayed for me the following pearl of a game and con
vinced me of his viewpoint.
FEARLESS ASSAILANT - BARON MUNCHAUSEN
l .e4 cS 2.1f3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tl xd4 Cilf6 5.Cilc3 a6 6 . .1 g5 e6 7 .f4 �b6 8.�d3
�xb2 9.l:l: b l �a3 lO.fS .1 e7 l l .fxe6 fxe6 12 . .1 e2 �aS 13 . .1 d2 �c7 14.g4
h6 1 5 .�h3 l:Ih7 16.l:l: fl Cil c6 1 7 .Cilxc6 �xc6 1 8.e5 dxeS 19 . .1 d3 e4 20.Cilxe4
Cilxe4 2 l .�h5+ '>t>d7 22.l:l: d l l:l:h8 23 . .1f4 .1b4+ 24.c3 Cilxc3 25 . .1d2 �dS
26.J:l:f7 +
31
CHAPTER 1
M. gave me an overview of the occurrence. "White had sacrificed a knight to get

this open, wild position. If Black is not careful, he might be demolished. "
" It was at this point" - M . confided t o m e - "that I took m y black king
for a serious talk. I told him to be brave and remove any sheepishness from his
heart. "
"You are going to a place where only a few kings had been before" - I told him in
utter solemnity - "and the number of those who had been there and returned safely,
is negligible. "
"How did the black king react?" I asked

"It was a young, relatively inexperienced king, who was promoted to royalty just
months beforehand. Nevertheless, the guy had guts and he strode to his mission with
no hesitation. "
Munchausen was pleased.
26 ... \tc6 27 J:!cl \tb6
27 ... 'iYxd3 28.'iYe5 is scary, but 28 ... a5! might still sustain Black's advantage.
28.ite3+?! \t a5 29.a3 \t a4!
Forward!
30.axb4 iYxd3 3 1.'iYa5+ \tb3 32.l'hc3+ 'iYxc3+ 33.itd2 b6! 34.'iVxb6 'iYe5+
35.\t d l itb7 36.'iYxb7 l'lhd8 37.l'lf3+ \t a2
37 ... \tb2 is possible, and if 38.'iYxa8?!, then 38 ... 'iVd4 wins; but not 38 ... l'lxa8?
39.itcl + \ta2 40.l'la3+ \tb l 4 l .l'lb3+ with an astonishing draw by perpetual check.
38.I:!f2 \tbl
"I spoke with George ("Who?" - "That's the name of my king") later on, when
he got back his breath. He described the experience of reaching b 1 in a middlegame
position, as exhilarating and delightful. "
We must concur that an e8-king is not used to the view one gets at square b 1 . At
the very least, the landscape is different.
39.'iVf3 l:Iac8
32
AMAZING TRAVELS
Now Black threatens 40 . . . l!tc l checkmate!

40 .'iYb3+ "iYb2 4l."iYxb2+ lt>xb2 0 - 1
Munchausen concluded: " It was a great adventure, on the same scale of my own
journeys to Neptune, or to the East Pole. "
This spectacular game is Gashimov - Grischuk, World Team Championship, Bursa

2010
33
Chapter 2
Records and Unusual Feats
Munchausen adds a gamble with dice to his chess

encounter-fights with a lone king against a fully employ ed
opponent-disentangles tied pieces to freedom-presents
his world chess records-demonstrates his best-ever move,
while trying to conceal his arrogance-saves a clergyman
by cross-check-solves a my stery in the cave of horrors-
defines accurately a crucial moment in the game-exhibits
records of his chess ancestors.
RECORDS AND UNUSUAL FEATS
CHESS AND DICE
Munchausen and I were leafing through the pages of a certain chess magazine,
which discussed the familiar theme: "The Death of Chess."
The abundance of theoretical literature - the paper argued - reduces the scope
for inventiveness.
"This theory thing," I grumbled, "is bound to kill our ancient hobby. "
The Baron was in a philosophical mood. "I don't know. Sometimes it's just an
excuse. "
I asked him to make himself clear.
" Look at people who are have just lost a game, " said M. " Do they say '/ lost
because I'm a patzer?' No, they blame their failure on lack of opening knowledge,
poor memory... implying that they could get better results, ifthere were no theoretical
variations. "
"They may have a point," I observed, but the Baron waved his hand scornfully.
"In an equal position, the best player usually wins," he asserted. "And it reminds
me of my game versus Gambler. "
I invited him to broaden the topic.
"Gambler was an average player, who was in the habit of blaming his losses
on external factors. As far as he was concerned, he was perfect. If only there was
sufficient time on his clock, if only his mind was not bothered by everyday chores, if
only he felt in better shape, things could have been completely different."
"I know the type, " I sighed.
''After beating Gambler three times in a row, he had the nerve to claim that he was
my superior, and that it was only my better theoretical preparation that won battles
for me, " the Baron continued, angrily.
"How rude!" I encouraged His Majesty to go on.
"One day I decided that I'd had enough. I invited the impudent fellow to a chess
duel.
"'Choose a random starting position, unknown to theory ' - I dared him - 'and I'll
show you my chess genius!'
"Gambler took up the challenge. 'Let's use the dice to decide on a startingposition '
- he said.
"I agreed. It showed 2:6, hence I took two queens, while my adversary began the
combat with six rooks."
35
CHAPTER2
BARON MUNCHAUSEN - GAMBLER
''An original position, with an unusual material balance, " was my scholarly
comment. I felt confident that my hero would emerge on top.
"I will not bother you with all the ups and downs of our battle," Munchausen
assured me. ''Anyhow, after 62 moves we reached the following position: "
White to play
"Interesting, " I noted.

When you don't know what the hell is going on, "interesting "is at least a safe way
to appear receptive to the situation.
"It's over, " proclaimed Munchausen decisively. "Black is dead. "
Indeed he is. But it takes a Baron to provide the proof.
l.'i¥d8+ �d6 2.'i¥b7+ �cc6 3.'i¥a5+ �4c5 4.'i¥b3+ �dc4 5.'i¥d2+ �ed4
6.'i¥f3+ �ee4 7.'i¥g5+ e5 8.'i¥ti+ �e6 9.'i¥d8+ �cd6 10.'i¥b7+ �cc6 l l .'i¥a5+
�4c5 12.'i¥b3+ �dc4 13.'i¥d2+ �ed4 14.'i¥f3+ e4 15.'i¥g5+ �e5 16.'i¥ti+ �e6
17.'i¥d8+ �cd6 18.'i¥b7+ �cc6 19.'i¥a5+ �4c5 20.'i¥b3+ �dc4 2 1.'i¥d2
36
And for those of us who stayed awake in this merry-go-around, it is checkmate.

" Did this game convince Mr. Gambler of your invincibility?" I wondered.
"You wish," came the sad reply. " Last winter, he approached me again, proposing
to counter my 20 pawns with his seven bishops. Some people will never learn. "
The second diagram represents a study by F S. Bondarenko (Feenschach, 1960).
37
CHAPTER2
AGAINST ALL THE ODDS
It was an hour before midnight and the Baron seemed drowsy, his eyes semi-
closed.
I approached His Majesty, attempting to provoke him into a lively discussion.
" Playing against weak amateurs can be very annoying. "
''Aha," was his half-sleeping response. ''I'm sorry, what did you say? I was
contemplating my heroic fight in Gibraltar. . . "
I repeated my observation.
" How true. But I've learned to amuse myself, even in the company of patzers,"
said Munchausen. "You know, Sir Hugo was a very weak player, and we spent a lot of
time together, trying to save the Martians. "
H e was floating again i n his memoirs. I tried to pull him back into the real
world.
"What do you do to avoid boredom, when facing feeble opposition? I'll be obliged
for some advice. "
"Why, I give them odds, " came the swift reply. " Surely you saw i n print m y game
vs. Woodpusher. . . "
I did not.
"Well, he was an unpleasant little fellow, who kept nagging me for days 'Let'splay,
Baron, let's play!' He was begging me, like a broken gramophone. 'Let's play, Baron!'
I didn't like him one bit," said M. with disgust.
"One day, I couldn't take it any longer. 'Let's play, indeed', I told him. 'You can't
possibly beat me in a hundred years, so !11give you odds, to make it a bit interesting. ' I
gave him some pawns to play against my bare king, and the following position was
created on the board:"
White to play
38
�re you sure you can give me such a big advantage ?' asked the admiring Mr.
Woodpusher.
'I can give you a bigger advantage!' I said angrily - and pulled out several white
men from the box. 'Here, take this lot as well!'
White to play
" Don't tell me you avoided a loss from this position," I said in a skeptical tone.
"Of course I did," came the cheerful reply. "The innocent soul queened his e
pawn, thus creating a stalemate! Then I really gave this Woodpusher a challenge: I
threw a white queen and two rooks to the board! I teased him: 'Let's see ifyou can
win this!'
White to play
I had to intervene at this point. "You must be joking! How could anyone not win
from such a position?"
The Baron giggled. " It is unwinnab/e," he said in a soft voice. "The position is
drawn. "
39
CHAPTER2
I thought the Baron was pulling my leg, but he was not. Check for yourselves:
White cannot win!
Indeed, after l.<ilf8+ (other moves result in immediate stalemate) W g8, even
with the move in hand plus a discovered check at his disposal, White is unable to gain
victory, as he cannot free the Baron from the stalemate net: 2.<ilg6+ W h7 3.<ilf8+
'<t>g8 4.<ilh7+ Wxh7=.
"From this day on, Mr. Woodpusher didn't approach me anymore. The rumor
says that he abandoned chess altogether. If this is true, I must praise myself for this
accomplishment. "
The great Munchausen felt n o mercy towards the untalented.
This last incredible position is the creation ofthe British composer, John Beasley, and
appeared in The Problemist 1 975.
"Woodpusher, " like "patzer, " is a slang word describing a weak player.
40
CHAPTER2
The Baron was mollified. "Well, the first game began, and after some hours we
arrived at the following position:
BARON MUNCHAUSEN - BRILLIANT
White to play
"You can see from a glance at the diagram, that Mr. Brilliant was, in fact, a far cry
from being Brilliant," said the Baron.
"How come?"
"You see, his pieces are entangled, and he is completely tied up. No respectable
chess player would place his pieces in such a way. In fact, his play was so ridiculous,
that I couldn't help bursting out laughing. "
"Not very polite of you," I chided.
His Majesty blushed. "I admit it."
" Especially when Black has so many pieces, compared to your solitary rook. I bet
there is no way you can win this position . "
The Baron was astonished: "Why, this i s exactly what Brilliant said."
''And he was dammed right. "
The great M. smiled. " Not quite!"
"WHAT?"
"When Brilliant stated that there is no way in the whole wide world that I can beat him,
I objected by pointing out that it al depended on the way he proceeded. I offered to make
a move or two on his behalf. 'By all means, make as many moves as you like!' exploded my
opponent, who was a very temperamental person. So, I took the opportunity and made
some moves for the black side. 19 successive moves, to be exact."
I was stunned.
"It's very simple, really," noted the Baron dryly. "The man invited me to play for
his side, and I grasped the opportunity. "
42
I suppose my expression was one of bewilderment, and this provoked an angry,

''Are you doubting my word?" response, which I was quick to deny.
"Well, let me show you the moves; the sequence is unique. It is quite a task to
untie a knot. I once worked for 27 days to untie Princess Charlotte's hair. "
l . . . .lkb3, 2 .. Jia2, 3 ...'ial, 4 .. Jiab2, 5 ....1ka2, 6 ... l:Ib3, 7 ...'ib2, 8 .. 5ial, 9 ...
.lkbl, 10 ... a2, l l ...'ia3, 12... 'it>b2.
"I still can't make head or tail of this mess," I confessed. Munchausen smiled.
13 ... al=tZ: , 14 ... 'ia2, 15 ...'it> a3, 16 ...l:Ibb2, 17 .. .tZ'lb3, 18 ... 'ial, 19 ... 'it>a2.
" Now I took the white side once again, and played 20.l:Ixa4 mate!"
" It transpired that the match was a one-game affair. When Brilliant lost this game
he refused to engage in combat any longer. "
·� strange fellow, " I concluded. "Tea?"
The position is a serieshelpmate in 19, a problem by L. Ugren, which took a second

prize in a tourney ofthejournal Mat in 1976.
43
CHAPTER2
SOME RECORDS
The Baron sat with his eyes closed, practicing some sort of oriental meditation.
This was bad news, since I longed to hear more of his chess adventures.
" Lately the chess world is bombarded with all kind of chess lists," I thought
aloud. "The youngest Grandmaster, the shortest victory, the most peculiar castling
and so on."
This was an attempt to engage Munchausen in a conversation; alas, it was a futile
one.
"It was intriguing to learn that your name was absent from these lists; I was under
the impression that you hold some records." I was trying to provoke him into some
response.
He looked bored.
'�d what if I do?"
"Then show it to me, please. "
Silence.
" PLEASE. I'd be most interested. My readers would be very grateful. Your chess
is always so fresh and inspiring ... "
Sometimes one has to suck up to people, you know.
He sighed. "Well, all right, if you insist."
It worked.
"Give me a category of records, and I 'll see what I can do. "
I tried 'greatest sacrifices within the shortest time '.
His Highness reflected briefly and then set the following position.
THE BARON - N.N.

USA 1491
White to play
44
"One of my pair of queens is bound to fall, so I gathered I'd rather offer them
both, " said M.
1.�8xd4! lLlxd4 2 . .t h6 lLl e 6 3.�xe6! And Black resigned. Two queens were
sacrificed within the span of three moves - surely a record (is it?).
I tried another classification: " How about 'the longest game ' ? "
H e was quick to oblige:
THE BARON - NEVERENDING

Space, where time is relative
White to play
29.llh8+ rJ c7 30.llc8+! rJ b6
Here and on the next moves, Black's king must stay on black squares: 30 . . . rJxc8?
3 l .i.xb7+ (or 3 l .i.f5+) wins the queen.
31.llc6+ rJ a7
3 i . . .rJ a5? 32.lla6+!.
32.lla6+! rJb8 33.lla8+ rJ c7 34.!Ic8+ rJb6 35.llc6+
" My opponent was a proud fellow, and he wouldn't concede a draw unless I
offered it. As for myself, I was reluctant to state the obvious, so we repeated the
circular action, on and on.
Finally, after 1264 rJ b8 1265.lla8+ rJ c7 1266.llc8+ the arbiter came to
•..
our board, seized the chess clock and claimed a draw. The game took eight
weeks . "
"That's nice. Any more records?"

I was willing to stop here, but he came with the following:
" One day I dined with Bobby Fischer, and learned from him that in his second
match game vs. Spassky in 1972, he intended to open, as White, with l.�d4. That's
right - jumping with his queen over his d-pawn! Of course, he never arrived for that
game . . .
"
45
CHAPTER2
This belonged, naturally, to the division of "astounding historical chess

discoveries. "
Diagram 1 is Keller - laser, corr. 1976- 78.

Diagram 2 is Wedberg - Kuczynski, Novi Sad Olympiad, 1990.
46
MODESTY
Can people really change?

That's a question I'm often asked. Frankly, I'm not so sure about the answer.
Nevertheless, I thought I might as well try to make a change. As my friend, the
great Baron Munchausen, is known for his excessive pomposity and overconfidence,
I enrolled him on a certain workshop called "Be Modest. "
In this workshop, the renowned Guru Maharaja-Rama was preaching, for a full
five days, the theory and practice of being modest. I took M. for a walk near the
city hall, and before he could utter a protest I pushed him into a large room, where
smiling people wearing white clothes were attending; the doors were immediately
locked.
Bye-bye, Baron; see you soon after your transformation.
It was yesterday evening when the event came to a close. I came to greet
Munchausen. An old, tired and stooping man, he was dragged out of the hall, a
sorrowful sight. I began to feel regret; did I make the right move? I had not intended
to break my hero's spirits...
"What happened?" I asked, as I hurried towards my friend.
It was not easy to get the disturbing details out of him, but after some hours I
obtained the full picture.
It transpired that the whole workshop had dealt with one and the same activity.
The participants were asked what is the least achievement they were prepared to be
satisfied with in their lives, once they were freed after five days.
The Baron's first answer, "to remain the formidable Munchausen, great chess
champion, " was frowned upon and he was urged to look for another response.
In tears, M. disclosed to me his subsequent attempts to present a satisfactory

answer:
"To win the World Championship just once."
"To be a Candidate for the world's chess throne."
"To be victorious at the New York 1 924 tournament."
All these answers were rejected, with chill contempt. So, he gradually lowered his
expectations:
"To win - just once - against Gata Kamsky*. " (NOT GOOD - said the Guru.)
"To drawjust once against Gata Kamsky. " (NOT GOOD)
"To play against Gata Kamsky. " (N0!)
"To hang on for 50 moves against Gata Kamsky(!)" (YOU CAN DO WORSE.)
All the Baron's attempts were futile. His torturers demanded him to be profoundly
modest, to lower his ambitions more and more.
47
CHAPTER2
" Finally, I'd ask them to be able to play just one glorious move throughout my
entire chess career, " he sighed.
''And... ?"
"The Guru was inclined to agree," said M. " But he wanted to see what kind of
move I had in mind."
The Baron suddenly cheered up. No, they were not going to humiliate him.
Black to play, white wins
White is threatening 2.e4#. l . . .�h2+ 2.�xh2 1Lxh2 3.e4#; I . . .1Lb3 2.�h l +

\t> c2 3 .�c l # ; and l . ..�c5+ 2.1Le3 are all useless. So:
1...1l.c5+ 2.�d4!!
What a move! Now 2 . . . 1Lxd4+ loses to 3 .e3+ \t>d2 4.exd4+ \t>c3 5.dxe5; and 2 ...
�xd4+ loses to 3.e3+ \t> d2 4.exd4+ \t> c3 5.dxc5. Funnily, the desperate 2 ... 1L d3!?
loses once again to 3 .e3+ with 4.�xe5 (but not 3 .exd3+?? \t>c2).
"What happened?"
" Maharaja-Rama burst into vehement rage and kicked me out of his workshop.
Apparently even this was not modest enough for him."
* * *
Can people change?

I still don't know; but I may soon find out for myself. Returning a favor, the
generous Munchausen had paid my enrollment fee for the workshop "How to write
good stories. "We shall see if readers will spot the difference, once I graduate.
The position was taken from a study by G. Slepyan, Benko- 75 JT, 2005. The study
won only a commendation; perhaps it was a deliberate attemptfrom the judge to teach
the composer to be modest?!
Anyhow, the move isfantastic, truly becoming ofboth Slepyan and the Baron.
* Gata Kamsky is a very strong American player, who challenged Anatoly Karpovfor
the World Championship in 1996 and competed in various Candidates ' cycles.
48
CROSS-CHECKS
" I wonder" - it was me talking to the Baron - " how come that with all your
great accomplishments in chess, there is no combinational motif that is named after
you?"
Munchausen appeared insulted: " Rubbish; there are dozens of established
schemes that originate from my ideas. Your ignorance is understandable, though, as
my contributions are always implicit."
I urged him to show me just one single everlasting Baron contribution.
"I once saved the life of the Archbishop of Dortmund, " he confided to me.
''A pack of demons attacked him and he panicked. They almost had him, when at
the very last moment I came to his rescue. Landing from a clear sky like Batman, I
grabbed him by the arm, shouting 'Check your cross, Sir! Check your cross!'
"The Archbishop got grip on himself, reached out for his chained holy cross and
the demons flew away. As an appreciation he named a major motif in chess after
me."
"What is it?"
"The Cross-check."
["This is byfar the mostfeeble lie I've heardfor a long time " - Editor
"But the subsequent positions provide some compensation " - Author]
RYND - POLLOCK
Nottingham 1 886
Black to play
With an overwhelming advantage, Black opted for the most attractive win:
49
CHAPTER2
26 ... .ie4!! 27.t\hf8+ VJilg7

Now mate is unavoidable, as if 28 ..i.xg7+ then the cross-check (defined as a
White check countering a Black check) 28 .. Jlxg7+ , decides.
G. F. ANDERSON
The Observer 196 1
Mate in two
l .VJib6
Intending 2.lbe4, discovered check and mate. l . ..'it'xf6 and l . ..'it'xd6 are met by
2.VJib2# and lld4#, respectively. The interest lies in the five defenses in which Black
makes a checking move, only to be answered by an immediate mate:
l ...exf6+ 2.lbb7#
l. ..exd6+ 2.ll'ld7#
l...ll'ld4+ 2.llf5#
l...ll'lxd6+ 2.ll'ld3#
l...ll'lf- other move + 2.ll'le4#.
50
FROM A STUDY BY 0. PERVAKOV

Ranok 1 986 1'1 prize
l ..ite7+
l .h8='i¥ ?? 'i¥ c8 + .
l .. :lt> g6! 2.h8='i¥ 'i¥c8+ 3.I:td8 'i¥c6+ 4.I'!d7
4.1!1f8? 'i¥e8+! draws by stalemate.
4... 'i¥a8+ 5 .itd8 'i¥e4+ 6.I:te7 'i¥a4+ 7.\!lts 'i¥f4+
.
A critical point. The natural 8.\!lg8? allows Black to achieve his aims by 8 . . .
'i¥f7+! 9.I:txf7=.
8.'i¥f6+!!
An astounding cross-check.
8 ... 'i¥xf6+ 9.\!lg8
White wins, as Black is in Zugzwang. 9 . . . '.!1h6 loses to I O.I:th7+, and 9 ... \!lg5 to
I O.I'!g7+. 9 . . . 'i¥d4 is defeated by I O.I:te6++ , while 9 . . 'i¥d6 fails to 10. I:tg7+ '.!1h6
.
l l ..itg5#.
51
We examined the diagram in silence. Surely the position had great importance,
for someone to take the trouble to carve it on a wall, wishing to commemorate it for
eternity...
As expected, here too Munchausen was quicker than I in grasping the situation.
" It is a sort of a chess problem, " he deduced. "Quite primitive, yet engaging. "
Here is the solution, with White to play and win:

t.I;!f5+! �xe6 2.I;ldd5!
Now:
2...a neutral move 3.I;lde5#
2...I;lxd5 3.cxd5#
2... l:te4 3.l:td6#.
Ofcourse, Black can prolong the fight with 2 . . l:tc7+ , when there is no immediate
.
mate. Given that this position was composed - or played - when our ancestors
looked more like apes than like Homo sapiens, we should accept this as just a minor
flaw.
Regarding the connection between a chess position and the horrendous deeds
which were executed in "The Cave of Horrors," the Baron and I are at a loss as to a
reasonable explanation.
Can a reader come forward with an idea?
The problem position occurred in Weber - Recht, played in the championship of

Luxembourg 2000.
53
CHAPTER2
THE SADDEST MOMENT IN A GAME
Munchausen gave his positive impressions of Anand, the new World Champion.
"When an interviewer asked him recently what was his best moment in Mexico,
Anand referred to the draw he just managed to salvage against me, in a friendly game
during a rest day in the tournament. Now there's an honest guy!"
The expression on my face probably conveyed my doubts, as the Baron was quick
to change the subject.
" Players are happy to recall their finest hours," he reflected. "I wonder what they
perceive as their worst hours. What do you think is a player's saddest moment of a
game?"
This was a tough question. I pondered for a while and suggested that the moment
of blundering might be such an instant. Or maybe the moment of resignation...
Munchausen begged to differ. He thought that the worst moment a player
experiences in a game is at the point of disillusionment.
"When you act under the assumption that everything is fine, only to find out that
in fact you are hopelessly lost... now that is a shattering experience," he said.
"Tea?" suggested Miss Doubtful, entering the room.

"No thanks, I prefer coffee, " I replied.
"We are short of coffee today, sorry, " she said.
"See? This is a sad moment, " M. pointed out. He proceeded to demonstrate two
chess examples of a sobering moment.
PEREZ - SPASSKY
Amsterdam (Interzonal) 1964
White to play
54
18.lZ'lxd5?? �xa3 19.l:Ixf6

The culmination ofWhite's mini-combination.
19 ... �b2
A rude awakening.
White resigned.
20. l:I d l �xf6 2 l .CZ'lxf6+ gxf6 and Black wins.
MUKHIN - CHECHELAN
U.S.S.R. 1 972
l.e4 c5 2.CZ'lf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.CZ'lxd4 CZ'l f6 5.CZ'lc3 CZ'l c6 6.�g5 � d7 7 .'iVd3 l:Ic8
8.CZ'lxc6 �xc6 9.0-0-0 'iVaS 10.�xf6 gxf6 l l.�bl �g7!? 12.CZ'ld5 'iVcS 13.l:Id2 aS
14.'iVg3
A critical moment. 14 . . . l:Ig8 or even 14 . . . �f8 are indicated; instead, Black opted
for:
14 ... � h6?
Fully aware, he invites White's rejoinder.
15. 'iVh3 � xd5
Forced, in view of the double attack on c8 and h6, as 15 . . . � a4 1 6.'iVxh6 �xc2+
17. � a l � xe4 is defeated by 1 8 .CZJ c3. Black imagined that his last move was sufficient,
but. . .
55
CHAPTER2
16 . .ib5+!
Sad (for Black). l6 . . . <.t> d8 l 7.'iYd7#; or l6 . . .'iYxb5 (or l6 . . . .i c6, or l6 .. Jlc6)
l 7.'iYxc8# lead to tragic consequences, but so does Black's next move.
16 . <.t>f8 17.'iYxh6+ <.t> g8 18.exd5
. .
Black resigned.
"So, would you like anything?" asked Miss D.

I did wish for some refreshment: fruit, a few cookies, lemonade perhaps ... but I
didn't want to be disillusioned. Facing a shock, I find it hard to adapt afterwards.
"Tea would be just fine," I said.
56
HIS GREAT PREDECESSORS
The winter came. Along with the wind and rain there was another birthday for
Munchausen to celebrate. Miss Doubtful baked his favorite dish, a cheesecake; a
woman-friend presented him with an exquisite antique chess set as a gift; and letters
of appreciation from all around the world were read out loud.
"You seem to have made a significant contribution to the noble game,"
complimented my friend.
"Well, that is correct."
Then the Baron became uncharacteristically modest. "But we should not forget
that I rest on the shoulders of giants."
He was quick to explain: "Take, for example, Count Eefore Philidorchuk:

this guy showed us that a strong pawn-play makes piece development redundant.
Were it not for games like the following, I would have never become the star that
I am. "
PHILIDORCHUK - N.N.
l.d4 llf6 2.f3 d6 3.e4 g6 4.g4 Ji. g7 5.g5 tlfd7 6.f4 c5 7.d5 b5 8.c3 a6 9.h4 llb6
10.h5 e6 l l .h6 Ji.f8 12.a4!? exd5 13.a5 ll 6d7 14.exd5 Ji.e7 15.c4 f6 1 6.cxb5 fxg5
17.f5
" 1 7 successive pawn moves!" the Baron exclaimed. ''And after 1 7 . . .gxf5 1 8.�h5+
'it> f8 19.llf3, White went on to win the game in 45 moves."
''Another remarkable player of past generations was Prince Wilfried van-der

Steinitz. This deep thinker understood the role of the king in a very profound way. I
wonder how many of your readers are familiar with the ensuing gem."
57
CHAPTER2
VAN-DER STEINITZ - N.N.
l.f3 d5 2.\tf2 tt:lf6 3.\te3
3 ... e5 4.g4 ii.c5+ 4.d4 ii. xd4+ 6.\td3 0-0 7.e3 ii.b6 8.\td2 e4 9.g5 tt:lfd7 10.f4
c5 1 1.\tel
'There is no place like home ' - a splendid Steinitzian principle.

l l ... tt:lc6 12.'fixd5 tt:lb4 13.'fixe4 I:Ie8 14.'fig2 tt:lf8 15.a3 ii. g4 16.tt:lc3 c4
17.axb4 ii.xe3 18.ii.xe3 l:xe3+ 19.ii.e2 ii. xe2 20.tt:lgxe2 'fie7 2 1 .tt:ld5 1-0.
Only lack of space prevents us from disclosing Munchausen's further anecdotes

about great founding chess fathers. There was the legendary Vinnikbot, who had
analyzed all endgames which stem from l .c4 c5, to mate; and how could one forget
the practical methods displayed by Mysterious Bob, whose reputation in the public
eye grew with each year he was not playing.
With due respect to former giants, I think that Munchausen is way ahead in
comparison to any of them.
I told him so, and he praised me for my perceptive diagnosis.
58
We asked His Majesty to make a wish, while the candles on the cake were
flickering. " I wish I was not so strong in chess," he sighed. "It is embarrassing to
have no decent competition."
The first game is Diemer - Heilling, 1984, which was Emil Joseph Diemer's last
tournament game, according to Hans Ree at chesscafe.com.
The second game was played on the ICC as a 3-minute Blitz contest, between a
strong computer (at the time believed to be Bobby Fischer), against R. Fontaine (2470);
source: GM Roland Schmaltz in The Complete Chess Server Guide (2004).
59
Chapter 3
Curious Encounters
(With People and Other Creatures)
O ur heros wife, Mrs. Munchausen, appears on the scene

-the Barons loy al housekeeper shares some gossip-chess
in Zulu is not q uite what y ou'd think-deals with Mr.
G rumbles endless mutterings-savesface on behalf of a
drunken play er-friend-experiences surprises while taking
on newcomers to the game-teaches C harlie some respect-
implements psy chiatric methods in play - grants Mr. Half
Master an instructive lesson-absorbs confl icting pieces of
advicefrom onlookers-peiform s a miraculous escapefrom
a C y clops - makes an effort to stir up an ali ens emotions-
hasfun with Wi nnie the Pooh and his mates
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
THE BARONESS
Munchausen had just returned from his annual vacation on Jupiter ("Marvelous;
the locals' hospitality was fantastic") and was in a cheerful mood.
We discussed many issues, with the state of the world being one of them. The
Baron assured me that if the worst happened, his friends on Jupiter would be more
than happy to have the human race live with them ("You'll just have to make some
small adjustments, like breathing chlorine").
Eventually, discussion moved on to chess, like it always does. Suddenly the
Baron's face had fallen.
"Never let anyone interfere in your games!" he said emphatically. "Never!"
I felt that something had gone wrong.
Then he told me of a game he had played in the spaceship which had brought
them back to Earth.
" If it weren't for my wife, I would have won," he said, evidently still grieving.
" Excuse me!?"
Unbelievable, this guy. All this time, I was never aware that Munchausen was a
married man. And now he mentions this en passant.
"Your wife!?"
"The Baroness, as she prefers to be addressed."
"I never thought you were the marrying type. "
" I 'm not," h e was quick to clarify. " She just came to me one day and claimed that
I must marry her. She was very persuasive, so ... Okay, we got married."
Astounding.
" How long have you been married?"
He looked aside. "Can we leave this subject, please? It was bad enough not to win
that game."
61
CHAPTER 3
MUNCHAUSEN - MISS UNIVERSE

Space 2001
White to play
" Black's last was l...J. a6xc4. I was considering my next move, when disaster
struck: the Baroness rudely interfered in the game!
" 'Capture her queen!' she said. I suppose she was jealous of my handsome
opponent, and was eager to shorten the game. "
" 'I don't think i t i s a very good idea, dear, " I said gently. "She will answer by
capturing my own queen, you see."'
" 'Then. . . bring your queen to safety! " ' she said.
"I felt that this time it was more an order than a recommendation."
"Well?"
The Baron sighed. "What could I do? I sought a haven for my queen, and played
2 .'� f2". This was a major oversight, and I was lucky to get half a point. Once the
game was over, the Baroness took my hand and escorted me away from my lovely
rival. As soon as I left the board, I realized what I had done. "
The episode is a behind-the-scenes variation from Kozul - Lalic, Yugoslav Ch.

1989. The Baron missed 2Yifidl!! (2.'/:J.dl '/:J.e8 is weaker) 'I:J.xdl 3.'/:J.xdl, winning a
whole rook, due to the double threat 4.'/:J.d8# and 4.gxh4.
62
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
MISS DOUBTFUL TALKS
One way to gain better insight into the lives of celebrities is to have a chat
with their acquaintances. So, when Munchausen's housekeeper, Miss Doubtful,
reached the venerable age of80, we naturally took the opportunity to pose her some
questions.
Miss Doubtful is a stem, no-nonsense lady; therefore, no small talk here - I went
straight into the interview.
Q: Miss D., how did youfirst meet the Baron ?
Miss D.: His Majesty 's former housekeeper, Mrs. IDon 'tThinkSo, had retired and
he was lookingfor replacement. I had ajob interview and was accepted.
Q: Were there other candidates ?
Miss D.: Yes, plenty of them.
Q: Why do you think you were chosen ?
Miss D. : The Baron told each candidate some ofhisfantastic stories. I suppose I was
selected because he liked my reaction to his tales.
Q: Which was... ?
Miss D.: I laughed at him to hisface and told him that I was convinced that he was
making it all up.
Q: Really! But whenever I react this way, he becomes extremely upset. . . I don 't
get it.
Miss D.: Well, he can put it upfrom me, but notfrom anyone else.
Q: What are your main impressionsfrom your long-time work with the Baron ?
Miss D.: He is a remarkable man. He has made huge contributions to humanity but
many people doubt him, because he has a slight tendency to exaggerate.
Q: A slight tendency, you say ?!
63
CHAPTER 3
Miss D.: Correct. For example, take the time when he took a ride to the West Pole,
to fetch a diamondfor King Arthur.
Q: Yes ?
Miss D.: Well, in reality it wasn 't the West Pole but the next town; h e was dealing
with a pair ofshoes rather than a diamond, and the client concerned was neither a King
nor an Arthur. But apartfrom such trifles, everything was precisely as he tells it, and I
fail to see why people don 't believe him.
Q: Are you a chessfan ?
Miss D.: Yes, I am and here is a scoopforyour readers. When I was seven years old,
I was already the adult championofPoland. Perhaps my chess capabilities were another
reason why the Baron chose to employ me.
Q: Oh! Have you ever played with M. ?
Miss D.: I have played with my boss on many occasions. This is probably the best
aspect ofmy work!
Q: You are veryfortunate. I must ask: have you ever won a game from him ?
There was silence. I felt that Miss D. wanted to respond, but. . .
"I can't answer this particular question, " she said, reluctantly.
"Why not?" I asked softly.
Miss D. didn't answer. Instead, she opened her purse, took out a CD labeled
'Miss D. - personal' and handed it to me.
"I must get back to work," she said, and hurriedly left the room.
I downloaded the disk. There was no mention of the Baron or M iss

Doubtful. However, in a pgn file classified 'Top Secret, ' there appeared a small
miniature . . .
WHITE: A RENOWNED ADVENTURER

BLACK: A SIMPLE WOMAN
l .e4 e5 z.tZJf3 lLl c6 3.�c4 lLlf6 4.lLlg5 � c5 S.lLlxfi �xf2+ 6.<;t>xf2 lLlxe4+
7. <;t>e3 VJ/ie7 s.<;t>xe4 VJ/ih4+ 9.g4 d5+ 10.�xd5 � xg4 l l .VJ/iel?
l l .�xc6+ was essential.
64
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
l l .liU5++! 0-1
...
White can only choose between an assortment of mates ( 1 2.'it'xf5 and 1 2.'it'e3
are met with 1 2 ... 'fi'f4+; 12.'it'f3 iLld4+ is no better).
Could it be . . ?
.
Rutka - Vecelia, Prague 1950
65
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
"What did you do?" I asked.

''At first - nothing. I didn't want to hurt his feelings, and decided to continue as
if his last move was acceptable. "
3. . .bxc6 4.ll:lc3 c 5 5.d4 cxd4 6.iVxd4xg7xh8
� Zulu queen ' - explained my opponent, when I inquired what the hell he was
doing," said Munchausen. " I now realized that I must take extreme measures. I
decided to beat the guy with his own weapons. "
6 •.. iVf6xc3+xb2xalxh8
This peculiar move was accompanied by the announcement � Munchausen
system!'
I laughed. " Brilliant! That must have taught him a lesson. "
"Not at all," answered M. " For he now calmly played. . . "
7. I:thlxh8
" Oh dear, " I sighed, after getting over the initial shock. ''A Zulu rook! "
"Correct. By now I'd had more than enough of this and decided to put an end to
this farce. So. . .
67
CHAPTER 3
7 ... Munchausenxe 1 !
"That's right - I just took his king off the board, and announced: Mate!"
" How did he react?"
" By playing 8.�fl-c4. It transpired that in Zulu chess, the minor fact that your
king is gone doesn't signify termination of the game. I had no choice - I swapped all
the pieces from the board, and announced 'The Baron s method. ' Only then did my
rival admitted defeat."
I reflected a few minutes, and then looked the Baron straight in the eye and
said:
"I don't believe a single word."
He stared at me, puzzled.
" I don't believe the story you just told me; this game never actually took place."
He shrugged his shoulders. "Why? Did I ever tell you a lie? Did I ever give you a
reason to doubt me? Am I in the habit of making things up?"
I preferred to ignore his questions. Instead, I insisted: "I don't believe you!"
"This is the third time you've said that, but you give no reasons."
After all these "Zulu pieces " and "Munchausen system " I thought I had a winner
here: "Sorry, Baron, this is My Way of ending an argument. "
68
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
MR. GRUMBLE
It occurred to me that keeping Munchausen all to myself was a bit selfish. So, on
one rainy day, I took Mr. Grumble with me, to meet His Highness.
The Baron greeted my acquaintance warmly, and after the usual insignificant
small-talk ('Dreadful weather, isn 't it?' 'Oh yes, it sure is. ' 'Miss Doubtful tells me that
it was 12 years since it last poured like this ' etc.) , the conversation soon switched to
chess topics.
"There is a nice problem I composed lately, " said M. From time to time he tried
his hand in the art of composing.
My visitor grimaced to signal the fact that problems are not his cup of tea, but
Munchausen just ignored him.
Mate infive
"Here you are," said M. ' 'Why don't you try to solve it before I reveal the solution
to you?"
Mr. Grumble sneered. ''A most unnatural position, " he remarked.
Munchausen frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Well" - Mr. Grumble replied, with a confident air - "How on Earth did the
white king reach c8? And what are Black's rooks doing on the fifth rank?"
I felt that bringing Grumble with me was not a particularly bright move. Why
express these reservations at this time?
" Let's just see the idea," I suggested; but my companion continued to find flaws:
"Mate or no mate, White is easily winning with such a material advantage. "
"Yes, but h e needs to play and mate in only five moves, " I explained.
"This is ridiculous! " complained Mr. Grumble, again. ''A quadruple pawn on the
a-file ... really, it is so artificial. . . "
69
CHAPTER 3
I felt bad for bringing this silly goat with me. However, the Baron found an elegant
solution to the embarrassing kibitzer:
" I think I can do something about these a-pawns, " he uttered, slowly. "Would
you like me to deflect them to other squares?"
Mr. Grumble felt proud that his views were carrying some weight. "This could
only benefit the problem," he assured M.
"So be it," agreed our host, and he presented the solution:
l. l'!b3! axb3
To prevent 2.l'!b8#.
"The pawn structure looks better now, " observed my knowledgeable
companion.
Munchausen kept quiet.
2.l'!b4! axb4
"Interesting, " noted Mr. Grumble.
3.CZ'lb5! axb5 4.CZ'lb6+ axb6
"Strange . . . " came another comment from Grumble. "What is this all about?"
5.\{j'al#!
Glancing at the starting position, it is astounding that within five moves White
can mate by putting his queen on a l .
The Baron looked at us triumphantly. "What do you say?"

I was starting to offer sincere words of appreciation, when the (unbearable, by
now) Mr. Grumble insisted on giving us his "expert" opinion: " I don't know - four
pawns on the b-file is an unnatural sight..."
Munchausen gave him a chilly stare. " It was very nice ofyou to drop by, " he said,
which, in the realms of small-talk could be interpreted as "get lost!"
The composer ofthis problem is Z Pigits, and itfirst appeared in Zvaezrne 1957.
70
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
A DRUNK FRIEND AND A STRICT ARBITER
The Baron and I were discussing the concept of "prophylactic thinking. "
" Sometimes it is not easy to get inside your opponent's mind," I thought aloud.
The Baron peeped at me with an inquiring look. "What do YOU know about
that? "
I chose to ignore the contemptuous tone.
" I recall that I once had to think for my opponent, for the simple reason that
he was not capable of thinking by his own, " sighed M. " I was playing against
someone who was completely drunk; he was aware neither of himself, nor of the
world. "
"How did the game go?" I asked.
"It went exactly as you can imagine, " said the Baron. "Right in the opening he
was making twelve successive queen moves. "
" I suppose that you made short work o f him?"
''Actually, I felt uneasy to win against such an opponent, so I decided to draw the
game. I deliberately made some silly moves myself, and we reached the following
bizarre position":
MUNCHAUSEN - MR. NOTSOSOBER
Black to play
" I was amusing myself, when the arbiter approached our table. He looked at the
board in utter astonishment. "
H e raised his voice. "What are you playing at? Look here, i fyou don't get serious,
I'll give both of you a zero!"
" I caught a glimpse of understanding in my drunk opponent's eyes. We knew we
had to cooperate in order to get out of this awkward situation."
l . . .a l=� +! 2.d4 cxd3 e.p.+ 3.<;t>xg6 0-0 4.gxh5
71
CHAPTER 3
" Fine, I thought to myself, " said Munchausen. "I will advance my h-pawn and
promote it, create some sort of material balance, and then there will be nothing
suspect about agreeing to a draw."
4 ii h8
.••
" Oh dear, " I said.

"Right," The Baron agreed. "Mr. NotSoSober was still heavily under the
infuence of alcohol. I was afraid that if I played 5.h6 he would ignore the mating
threat. Hence I hurried to prevent such a possibility. "
5.'.-t>xgS rJ:J g7 6.J:xbl J:g8 7.l:xdl iif8!
"With this move I felt assured that my rival was back into his senses."
8.J:xd3 liJe7 9.J:xd7
The arbiter was furious: " Look here, you punks. . . !"
" I was afraid he was going to throw us out of the tournament hall. "
I urged my opponent/friend to move. "Quick! "
9 ... �g6+ 10.hxg6
" I believe it is a draw, Sir, " I humbly notified the arbiter. Mr. N otSoSober was still
not fully convinced, so I helped him up from his chair and we left."
"The next day the papers announced that 'Munchausen played afascinating game,
if not altogetherfree from errors. ' It was one of those rare occasions where the press
got it right. "
The first diagram is a helpselfmate in 9, composed by G. Chumakov (:J!d prize,

Feenschach 1988).
72
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
PLAYING WITH BEGINNERS
The other day, the Baron invited me to watch him giving a simultaneous exhibition.
50 young and enthusiastic boys and girls waited impatiently in Chess Park, to meet
their hero.
"I hope you understand that these are absolute beginners," I warned
Munchausen. "They tend to have a somewhat strange interpretation of the rules
of the game. "
"Yes, I know, " said M. "I recall a lad once played, a s White against me, j, a5 to
d8, and replaced his bishop with a queen; '/promoted, ' he told me. "
I revealed to my friend that I too went through a similar experience. An opponent
of mine once took his black tt:Jc6, and calmly captured my white j, d6. Apparently he
thought he was applying the en-passant rule.
Play began, and soon it turned out that my fears were not groundless.
BEGINNER A - MUNCHAUSEN
l.e4 e5 2.tt:Jf3 d6 3.j,c4 f5 4.d4 exd4 5.exf5 �e7+ 6.�d2?

The naivete of youth. The threat of 7.l:! e l blinds White to the effect of ignoring
the importance of piece development.
6... g6! 7.l:!el? j,h6+ 8.�d3 j, xf5+ 9.�xd4 j, g7+ 10.�d5 c6#
Munchausen was satisfied with this quick finish, but his opponent was
unmoved.
l l.�xd6?!
The Baron glanced at his opponent and smiled: "Nice joke."

"What do you mean?'' The lad was genuinely puzzled.
73
CHAPTER 3
Munchausen realized that White's last move was not, after all, a sign of a
developed sense of humor. "You can't do this," he patiently explained. "Your king
is under attack."
"Aha! But you can't capture it," the boy told His Highness without blinking.
"Your queen is pinned!"
What should be done? M. pondered for a while, and then executed the
following:
ll ... j, e4 checkmate!
The boy looked at the board with disappointment.
"Indeed it is, " he admitted. "You're lucky; if it wasn't for this move -"
Munchausen frowned. He took back his last move, and played instead . . .
ll ... j,eS checkmate!

Reluctantly, his opponent admitted defeat once again. Upon leaving his seat, he
told a friend: "I learned a lot from him. I never saw a clearer demonstration of the
power of the bishop pair!"
Well, whatever.
As time went on, the Baron won game after game. It was only on board one that he
met with a stiff resistance. A terrible blunder - of a whole rook! - left the champion
utterly lost. Everybody gathered to witness Munchausen's downfall. After 54 moves,
the following position had been reached:
BEGINNER B - MUNCHAUSEN
White to play
It was precisely here that the Baron conceived one of his best psychological
coups.
" Let us continue until move 60, and then pass the resulting position for
adjudication," he suggested to his inexperienced adversary.
74
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
The lad gladly jumped on the offer. He rushed to make some neutral moves, to
reach the desired number of60.
SS.l:hl+ W g6 56.l:gl+ WhS 57Jihl+ W g4 58.l:gl+ W h3 59.lih l + W g2
60.l:f1
The boy was thrilled. "Call the arbiter; we have reached move sixty!"
"Just a second, " said M. "I also have to complete my 60'h move."
And he played. . .
60... f4
"Shall we call GrandPatzer Avni here, to decide on the outcome?" Munchausen
asked softly.
"Sure."
Heartbroken, knowing that tears would soon be shed, I gave my verdict:

''A win for Black. "
Before you rush to send a sharply-protesting letter to the editor, check the position
for yourselves: White is in Zugzwang, completely helpless (6 l .e3 f3; or 6 l .f3 e3).
"The world is a cruel place, " concluded His Majesty. ''And you will not get a
clearer demonstration of that than this ending."
Thefirst ten moves ofthefirstgame arefrom Dupre - To"e, New Orleans 192Z
75
CHAPTER 3
CHARLIE
Charlie is a charming 14-year-old lad. He is currently taking his first steps in the
world of Caissa, * and at the moment he shows endless curiosity in chess.
This month I thought I'll try to tell Charlie one of Munchausen's tales, before I
publish it in this book. It was an odd experience, to put it mildly.
We sat comfortably in a coffee shop, and I started to write:
"This morning, the Baron and I went for a walk on the promenade. We ate ice
cream and then headed for Munchausen's apartment... "
"Excuse me."
That was Charlie.
"Who cares about these details?" he asked, without being mean in the slightest.
"So you ate ice cream! So what?"
I chuckled.
"lt's just a way to establish a rapport with my readers," I explained. "Admittedly,
it's not really that important. "
H e looked victorious. "You see, there is n o point. So, go on, please. "
Okay. S o I went o n with my story:

" Upon entering the Baron's flat, Munchausen said he felt unwell, and asked to
be left alone. I wanted to . . . "
" Excuse me. "

That was Charlie again.
"Why should I care about the well-being of your friend?"
Tough little devil, this Charlie.
"Cut to the chase, will you?" He had lost his patience.
I must confess that a momentary thought, of telling Charlie where to go, had
crossed my mind. But I got hold of myself and went on with my story.
"You are missing the point," I said, as calmly as I could. "The Baron felt a bit
sick, and went to his bedroom to take a nap."
"So?''
"So, I was left alone, with no story to be told, having to deliver a new Munchausen
tale to my editor within a few hours! "
* Caissa is the goddess ofchess.
76
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
Charlie looked at me, quizzically. I got the impression that he fnally started to
show some interest.
"What did you do?" he asked.
"I haven't done anything yet. All this had occurred this morning, as I told you. I
don't have the faintest idea what to do."
We sat for some time, reflecting.

Finally the lad said: "Show me an interesting position, will you?"
That had always attracted him, of course. So I presented him with the following
position.
"White's two passed pawns seem to ensure him victory, " I said, as I explained
the intricacies of the position to Charlie, "but things are not so simple, as one of the
pawns falls immediately because of back-rank problems: l .J:b l ? l:xb5! (but not 1 . . .
l:cc2? 2.b6 l:xf2 3.l:fl !).
l .b6! l:axaS
l .. .l:cxa5? 2.b7 wins outright.
2.b7
2.lha5 I!xa5 3 .J:b 1 seems to do the job as well, but much slower.
2 ... l:ab5 3.l:ta5!
A peculiar tactic decides the issue, as Black is losing a whole rook due to the
threat 4.b8='fW.
Black resigned.
"Nice!" exclaimed the lad, showing his appreciation.

But I was rather disappointed. " Unfortunately, it's not about Munchausen at
all. "
"We don't need him," Charlie asserted cruelly. "You and I are getting along just
fine, without the old man's nonsense. "
77
CHAPTER 3
Come to think about it, I'm not very fond of this child. Also, I still don't have a
decent Munchausen-tale . . . .
Suddenly the Baron appeared.

Don't ask me how: he was supposed to be lying sick in bed. But he did emerge
from somewhere. Glancing at the position I had just showed to Charlie, M. said,
laconically: "I can make it more interesting. "
Within seconds, he had rearranged the board as follows:
l.b7
l .Iha5 l:ha5 2.llb l I:Ia8 is only a draw.
l . ..llab5 2.lla5!
" It's the same thing," commented Charlie, who remained impolite.
"Not quite, " observed Munchausen.
2 ...llh5!
Best. Now the rook is on a protected square, and threatens mate in one. In order
to win White needs to be more inventive.
3.g4! I:Ihe5 4.f4! lled5 5.e4! White wins.
Alternatively -
3 ... I:Ixa5 4.b8=� llhl+ 5.�g2 llxe1 6.�b2+ � g5
6 . . . e5? 7.'i¥b6+.
7. �b4! White wins.
E.g. 7 . . . lleal 8.�f4+ �h4 9.�xh6+ Wxg4 10.0+ � f5 l l .�f4#.
"It seems that we do need the Baron!" I reflected loudly.
Charlie nodded.
* * * Thefirst diagram is Gal - Manor, Israel U- 14 Ch., 1983.

The modified version is by the author.
78
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
THE PSYCHIATRIST
Each of us has an unpleasant opponent; a player with an annoying style, who

beats us regularly.
Some people are undesirable opponents for everybody. They play an irritating
type of chess that makes one want to scream or resign immediately. Mr. Pass was this
kind of fellow.
Andrew Pas, or as he was nicknamed, "Mr. Let's Do Nothing," had the unappealing
habit of arranging his pieces on the first two ranks, waiting with endless patience for his
rivals to throw themselves on him. The next diagram illustrates one of his typical set-ups:
With this sort of "chess" he scored fantastic results. Everybody hated him, calling
him a "murderer of the royal game, " but he didn't mind.
The other day, it was the Baron's turn to encounter the unbearable Mr. Pass. I was
curious to find out how he prepared himself for this task.
" I went to consult with an acquaintance of mine, by the name of Jonathan. He's
a shrink, " said Munchausen. "We had a remarkable conversation, which went like
this:
" 'What should I do against Mr. Pass?' "
" 'What do you think you should do? ' "
As we all know, psychiatrists just seize your question and toss it back.
" 'If I knew that I wouldn't be sitting here,' " replied the Baron as he tried to
outsmart the shrink.
" 'You wouldn't, would you?' "
Of course.
" 'This isn't helping me, Jonathan.' "
" 'What is it that you find unhelpful? ' "
" 'What you're doing, that's what.' "
79
CHAPTER 3
" 'What am I doing, Your Majesty?' "

It started to become tiresome.
" ' Frankly, you're doing nothing, ' " said M.
" 'Exactly. ' "
" 'What?!' "
" ' I 'm doing nothing. Here you are - this is your answer. Two hundred dollars,
please. ' "
The following day, the Baron took full advantage of the expert's advice.
MR. PASS - MUNCHAUSEN
Black to play
White's last move was 1 2.'i¥d l -b3. Now watch the magic:
12 ... j_ a8 13.I:i:fd l �h7 14.h3 � g8 15.�h2 � h7 16.g4 � g8 17,j_g3 j_b7 18.e3
j_ a8 19.a3 j_b7 20.f4 j_a8 2 1.l:Id2 'i¥d6 22.f5 'i¥d8 23.j_f4 j_b7 24.I:I:gl
White has made a considerable progress. As for Black. . .well, just compare the
following diagram with the previous one.
80
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
A brilliant conception by Munchausen: applying Pass's tactics against him!

"I knew that I was going to win," Munchausen confided to me. "This fellow had
absolutely no clue what to do with his army beyond the third rank."
24...c6 25.iJ3 l1J h7 26.l:!:cl i,d6 27.l1Ja4 i, c7 28.�g3 l1Jf6 29.h4 l1Jfd7
30.l1Jxd7 l1J xd7 3 1 .l:i:e2 l:!:e8 32.�h3 i, xf4 33.exf4 l:!:xe2 34.i,xe2 VJe7 35.i,f3 b5
36.l1Jc5 i,c8 37.VJd3 h5 38.gxh5 VJf6 39.�g3 l1Jxc5 40.l:i:xc5 i,xfS 41.VJc3 i,d7
42.VJd3 ti:a8 43.l:i:cl l:i:e8 4HtYc3 c5 45.VJxc5 VJf5 46.VJxd5 VJh3+ 47.�f2 VJh2+
48.i,g2 VJxf4+ 49.i,f3 i,g4 50.l:i:c3 VJh2+ st.i,g2 VJxh4+ 52.�g l l:i:el+ 53.i,fl
i,b3 0-1
"This was great. Mr. Pass was so dejected that he gave up chess altogether, to the
relief of many players. "
" Did you remember to thank your shrink?" I wondered.
"In my own way, I did," said M. "When his secretary phoned to inquire when I
am going to pay the bill of $200, I told her that I'm going to do NOTHING about
it."
This game actually took place between Michael Basman (who else ?), as Black,
against UlfAndersson, Hastings 1974.
Unlike the tale, Andersson didn � give up chess, and continued, undeterred, to make
a living/rom winning barren positions in 100-move, 10-hour long games.
81
CHAPTER 3
HALF-MASTER
The other day, when I popped up to see the Baron, he was not alone: a middle
aged gentleman with a troubled expression accompanied him in his living room.
"May I introduce" - Munchausen is always strict with manners - "The honored
Mr. Half-Master. "
I wondered as to the origin of this name. ''Actually it is a nickname," said the
guest.
When he later excused himself to the bathroom, I made further inquiries.
"You know, " explained M., "many people are experts in openings but don't know
a thing about endgames. Others excel when they need to devise a strategic plan but
are weak in concrete analysis. "
"Now, this particular gentleman is great when positional chess is concerned, but
when the topic changes to tactics - his genius vanishes. Hence, he is only Half a
Master. "
This made sense.
When Half-Master returned to the living room, Munchausen presented the

next position for both of us to inspect. "It is White's turn. What do you think of his
prospects?"
White to play
Before I could have a thorough look at the position, HM was quick to

respond.
He gave us a deep evaluation of the pieces' range of control; the pros and cons of
each side's pawn structure; the relative safety of kings; and so on. " Based on these
considerations, I endorse l.CZ'lg5. It is a strong and active move" he said, as he shared
with us his expert opinion. "By attacking h7, White exchanges his knight for Black's
good bishop (for instance, l . . .h6 2.CZ'lxe6) . "
82
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
The Baron seemed to expect this rejoinder from Half-Master, as he reacted

immediately with ... l ...iU5!.
White is lost: after 2.ibf5 l:!dl + 3.'it?h2 .ltxg5, he must shed material.
After a while, having all tasted Miss Doubtful's delicious food, the Baron invited
his guest to a friendly contest. "You just watch and learn, " he ordered me.
Some time later they reached the following position:
THE BARON - HALF-MASTER
Munchausen contemplated several minutes over his next move.

"What are you thinking about?" HM wondered. "I intend l . . ..itxf3 with 2 . . .tl'le5
to follow. So, your logical alternatives are to eliminate my knight ( l ..itxd7) or to shift
your own knight ( l .CZ'ld2)."
"I deliberate about the consequences of l .CZ'lxd4."
"This is ridiculous, " objected Half Master. "You will just lose a piece. "
Nevertheless, Munchausen did play l.CZ'lxd4?!.
Following l ... 'flVxd4 2.l:!dl Black's high spirits changed for the worse.
I dared to interfere. "Perhaps you may try 2 . . . CZ'le5?" I suggested.
HM quickly refuted my suggestion. "No, it loses to 3.'flVh4+ followed by 4.l:!xd4.
But hey, there is an idea! "
2 ... CZ'lf6!
"You are losing a piece, " declared Half-Master triumphantly. The Baron refused
to be intimidated.
3. J:!xd4 CZ'l xg4 4.l:!d7+
White wins his piece back and his two advanced and passed pawns on the
queenside appear formidable.
" Oh, I give up!" HM was upset.
"You might still have some chances, " said Munchausen, as he attempted to
encourage his opponent.
83
CHAPTER 3
"No, it's lost."

"Would you like to continue the game with colors reversed?"
This was a startling twist.

"Say what?"
"I will take the black side and you will command the white army, " M. explained
pleasantly, to the stunned Half-Master. Hardly believing his good fortune, HM
agreed.
So, we continue watching the game, with the Baron now holding the black
pieces.
HALF-MASTER - THE BARON
4 ...\t> f6 5.l:Ixb7 l:Ict+ 6.itn

Half-Master was visually pleased.
6 . .il e3!! 7.fxe3 fxe3 White resigned.
.
The threat 8 ... e2 is devastating. After 8.l:Ic7 l:Ixc7 White will have to give another
piece for the black e-pawn.
"Why am I always losing to you?" complained Half-Master, bitterly.

Munchausen was curious: "What other result do you expect, when a complete
super-grandmaster battles with only half a master?"
To this reasoning neither Half-Master, nor I, had an answer.
1) Tumurbator - Oren, Moscow Olympiad 1956

2) Kramnik - Anand, world championship 2008 (match, 5)
84
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
THE KIBITZERS
Munchausen was in a bad mood, so I guessed he had just lost an important game;
surprisingly this was not the case at all.
"Whatever came over you?" he said, wondering how I could doubt the result of his
games. "Naturally I won; it is the manner of managing the battle that I found annoying."
THE BARON - ITDOESN'TMATTERWHO

This morning
l .e4 e5 2.8f3 tlJ c6 3.tlJc3 tlJ f6 4.Ji.b5 Ji.c5 5.tlJxe5 'i¥e7?!

5 . . . 8xe5 6.d4 Ji.b4 is better.
6.ctJd3 tlJ xe4 7.0-0 tlJxc3 8.dxc3
Material is equal but Black's position is uneasy. 8 . . . 0-0? 9.I:te l or 8 . . . d6 9. ii.xc6+
bxc6 I O.tlJxc5 is advantageous for White. Black's choice has its drawback, too.
8... 8d8 9.l':rel tlJe6 10.I:rxe6! li.xf2+
10 . . . fxe6 l l .'i¥h5+ with 1 2.'i¥xc5.
l l .tlJxf2 'i¥xe6 12.Ji.f4 c6
" Here's where it all started to go wrong, " said M. with a sigh.
"I went to this game with some friends," revealed the Baron. " Perhaps you are
acquainted with them: Mr. NotSoSober, Mr. Grumble and Mr. Sly. "
I was indeed familiar with these characters; they played a role in previous episodes
of Munchausen's chess plots.
All of a sudden the kibitzers began to argue loudly.

"Mr. Sly insisted that I should plant a bishop on d6," said M. " But Mr. Grumble
made a reasonable claim that since White is considerably better, it is simpler to
continue 1 3 .Ji.d3, 14.'i¥d2 and 1 5 .l':re l . "
85
CHAPTER 3
I understood the Baron's concern. He was loath to get himself into a fight or
dispute. But he had to make a move and someone - be it Sly or Grumble - was
bound to remain dissatisfied.
Finally the Baron headed for the bolder option.
13.j,d6!
13...cxb5 14.'i¥d2 'i¥h6

White was threatening 1 5. l'Ie l .
IS.l'Iel+ \t> d8 16.j,f4
"I told you that White should have kept his bishop on f4, " grumbled Mr. Grumble.
He went on to accuse Mr. Sly: "You made the Baron lose a piece and return the
bishop to f4, losing two 'tempi' in the process! "
"It still looks fine to me, " opined Mr. NotSoSober - but a drinking fellow is
hardly a reliable source of evaluation.
16...'i¥c6?
l 6 . . . 'i¥g6 is better but 17.Lt:lg4!, with the idea 1 8.Lt:le5, maintains White's offensive
( l 7 . . . 'i¥xg4? 1 8 .'i¥d6).
86
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
" Place the bishop back again on d6, " another 'kibitzer' ordered the Baron.
"Who was it this time?" I asked.
"The Baroness. "
I stared at him, amazed.
He avoided my glance. "Yes, she was also there , " he admitted. My goodness, he
must have been under a lot of pressure during this game.
Mr. Grumble opened his mouth to protest against the Baroness's interference,
but Mr. Sly, knowing the lady's powers, cleverly advised him to shut up.
As for Mr. NotSoSober, he was having another drink, so whatever the Baron
would have played was okay with him.
[Readers who wonder what Munchausen s next move was are probably not ma"ied.
You don't argue with the lady; never.]
17.1i,d6!
This second switch-back seals the fate of the game.

17...f6 18.%\k'f4 Black resigned.
A possible continuation is l 8 ... l:Ie8 l 9.1i,c7+ %\k'xc7 20.l:Ixe8+ \t>xe8 2 l .iYxc7.
" Brilliant!" declared Mr. Sly.

"Well done," appreciated Mr. NotSoSober.
"I don't know. . . " That was Mr. Grumble.
But he was forced to join the applause when Mrs. M. put her hand on his
shoulder.
As for the Baron, he still felt uncomfortable with the conflicting advice he got
from everyone. But when the Baroness told him that he should be proud of his
victory, he knew that this was the right way to feel.
The game is Post - Kagan, Berlin 1925.
87
CHAPTER 3
THE CYCLOPS
It was a fine day; sunny and cloudless.

"You may consider yourself a lucky man," said the Baron, "There were days
when I had to live in more strained surroundings. "
At that moment, m y mobile phone was ringing.
Munchausen asserted: " Mobile phone - now that is a wonderful invention. I
wish I had had a mobile phone when I fought against this monster in Greece. "
I felt that M. was yearning to tell m e something of importance. I invited him to
do so.
" First, you have to answer this call. "
I picked up the phone. Someone was asking me t o explain the meaning o f this
episode's heading. I informed His Majesty.
"What is this rubbish, I tell you a story and a reader from the future is interfering . . . "
raged M. as he exploded in anger.
I calmed him down.
"Cyclops (coming from Greek) is a legendary one-eyed giant. I thought he was a
mythological creature, until I met him in person, " said Munchausen.
" I ' m not sure if I have the space to describe a long adventure, " I said,
hesitantly.
"Very well. . . you always want the bare facts, you unimaginative soul. Fine. I'll
skip the details. I was trapped in a cave; there were no escape routes; the Cyclops, 1 5
feet high, was approaching; I felt these were my last moments."
I encouraged him to proceed. ''And then. . . ?"
"And then I noticed a chess board in the comer of the cave.
" ' Let's play!' I pleaded with the beast. ' If I win, you'll let me go free. '
"The Cyclops was apparently confident of his chess powers, and he gave me his
word. After some time, we reached the following position:"
88
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
THE BARON- CYCLOPS
White to play
"This seems to be an equal position," I said, as I evaluated the chances.

"If it had been equal, we would not be having this conversation now, " Munchausen
pointed out. " My advantage lay in the fact that the Cyclops had only one eye, in the
center of his forehead. I presumed that ifl were to play in various parts of the board,
he would be unable to follow the action. So I made a tour of all four comers of the
board."
t.IIhl + \t'g5 2.IIh8 ii. a6

2 . . .Ji.b7 3.I:tb8.
3.I:ta8 .tn
3 . . .Ji.b5 4.l:Ib8; 3 . . . Ji.c4 4.l:Ia4.
4.IIal Ji.h3 5.\t'g3
Winning a piece and the game (5 . . .Ji.g4 6.f4+ ) .
"Marvelous. Did h e let you free?"

.rtifwe assume the premise that there was a Cyclops; that he understood English;
that there was a chess board in a cave; and that Cyclops keep their promises, then
- yes, he let me go free, naturally. "
The position is a study by C. Kaminer, originally printed in Schachmatny Listok

1926.
89
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
The Baron and I decided to present our acquaintance with some chess thrills
(yes, he was familiar with the game; did you really think otherwise?).
First, we showed him some fascinating opening novelties. Morozevich's
outstanding treatment of the Caro-Kann ( l .e4 c6 2.l1Jf3 Vj'a5!? 3.l1Jc3 Vj'h5!? 4.d4
f5):
. . . and Topalov's original set-up against the King's Indian ( l .d4 l1Jf6 2.c4 Il:g8!?
3.l1Jc3 g5!? 4.e4 Il:g7).
The stranger didn't bat an eyelid. It may just be that on Ronty-Foo these strange
game-plans have been known for a long time . . .
Then I tried m y hand with the following study, by the famous composer David
Gurgenidze.
91
CHAPTER 3
D. GURGENIDZE, 2002
White to play and draw
Notice that in the diagram position, the white monarch is in check.

1.\t>a2! l:Ib2+! 2.l:Ixb2 l:Ial+ 3.\t>xal gl=�+ 4.\t>a2 dl=�
The introduction is over and White is two queens down. Surely a resignation is
in order?
5.g8=�+! �xg8 6.it.c2!
Now if Black's � d l moves, then 7.it.b3+ wins her lady friend at g8. 6 ... �xc2
7.Ihc2 \t>d4+ 8.\t>b2 �b8+ 9.\t>a2 �g8+ 10.\t>b2 \t>d3 l l .l:Ic3+ is a theoretical
draw. There remained -
6...\t>xc5+ 7.it.b3!
This startling position should generate enthusiasm and excitement in everybody's

heart, you'd think. [One black queen is lost and in the resulting position of a rook +
pawn vs. queen, White has a fortress and he gains half a point.]
We looked at the alien...
92
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
But he changed neither his posture nor the frozen expression on his face. And
then he transformed into. . . a spoonful of sugar!
Munchausen collected this new form and poured it quickly into a cup of hot
tea.
A few seconds later, X-zero-five had melted.
"That suits him all right, " asserted the Baron, somewhat disgusted.
I got the impression that he will not bring creatures from other worlds into our
future meetings.
The opening novelties are not for real; you are strongly advised not to try them in
your own games.
Melting the sugar appears in one of Enid Blyton s short stories.
93
CHAPTER3
NEW-OLD FRIENDS
The Baron felt a bit lonely: the Baroness had taken Miss Doubtful on a shopping
trip while regular chess "customers" like Mr. Innocent and Mr. Rabbit were all out
of town.
After some thought, Munchausen remembered an old acquaintance of his, Alan
Alexander Milne, and a polite phone conversation was followed by a visit to the
countryside, where Milne lived.
The weather was unkind: It rained and it rained and rained. However, it was cozy
inside the house, and we had a lovely chat: Milne turned out to be an extremely nice
guy with a wonderful imagination, on a par with that of the Baron. Soon our guest's
young son, Christopher, joined us, along with some friends.
Munchausen was relating to us his last expedition to the North Pole, when
Winnie the Pooh, one of Christopher's friends, interrupted by asking if there were
other poles.
"There s a South Pole and I expect there s an East Pole and a West Pole, though
people don't like talking about them, "said Christopher.
Pooh suggested that they go and discover the East Pole, when the Baron snored
and mentioned dryly that the East Pole had been already discovered, and it was
actually he, the great Baron Munchausen, who was the discoverer.
Pooh and Christopher were disappointed. I resented my friend's role as a spoiler
of dreams.
Then, somehow, chess became a topic of conversation. Our host told us,
quite proudly, that the game was a popular pastime in his house. When Pooh and
Piglet (another fascinating visitor) started a chess duel, M. volunteered to give live
coaching.
Here is the position after 25 moves.
94
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS
PIGLET- POOH
White to play
26Jhg4?! fxg4 27.'i¥h2+ � g6 28Jlhl

Resignation seemed to be in order.
"What are you thinking about?" asked Munchausen, when Pooh was
contemplating his reply.
" I want to crush him," said Pooh. "What are you thinking about, Baron?"
M. examined the position carefully, and entered a didactic mode: "Ifl were you,"
he said slowly, really making an effort to pass some wisdom and experience to his
listeners, "I would try to penetrate my opponent's mind, to see what his schemes are;
I would search for a comprehensive plan, asking myself where do I want my pieces
to be placed; I'd identify the strengths and weaknesses in each camp; I'd maneuver
skillfully, taking care not to damage my pawn structure. I would think very hard: look
out for mines; make some traps of my own ... "
"It's the same thing, "said Pooh. And he played:

28.. J::[h8!!
95
CHAPTER3
28 . . . l:lf3 29.�h7+ Wxg5 (29 . . . W f7? 30.g6#) 30.il.b4! was Piglet's idea. After 30 . . .
g6 ( 3 0.. .'�xd4 3 l .�h5+ with 32.�xe8) 3 l .il.d2+ Wf5 32.�f7+ W e4 33.�xg6+
Black is ruined: 33 . . . Wxd4 34.�xg4+ Wc5 35.�xf3 �xd2 36.lldl with a winning
attack.
29.�xh8 lln+ 30.Wc2 �xh8 3l.llxh8 g3 32.llh3 g2 33.llg3 gl=� White
resigned.
"Nice," was M.'s laconic appreciation. "Of course, I would have won as Black
without having to rely on White's faulty combination.''
Cruel.
"What sort of stories does he like ?" - let us ask.
"About himself. Because he s that sort of (Baron). "
The italicized sentences are quotationsfrom " Winnie the Pooh " by A.A. Milne.
The game is T. Ernst - Hermansson, Stockholm 2001
96
Chapter4
Special Rules, Boards and Pieces
Munchausen increases the strength ofhis pieces by dance

lessons -witnesses a dead horse coming back to life -plays
chess on half a board -gets acquainted with extraordinary
boards on Saturn -puts a mentally disturbed queen to good
use -adapts to strange new rules concerning the games
goal -obeys a sudden change of plans dictated by
organizers.
CHAPTER 4
THE DANCE MAESTRO
There is an ongoing dispute regarding the best method to raise a champion, in

any field. Should he be a one-sided fanatic, devoted only to his chosen occupation;
or is it better for him to be developed as a well-educated person with broad and
diversified interests.
"I have always believed in the second approach," announced Munchausen. "It
is useful for one to acquire a wide range of knowledge in various fields. It makes one
a more interesting human being and besides, such knowledge may sometimes prove
handy in a chess context."
The influence of external realms on the game ofkings has always been an exciting
topic for me. I decided to elicit some information from my friend. Here is how he
recounts the events prior to his famous win vs. Kasparov.
"I saw an advertisement in the papers, regarding a forthcoming scientific

convention, on the subject of black holes. I came as a listener, but naturally, when they
realized who I was, the organizers asked me to give some lectures as well. Overall,
this congress was a very instructive experience."
I was thrilled. " Do you imply that knowledge about black holes actually assisted
you in a chess game?"
M. immediately cooled my enthusiasm. "This is a very odd idea. I don't see any
connection between these two distinctive fields. "
I didn't get it. " So, why did you tell m e about this convention?"
''Ah, this is because that is where I met Emil. He was a top physicist and we had a
lot ofthings to share. He invited me to his home and it turned out that he was a great
cook. The food I ate in Emil's place was superb; one seldom tastes such delicious
meals as I had in Emil's cuisine . . . "
"Presumably, it was the culinary world that had a positive effect on your chess
playing?"
The Baron was perplexed. " How on earth did you come to this conclusion?"
I became frustrated, as it was not clear at all what was the point of all these tales.
I will spare the reader much of what followed. To cut a long story short, Emil
introduced Munchausen to a special restaurant, which served exquisite oysters.
When they left the restaurant, the Baron and Emil went to watch an international
tennis contest; the winner, a certain Sasha, had a girlfriend named Ala, who was
keen on dancing. She introduced M. to her dance teacher, Ron.
And this is where things, at last, become relevant.
98
SPECIAL RULES, BOARDS AND PIECES
"This Ron was a dance performer on a level I've never seen before", said M.
"I was so impressed that I've asked him to run a workshop to my chess pieces."
Don't look at me; I'm only the delivery guy. This is what the Baron said, word by
word.
M. explained. "I have my own chess set, which I carry on my travels. Ron taught
my pieces how to dance properly; he increased their flexibility and quickness. It
transpired that it had a clear benefit on them:
MUNCHAUSEN (BLINDFOLDED)- GARY KASPAROV, 1990
White to play
''At first I thought that winning will be easy," revealed the Baron, "as his queen
drops off. But concrete analysis proved otherwise. I .ilxd8 fails to l . . .l:hd l and if my
queen moves, 2 ... l:h l + is lethal.
"The other capture, I .l:xd8, makes more sense, because l . ..l:xd l 2.�xd l is to
my advantage. However, Black plays l . ..ilxd8 and he is holding his position (for
instance, 2.Lle3 Llxc6 3.�f5+ 'Jle7 4.ilxd5+ l:xd5 5.'Jlg7 ild8 and White cannot
penetrate this fortress).
"Let me remind you that at the time of play, Kasparov was the reigning World
Champion. It was not so easy to beat him. "
"So, what did you do?"
He paused to convey his disapproval. "I would have told you anyway, without
your impatient interference, wouldn't I?"
He proceeded: "I put my trust in the dance training-lessons my pieces went
through. Watch:"
l.l:g8!!�xg8
White intended 2.l:g6+ fxg6 3 .�xg6#.
2.�f5+ !!'Jlxf5 3.ile7+ !l:xe7
Truly amazing. Three sacrifices in a row. .. but for what?
99
4.tt:le3+
" It is time for a little dancing," Munchausen pointed out with pleasure.
4... 't!ff6 5.tt:l xd5+ 't!if5 6.tt:l xe7+ 't!if6 7 .tt:lxg8+ 't!ff5
Now that the harvest had ended, let us see how the knight dances backwards!
8.tt:le7+ 't!ff6 9.tt:l d5+ 't!ff5 10.g4 Mate!
"Kasparov was irate - losing in such a manner wouldn't make anyone happy.
That is understandable. You realize now that mastering the art of dancing provides
certain advantages for chess players."
It is to Kasparov's credit that he kept his crown for many years after this shocking
blow. Maybe he also took some dancing lessons?
The position is a composed study by Albert Belyavsky, which took frst prize in
Korolkov Centenary tourney, 2007.
The frst two moves of the original study were omitted, jor the sake of clarity.
10 1
CHAPTER 4
INCARNATION
The Baron and I were sitting on the porch. It was a pleasant afternoon and we
were both enjoying the sun and the breeze that came from the sea.
There was absolutely nothing that had prepared me for the Baron's next
sentence:
" Have you ever heard a chess piece talking to you?"
I pulled the cotton out of my right ear and asked him to repeat his words.
" Have you ever heard a chess piece talking to you?"
''Are you feeling well, my dear Baron?" I asked him gently. " Perhaps we'd better
go inside the house. . . "
"Once, during a game, a black horse begged me for his life," Munchausen went
on, leaving me wondering whether I should call a doctor.
"It was in the eve of The Great War, " continued M . , undisturbed by my conduct.
"I was leading the field from some strong titled players. . .
"
"Counts and Knights, I presume," I thought to myself, but kept quiet.

" Playing against Mr. Brutal, I got out of the opening with a fine game:
BRUTAL- BARON MUNCHAUSEN
l.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.ltJf3 dxc4 H!Ha4+ ltJd7 5.e4 ctJf6 6.ltJc3 a6 7.�xc4 llb8
8.'�c2 b5 9.�e2 �b7 10.0-0 b4 l l .e5
"I was feeling quite content. The continuation l l . . .bxc3 was more than adequate
for me. But it was here that I heard a strange voice: 'help me, please!'
"I looked around, and you can imagine my astonishment when I spotted the
black ctJf6 moaning: 'Help me, save my life; I don't want to die!'
"I immediately understood what was going on. After l l . . .bxc3, my opponent
102
would capture my tZ:lf6. The poor beast begged for its life. No one wants to die, in
particular not a young, 10-move-old adolescent horse!"
I looked at Munchausen with bewilderment. I have spent a lot of time with him,
but still, whenever we got together, I discovered something new and unpredictable
about him.
"So" - the Baron continued to chat - "I found myself facing a serious dilemma:
should I enter the best variation, and let my tZ:lf6 suffer a terrible death at the hands
of Brutal, or should I play the meek ... CZJg8? Finally, I saw the light. I would let my
horse die, but within a move and a half, it will be reborn on the board!!"
I pulled out the cotton from my left ear, but it was obvious that Baron Munchausen
had indeed said what I thought he said.
l l ...bxc3 12.exf6 cxb2 13.fxg7 bxal=tZ:l!! 14.gxh8='il CZJxc2
"You can see that the black horse was 'dead' for only a fraction of a second. As
soon as I had promoted to a knight, I looked at the fresh knight, and recognized in
him his old, dying peer. It all turned out for the best, as not only was the knight alive
and well, but I had gained a decisive material advantage and won the game. "
"I guess the reincarnated horse thanked you heartily, " I said, with a certain bit
of cynicism.
Without blinking, came the answer. " He was very grateful indeed."
The amazing knight-promotion occu"ed in the game Xie Jun - Ivanchuk, Lucerne
1993.
10 3
CHAPTER 4
HALF A BOARD AND A HANDFUL OF PIECES
Munchausen came back from a short vacation in the country. Glancing at the
chessboard in my flat, he said: "What do you know- a real chess set!"
I raised an eyebrow and the Baron explained: "On my way back I met on the train
a strong master, who invited me to play some games. We managed to find a box with
some scattered chess pieces: kings, queens, a white rook and a few pawns; but we did
not have a complete chess set. So, we had to improvise. "
"Go on. "
"We opened a packet of cookies and began to form a chessboard. Alas, we were
short of them and there were only enough to make half a board."
"So, you gave up the idea of playing?"
"Not at all," answered M. "We just had to make do with what we had. You'll see
that even in such circumstances I am still a formidable player. "
MUNCHAUSEN- THE TRAIN MASTER
Black to play
l ..'i¥d8!
.
"This was a difficult move to meet" - commented the Baron - "2.'i:Vxd8 is

stalemate, while 2.'>tb7 'i:Va8+ 3.'>tb6 'i:Vxc6+, or 2.'i:Va7 'i:Vc7! 3.I:i:b6 'i:Vc8+ draws,
in spite ofWhite's enormous material advantage. "
2 'i:Va5+!!
.
The only way to victory.

2.. 'i:Vxa5+ 3.\t'b7 'i¥d8 4.l:a6+ 'i:Va5 5.I:i:d6 and Black is helpless. The
.
disappearance of the white queen prevents Black from reaching a stalemate.
"We soon had a second game, on the same half-board. Since I won the first
contest, I took the white pieces once again. "
10 4
MUNCHAUSEN- THE TRAIN-MASTER
White to play
" Hold it! I thought you said that the box contained only a white rook! "
He didn't move a muscle. "That's right. We had some chocolate, so we painted
the rook black. "
Well, if I believed him so far, I had to accept this answer.
1.'i¥b8!
"There was a devilish trap here," remarked M. 1 .'i¥b7? l:a8!! leads to a
draw: 2.'i¥xa8+ 'litb6 3.'i¥xa3 bxa3 4.b4 'litc6 5.'1itc2 'litd5 6.'1itb3 'litd4 7.\itxa3
'litc4(c3)=.
l ...l:a8! 2.'i¥b7!
A reciprocal Zugzwang.
2 ... l:a6 3.'i¥c7+ l:b6 4.'i¥d8
And another one.
4...'1ita6 S.'i¥a8#.
"It makes you wonder, " the Baron reflected, "if 64 squares and 32 pieces are
really needed to play a game of chess."
In the first diagram, if you transfer the black queen to g5 and the white rook to e6,
you 'II get the fnal of a study by A. Mavelian from Armenia, 6-9 prize in Kra/in-55 ty,
Moscow 2000.
The second diagram is thefinal of a study by H. A/oni and A. Porat, Israel 2000 (the
original idea stemsfrom E. Dubrescu, 1971).
10 5
CHAPTER 4
THE EXHIBITION
The Baron had just returned from one of his many trips. " I spent some time on
Saturn. Boy, has this planet changed since the last time I've been there!"
He was in an excited mood.
"I was visiting a most extraordinary exhibition, " he revealed. ''Actually, I believe
I was witnessing the future of chess. "
He went on to describe a unique display of boards and pieces, which were
demonstrated to the three-legged, two-nosed, half-eared public, in a distant Saturn
village. To my request he reconstructed several works that caught his attention.
In one breathtaking product (see following diagram) the board was comprised of
randomly situated black and white squares, with a handsome slant on the top left, to
break the symmetry.
In another work, a certain artist presented what he called "animal chess."
10 6
Yet another spectacle (next diagram) showed scattered pieces standing on a

square-less board.
However, the strangest exhibit was the following position, in which White, two
rooks down, succeeds in holding the balance.
l .�b5+ Wxd6 2.�c5+!! bxc5++ 3.Wa3 and Black, even though it is his tum to
move, is unable to lift the stalemate net.
Perhaps some charm still remains in our "old chess."
The last diagram is taken from an old Russian textbook, probably assembled by
Panov.
10 7
CHAPTER 4
THE MAD QUEEN DISEASE
"Tell me a story, " I asked the Baron.

He smiled.
"You became quite lazy lately, " he commented. "I recall the times when you
made an effort to make a decent introduction. You know, 'it was rainy, Munchausen
entered myflat and sat by thefireplace' - this kind of stuff. "
"Tell me a story, " I repeated.
"Oh well, as you wish. The strangest thing happened to me - but you won't
believe it. "
"As i f I believe other stories you tell me, " I mumbled.
"What was that?" M. inquired.
"Nothing."
"Some time ago, I looked at my old chessboard, and spotted that my black queen
was disintegrating. This made me sad."
"It's high time that you buy a new set," I opined.
"Not at all!" protested Munchausen. "This is the set that have provided me with
splendid victories over the greatest players in the world, and I'd like to remain loyal
to it. It was just the queen, no more. So I went to see my friend Richard. He recently
opened a Queen business."
I put on my inquiring expression.

" Richard thought that instead of manufacturing whole sets of chess boards
and pieces, he would concentrate on queens," explained M. "In this way, he could
specialize and grant his customers a better service. Others soon followed his footsteps.
For instance, Mr. Hood now focuses on producing knights and pawns."
"I suppose one could specialize in assembling white squares only," I noted.
Munchausen gave me a strange look, trying to see ifl was teasing him.
''Anyway, I purchased a black queen from Richard and went home to play some
friendly games with my admirers. However. . . "
"Yes?"
"The new queen turned out to be sick," revealed the Baron.

''Apparently, there was a vicious virus in Richard's plant; all the queens were
infected with 'mad queens' disease' . "
"What happened?"
"The queen wanted to self-destruct on every tum. Ifyou just took your hand off
her, she would try to commit suicide. "
108
CHAPTER 4
This sounded a bit odd. I demanded a demonstration.
N.N.- MUNCHAUSEN
Black to play
"Two pieces down, I thought I was lost here. So I let my queen run wild. "
l...'i.Vxf6! 2.'i.Vcl
2. 'i¥xf6 Mel + 3.JU1 Mxfl +! 4.Mxfl f2#.
2... 'i.Vb2!! 3.'i.Vn
3.Mxb2? f2+; 3.'i.Vxb2? Me l + with lines similar to the last note. The intermediate
3.ll:Jxd6+ <;b8 doesn't make a difference.
3...'i.Vxf2!
Three successive queen's sacrifices!
"I told you, she was crazy, " said the Baron, apologetically.
4.'i.Vxf2 Mel+ S.'i.Vxel f2 + 0-1
"This suicidal lady served you well!"

M. agreed. "In this case, she did. But you couldn't trust her. The other day, she
infected my king. . . "
The combination is C. W. Kostrovitsky, St. Petersburg 1893 (?),from the book

-
A Chess Omnibus by Edward Winter (Russell Enterprises, 2003).
110
CONVINCING DRAW
As you probably read in the papers, Munchausen had recently participated in the
big tournament in Jerusalem, celebrating the World's final peace treaty.
Yes, he won; naturally. But it was not a routine victory, as he had to demonstrate
an unusual type of skill.
"If you wish to obtain a firm and lasting world peace, all parties involved must
display goodwill and readiness to compromise," said the Baron. "To commemorate
the spirit ofhuman brotherhood, the organizers ofthe Jerusalem tournament decided
on a unique scoring system. In each battle, the highest score - three points per game
- went to the players who made a draw. All other results - a win or a loss - gained
zero in the tournament table.
"This seems silly! Under such constraints, all protagonists will obviously agree to
a quick draw. "
M. smiled cunningly. ''Aha! But here is the catch; the organizers demanded the
draw to be a convincing draw."
"What does it mean?"
"It means that peace should be achieved by spectacular, extraordinary methods,
not just by agreement of the players. "
"Is it difficult to accomplish?"
"It certainly is, " replied Munchausen, emphatically. "On the one hand, I had to
direct my play just for equality - against my nature. On the other hand, I had to opt
for sharp and aggressive play, to increase the chances of the game to fare up. You
realize that there is an inherent conflict here."
"Some players found it difficult to adjust to the paradoxical demand" revealed

the Baron. " For example, Mr. Tranquil made a quiet draw and got no points. He
was told 'It is an unconvincing draw!' In another case, the renowned Grandmaster
Fierce was engrossed in the complications on his board to such an extent, that he
accidentally executed a winning combination. No points for him either!"
Here are two samples from the Baron's glorious performance in the Peace
tournament.
BARON MUNCHAUSEN- PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED NATIONS
l.d4 llf6 2.llf3 e6 3.e3 b6 4.�d3 �b7 5.0-0 c5 6.b3 �e7 7.�b2 0-0 8.llbd2
ll c6 9.a3 l:tc8 10.'i¥e2 'i¥c7 l l .l:tael l:tfe8 12.lle5 cxd4 13.exd4 �f8 14.f4 d6
15.llg4 ll xg4 16.'i¥xg4 ll e7
1 11
CHAPTER 4
"Now I had calculated an exciting forced variation, leading to a draw," declared

the Baron proudly.
17.l:xe6! fxe6 18Ji'xe6+
" 1 8.it.xh7+ is simpler, but I needed to make the draw more impressive," he
explained.
18...Wh8 19.it.xh7 %Yc6
1 9 . . . wxh7 20.%Yh3+ Wg8 2 l .'iVe6+=.
With the text Black creates a counter-threat, which enables him to shift his queen
to the defense. White's rejoinder defends against mate, while bringing another piece
to the offense.
20.1:13 d5 21.%Vti 'iVf6
2 l . ..'iVh6 22.it.d3ll:lg6 23.Il:h3ll:lh4 24.%Yxb7 is to White's advantage. Black is
careful not to unbalance the equality, as he benefits from this tie also.
22.Il:h3! 'iVxti 23.it.g6+
But not 23.it.d3+?? 'iVh5! 24J:!xh5+ Wg8 and the black king slips away.
23...Wg8 Draw by perpetual check (24.it.h7+).
HEAD OF NEGOTIATIONS COMMIITEE- BARON MUNCHAUSEN
1 12
Black to play
48... d4 49.'€tig5 d3 50.'€tixg6

" Black's position appears to be precarious (50 ... d2? 5 l .!'!d7!), but I believed that
there are several saving paths, " Munchausen reflected. "Knowing that an exceptional
kind of draw is required, I gave the public a treat:"
50... !'!xb5! 51.!'!bxb5 d2 52.!'!bd5 dl='i¥! 53.!'!xdl !'!d6+ 54.!'!xd6 Stalemate
Hence, a convincing draw.
The game is Siebrecht - J. Timman, Amsterdam 2006

The ending is Kramnik - Leko, Tilburg 1997
1 13
CHAPTER 4
PLAYING BY COMMAND
I always loved to hear tales about old masters who made highly committal claims
before the start of a game. Something along the lines of "I'm going to sacrifice a bishop
in this game; " or "I'll mate him on the g7 square; " or "I'll emerge victorious in less than
30 moves. "
Incredibly, they sometimes turned out to be right!
Therefore I was thrilled when the Baron was invited to Italy, to take part in a
tournament where, in addition to "normal chess, "the players were given orders to
play "by command. "For instance, in one of the rounds all participants were asked
"to exchange all pawns in a minimum number of moves. "In another round an order
came after an hour of play, that "your rooks should stay where they arefor the next 20
moves. "
"The games were amusing to watch and a joy to play, " he said.
In the last two rounds, the organizers made the players' lives even more difficult.
BARON MUNCHAUSEN- THE DUKE OF TURIN
White to play
"I was just about to crown my promising attacking position with a decisive
combination when, on behalf of the tournament director, a little girl announced "All
queen sacrifices should be avoided!"
"Now, what was I to do?" he grumbled. " My intended 26.'iVxh6+!! gxh6
27.Ihh6+ <tlg7 28.IIh7+!! 'i:lxh7 29.IIh5+ <tlg7 3Q.j,h6+ 'i:lh8 3 l .j, f8# would win
the game but disobey our 'order'!"
Reluctantly, the Baron chose a slower winning method:
26.'iVf2 d5 27 JUb5 c4 28.dxc4 'iVxe4 29.cxd5 j,c8 30.j,xh6 j,xb3 31.j,g5+
<tlg8 32.l:Ixh3 IIfe8 33.d6+ 'i:Jf8
1 14
" Here I could make a short work of my opponent with 34.'i¥xf6+! gxf6 35. lih6
checkmate, " observed Munchausen, "but once again, this would be against the
rules!" So . . .
34.lixf6 'iVel+ 35.'i¥xel l:lxel+ 36.\t>fl l:ldl 37.lie7+ 'it> e8 38.lic4 I:Ic8
39.Jid3 CiJxe7 40.l:le3 'it>f7 41.dxe7 lle8 42.lic4+ 'it>f6 43.lle6+ 'it>fS 44.g4+ 'it> xg4
45.iib5 l:ld2+ 46.\t> el l-0
In the final round the Baron pulled out a powerful offensive operation:
BARON MUNCHAUSEN- PRINCE OF PADOVA
White to play
37.CiJe4!
This move appears risky but M. had everything under control.
37 ...l:lbl+ 38.'it>h2 'i¥d4 39.llh8+ 'it> g6 40.'i¥xd6+ 'it> hS 41.'i¥xf4 'iYgl + 42.'it>g3
'iYel+ 43.CiJf2 l:lb4
"The rest is simple (for instance 44.c4) , " said the Baron, "but at this very point
we got a strange command: 'Playfor the brilliancyprize!' So, instead ofusing ordinary
means, I had to win spectacularly. "
44.'i¥f7+ g6 45.'i¥f3+ 'it> gS 46.'it> h2! 'iVeS+ 47.g3 'i¥xh8 48.h4+ :l:xh4 49.gxh4+
'it>xh4 SO.'i¥f4+ 'it> hS 51.'it> g3! 1-0
5 l . . .g5 (or 5 1 . ..'i¥c3+ 52.CiJd3) 52.'i¥f7#. Notice the back and forth maneuvers of
the white king ('it>h2-g3-h2-g3) and queen ('i¥t7-f3-t7 ,'i¥f4-t7-f4). Brilliant indeed.
The first episode is Sadvakasov - Shukurova, Baku 2006; the second is Hou
Yifan - Tairova 2006.
For all you, data-loving people, here is some additional information: the Baron won
the tournament, two and a halfpoints ahead of Mr. NeverHappened. With this he gained
16 rating points and in the coming list he will increase his superiority over the rest of the
field (Carlsen et a/. ) by 100 points.
1 15
Chapter 5
Technology and Inventions
The Baron invents a great apparatus (or does he... ?) -

discovers the wondrous world ofInternet chess -confronts
web obnoxiousness -nominates himself for a Nobel Prize
formulates a revolutionary principle -reasserts the Asimov
rules for correct behavior ofchess computers -develops a
whole new concept in opening theory -overcomes a
diabolical plot ofDr. Evil.
TECHNOLOGY AND INVENTIONS
A REVOLUTIONARY DEVICE FOR SPOTTING TRAPS
Last week I found the Baron particularly excited and cheerful.

"I have introduced a new, revolutionary device, which is going to change the
future of chess forever, " he claimed.
I remained somewhat indifferent, as I was accustomed by now to Munchausen's
frequent pompous declarations.
Noticing my chilly response, M. took the task of giving me hard evidence. He
disappeared for a minute in his attic and when he came back to the living room he held
in his hands a strange device, with all kind ofstrings and electronic wires around it.
"This, my friend, is my incredible new invention, " stated the Baron, proudly. "It
assists a chess player to spot his opponent's ploys."
This was truly amazing. How could such a device work? Would it be legal to use
it? What would happen if both protagonists were able to acquire such an instrument?
These and other questions crossed my mind.
Munchausen demonstrated uncharacteristic patience as he began his lecture.
"Looking through our rival's mind is one of the most difficult tasks we have to
confront, when playing a game. This device, which you are the first person in the
world to witness, can measure from a distance the following factors:
a) The opponent's blood pressure and heart beat
b) Differences in implicit behavior of the chess pieces ("Yes, you heard me
correctly, " the Baron confirmed)
c) Slight changes in the color ofthe board's squares (" Have more trust in me, "
ordered M.)
d) Chess clock's modified noise
e) Movement of spectators
f) Air-vibrations
"Weighing all these factors, while adding a constant of 2.5749 1 and dividing
the result by the day's measure of humidity, makes one totally aware of all of the
opponent's schemes," claimed Munchausen, triumphantly.
He also revealed that it took him several years to develop such a device ("it is
version 8.0!"), using the services of advanced scientific laboratories while co
operating with some world-renowned researchers in the fields oftelepathy, medicine,
psychology and zomocirology (?).
Well, what could I say?

''Are you going to implement this equipment in a practical game? Because if you
are, I'll be very interested to watch. "
Munchausen, sure of himself, invited me to his very next contest.
117
CHAPTERS
WHITE: A GREAT PLAYER

BLACK: AN EVEN GREATER ONE (BARON M.)
As the players were about to start the fight, the Baron pulled his advanced device
from the bag and placed it on the table, beside him.
"What's that?" White was wondering.
10...li:lbd7?!
In retrospect, lO ... .Itxc5 is better.
l l.b4! b6 12.li:ld4
A critical moment. Here the Baron had a deep think, putting his right arm above
his special device. After 1 5 minutes he had made the required calculation, and
confidently proceeded.
12...bxc5?
l 2 . . . lt:lxc5!.
13.lt:lc6!
118
" I still thought everything is fine until it dawned on me that 1 3. . .'i¥c7(b6) is met
by 14.'i¥xe6+!!, with mate next move," complained M. bitterly, later on.
Black resigned.
M. was furious. " Stupid, useless machine!" He took the device and tossed it to
the garbage can. Thus, one of humanity's great inventions will now remain hidden
from the public eye. But have no doubt; it was real, and I was there when the Baron
presented it.
Flores - Valentine, correspondence 1988. Naturally, with modem computerized

tools this would never occur today in a correspondence encounter.
119
CHAPTERS
ADVENTURES ON THE NET
The other day I suggested to the Baron that he try his hand in an Internet game.
We entered into Internet Chess Club playing zone. "Choose a nickname, " I said,
but Munchausen was not a man to conceal his identity. He clicked "Baron "but the
system refused to allow it, flashing up the message: "This username already exists. "
"Let's try 'Munchausen " said the Baron, but the response was the same:
',
apparently, some imposter had the nerve to use this name.

M. frowned. Hetried in succession nameslike "TheGreatOne ", "TheOneAndOnly"
and "BaronM " but the computer insisted: these usernames were already taken by
,
other competitors.
Finally, we managed to find an original username: "lamTheBaron. " We searched
for a suitable opponent, and a certain "Skeptic "took the challenge. It was a 5-minute
game, which proceeded in a normal way, until Skeptic decided to engage M. in a
chat.
"What's your real name?" he asked.

Munchausen clicked, proudly: "I am Baron Munchausen . "
"Yeah, sure" - came the answer - "and I a m Julius Caesar. "
The Baron turned red. "I am the real Baron."
Some seconds had passed, and then came the reply: "If you prefer to keep your
anonymity, that's fine with me. "
Munchausen burned with rage and clicked "Listen, you b---. . . "
"I'm afraid obscenities are considered out of place here, " I whispered gently in a
hurry, before this crude message would be sent.
M. calmed down and eventually typed, " How can I prove to you that I am the
real Baron Munchausen?"
Skeptic wisely postponed his answer, until the Baron almost ran out of time, and
then clicked: " Mate me!"
I looked at the screen with concern. The Baron clearly held the edge, but
with three seconds to complete the entire game, delivering mate seemed to be an
impossible mission.
120
IAMTHEBARON- SKEPTIC
White to play
After l ..lxb7 'ie2+ 2.'ixe2 ..1xe2 White is bound to lose on time. But my hero
glanced at the screen and muttered: "It's a piece of cake! "
1.'ih6+ !!
I still thought that he could lose, for after l . . .gxh6 ( l . . .'ixh6 2.llh8#) 2.llxb7+
Black would play 2 . . . ..1d7, 3 .. .ll:le7 and 4. . . 'if7 before being mated. Indeed that's
what Skeptic chose to do.
But then, something remarkable had happened: the Baron put a finger on that
line on the screen which displays the respective times, and held it constant until mate
was delivered!
This was a true miracle. Skeptic was appreciative and clicked "Very nice; what's
your real name?" Seeing this, Munchausen shut down the computer with disgust.
. The ending is N. Popov - A. Novopashin, USSR Championship (semifinal) 1979
121
MUNCHAUSEN- A WEB MASTER
White to play
White's position is cheerless, and the Baron thought for quite some time.
Suddenly a text appeared in the box on the screen: " Move! " ordered the Baron's
opponent. " Play! "
It was quite rude, I thought. Worse was to come:
"Come on, resign! You are lost, admit it!"
The Baron reflected for a minute and played:
l.tt'le5
l .l:ic3? or l .l:'Ic4? would be answered by the deadly l . .."iYf5!, when Black's attack
wins.
l...Iidl+!
A strong riposte. After l . . .bxc2 2.�a7+ tt'la6 3.tt'ld3 White is safe.
2.\t>xdl bxc2+
It looks hopeless for White now.
� " LOL!"
"What was that?" the Baron wondered.
I explained to my friend that LOL stands, in Internet language, for "laughs out
loud. "
I found the notion that somewhere on this planet, a guy sits and laughs at the
misery of his opponent, a bit sickening.
" LOL! LOL! LOLOLOLOLOL!"
I would have said something nasty about this "Web Master" but I'm sure the
readers get the picture.
I typed a short answer, on behalf of my friend. "GAL'' (which means 'get a
life).
The jerk was not bothered: "LOL! LOLOLOLOL!"
123
CHAPTERS
I pleaded the great M. " Please fnd a way to avoid losing. We must stop his
LAUGH!"
Munchausen scratched his head. "Of course, I can draw if I want to, " he said.
" Do it! Please!"
Slowly, somewhat reluctantly, the Baron continued:
3.'it>xc2 lbe6+ 4.�c7!! lbxc7 5.d7 �b8 6.d8=�! �xd8
7.lb d3!!
It transpires that a draw is unavoidable!
7 ...lbb5 S.lbcl+ 'it>al 9.lbb3+ 'it>a2 lO.lbcl+=
The Web Master wrote "WTH" ("what the hell'), to which Munchausen snatched
the keyboard and typed, gleefully: "LOL! LOLOLOLOL!"
And when the commotion was over, they both agreed that it was a GG ('good
game).
The diagram represents a study by Yu. Zemlyansky, 4'h prize Rudenko ty, 1998.
124
A CANDIDATE FOR A NOBEL PRIZE
The other night, I invited Munchausen to the movies. We watched A Beautiful

Mind, revolving around the life of the troubled genius mathematician John Nash, a
Nobel Prize winner.
Upon leaving the hall, the Baron was deep in thought.
" If there were a Nobel Prize in chess, I would be declared the winner," he
mused.
I gently remarked that the prize was given for a really great discovery, which has
meaningful implications.
"That's precisely why I believe I deserve it," remarked M .
"Long ago" - h e began t o explain - "the power of a rook at any given time, was
considered to be the amount ofinfluence it exerted on a file, or on a rank. Expressed
in mathematical terms:
PR = I (f) or I (r)
"You were definitely affected by this movie," I said, in light ofhis sudden tendency
to put ideas in formulas.
"One day," revealed the Baron, "I found myself in the following situation:
THE BARON- INNOCENT SOUL
White to play
" My opponent had just captured a pawn on h3."

l.l:c5 �d8?!
"Curious. I thought l . . ..ilt.f5 was forced."
2.l:d5!!
1 25
CHAPTERS
" My rival probably expected 2. l:xg5? l:!xd4, or 2 .'� c3? l:! d l +! 3 . �h2 �f4+!; But
my move is winning on the spot. The rook functions both vertically and horizontally;
2 ... l:xd5? fails to 3.�h8#."
2... .1xg2 3.l:!xd8 ii. d5+ 4.tz:lg4+ Black resigned.
"After this, I revised the old formula as follows:"
PR = I (f) and I (r)
" Some years later, my discovery was put to great use, when it transpires that when
a pair of rooks act this way, it becomes a force-multiplier. "
MUNCHAUSEN- NEVERHEARDOFHIM
White to play
"White's rooks, which were exerting power on the d-file, now switch to the sixth
rank. "
34.l'Id6
Prevents 34. . . I!d7 (35. I!xe6) and 34 ... .1f7 (35. I!xf6).
34...tz:le8 35.l:c6! �b7 36.1Lh4 tz:lf6 37.l:!dd6 �f7 38.�dl!
With an eye to 39.�a l , inter alia.
38...I!g8 39.ii.xf6 �xf6 40.�d5 Black resigned.
''After this game, my formula had to be changed once again. Here it is in its
current form:
P(RR) = I (f) multiple by I (r)
"Now, tell me if this doesn't deserve a nomination for a Nobel-prize, " said the
Baron proudly.
I thought that the readers of this book are more qualified than I to make a
judgment. To assist you all in your mission, here is some guidance:
1 26
0 (R) = (I) (F) (G)
Or, in words: the opinion of readers should be computed as the multiplication of

importance, freshness, and grandiosity ofthe Baron's idea.
The P' diagram is Pedersen - Van ·Der Wiel, Netherlands 1980. The second is
Ragozin - Lisitzin, Moscow 1940.
127
CHAPTERS
THE KENNEDY-MUNCHAUSEN PRINCIPLE
"Today, " announced the Baron, "we'll play a game."

I assumed he meant chess, and had already started to set up the board and pieces;
but Munchausen had other ideas.
"You'll pick an aphorism or some other words ofwisdom relating to everyday life
and I 'll try to see how these can apply to chess."
Okay, then. I leafed through some papers and landed on US President Kennedy's
famous saying from his 1 96 1 inaugural address. "Ask not what your country can do for
you; ask what you can dofor your country. " [Actually, these words were by T.C. Sorensen
- the President's speechwriter - and it was probably inspired by several predecessors,
like O.W. Holmes, Khalil Gibran and Robert Browning, who expressed a similar idea. ]
The Baron thought for a few seconds, and came up with what I 'll call "The
Kennedy Munchausen principle."
Are you ready? Here it is:
"Ask not what your opponent wants to do to you, but what you can do to your
opponent."
''Aren't these two things equally important?" I asked.

"Yes, they are," confrmed M., " ... and on each turn they should both be
considered. Always. If you are only occupied with your opponent's plans, then . . . "
And he showed me the following episode:
MUNCHAUSEN- MR. PROPHYLAXIS
White to play
Munchausen shared his frank opinion. " I have sacrificed three pawns (!) to get
this position, but objectively, my compensation is negligible. But my rival was focused
on defense; so I tried a devilish trap" :
128
1Vi:Jg5!?
Threatening mate in one.
"Now, if my rival pondered for a minute on his own possibilities, he would
certainly fnd 12 . . .'iVb4 +! 13.'iVd2 l/ixd2+ 14. rt>xd2 .ih6!, winning. Instead, having
been concerned only with his opponent's plans, he hurriedly defended f7 with. . .
12...1/ia2??
. . . only to be dumbfounded by. . .
13.1/ia4!! Black resigned.
The Baron couldn't resist the urge to mock the Nimzowitsch/Petrosian/Dvoretsky

school of chess: " From time to time," he pompously declared, "it is beneficial to
look at things from our own point of view. "
Then he said: " I think that the Kennedy-Munchausen principle can be also
applied in other areas oflife. Take Business, for instance: 'Ask not what your employees
can dofor you, ask what you can dofor your employees'; or sex: 'Ask not what your lover
can do to you, but'. . . "
Naturally, I didn't let him finish. My editor would only censor it, anyway.
The game is A. Mindlin - Y. Meirovich, Israel Under-10 championship, 2005.
129
CHAPTERS
PRACTICAL CHESS-COMPUTER PSYCHOLOGY
The other day, the Baron invited me to an exhibition, where he presented

to the chess community a brand new product: a piece of chess software, named
Munchausen-Asimov.
'�ter years ofwatching human beings sweat and suffer combating chess software,
I have decided to develop one of my own. It is founded on the work of Isaac Asimov
( 1 920 - 1 992), that brilliant professor of Biochemistry, author of classic science
fiction books."
M. paused dramatically for a moment and then developed his lucid
argument:
"The problem with computerized chess, as we all know, is that people marvel at
the machine cleverness, as long as it does not beat them in a contest. Losing against
software is a humiliating experience for the majority of chess players. So, my new
invention is as good as Rybka, Shredder, Junior and other leading tools, but possesses
an additional vital ingredient. At the critical moment, it will act on Asimov's first law
(from his three laws of robotics): A robot may not injure a human being, or, through
inaction, allow a human being to come to harm."
The crowd, me included, was speechless. Everybody demanded a demonstration.

His Majesty generously gave two recent examples.
MUNCHAUSEN-ASIMOV- A HUMAN CHAMPION
White to play
28.ii:lf6+!
A strong positional sacrifice. 28.f6 ii:lg6 29.fxg7 ii:le5 was less convincing.
28...gxf6 29.ii:le4 Wf8 30.ii:lxf6 l:Id8 31.'il'd2 ii:lg8 32.ii:lxg8 Wxg8 33.'il'xh6
l:Id7
130
"This is where my software is superior to every Fritz in the world," said

Munchausen proudly. " Standard software would play here 34.l: e6, when the threat
35.Il:g6+! is deadly. But by using Asimov's first law, my machine wisely played . . . "
34.�g5+? <;t>f8 35.Il:e6?? �xe6! White resigned.
36.fxe6 .i e4#.
"So, both rivals were happy: It was clear that Munchausen-Asimov was the
stronger player, but the dignity of humans was kept intact. "
A HUMAN CHAMPION- MUNCHAUSEN-ASIMOV
White to play
After 38.Il:e7 llgxf2 39.I:l:d7 the game would be drawn. However, in time-trouble
White erred:
38.Il:e2??
M. explained the situation. "Naturally, Munchausen-Asimov immediately

spotted the winning continuation 38 . . . llf4! 39.I:l:e l (39.I:l:e7 <;t>f8) Il:c l !! 40.Il:xc l
lle2 + 4 I . <;t> h l llxf2#. But only heartless software would display such cruelty. My
sensational device would not dream of offending people like that; therefore . . . "
38...llcl ?? 39.Il:el ll d3 40.Il:e2?? llcl ?? 41.Il:el Draw.
"Now, tell me ifthis isn't worth a mere $499.99 , " said Munchausen. ''And a mega
database of the Baron's games from the last 700 years is built-in as part of the deal!"
Applause.
Thefirst diagram is Tomchek - Anand, Lugano 1988

The second one describes the events in Zarnicki - Dgebuadze, Roque Saenz Pena
1997.
131
CHAPTERS
THE BARON'S OPENING
"You look quite happy, " I told the Baron, when we met last Wednesday.
Munchausen smiled and confirmed my observation. "Yes, I am. "
"That's good. Any reason i n particular for such a cheerful mood?"
The Baron reflected for a while, and then bent forward, as if he was revealing a
secret.
" I have invented a whole new opening," he said.
I was impressed.
" My idea creates a revolution in the whole concept of fianchetto*," he claimed.
"It transpires that you can fianchetto other pieces as well as the bishop. "
" Please go on. "
"I a m proud to show you a game I won just this week. I t features a new opening
- the King's fianchetto. " *
MUNCHAUSEN- SMITH
The King's Fianchetto
l.d4 d5 2.b3 c5 3.dxc5 'i¥a5+ 4.'i¥d2 'i¥xc5 5.ita3 'i¥c7 6::i:Jc3 lbf6 7.0-0-0 'i¥a5
8.';t>b2
Ladies and Gentlemen, the opening of the future - the King's fianchetto! (2.b3,
5 .ita3, 8 .'ti?b2).
8...ite6 9.e4 dxe4 10.itb4! 'i¥c7 l l.lbb5 'i¥c8 12.ita5 b6 13.'i¥f4 lb d5 14.'i¥xe4
lba6
14. . .bxa5 15.Il:xd5 itxd5 16.lbd6+ 'ti? d7 17.'i¥xd5 with advantage.
15.Il:xd5!
"Now you'll see my modem interpretation of 'activating your rook, ' " declared
M. "Watch this beast!"
132
15...f5
l 5 ... .1ixd5 is more stubborn, although after l 6Jl:ld6+ Wd7 l 7."�xd5 exd6
18.iixa6 �xa6 1 9.�xa8 White's advantage is not in doubt.
16.Irxf5! Wd8 17.Ire5 ii d7 18.iic3 ll:l c5 19.Irxc5!
The rook continues to create havoc; Black can choose either l 9 . . . bxc5 20 . .1i a5+
or l9 ... �xc5 20.�xa8+.
In the game, he opted for a third alternative:
Black resigned.
''A most imaginative game," I said, as I complimented my guest. "Your opening

experiment brought a glorious result."
"This was not a one-off shot, " he protested. "You can indeed fianchetto other
pieces than your bishop. I'd like to offer the following interesting opening ideas for
your readers:
The Knight's Fianchetto:

l.e4 g6 2.ll:l e2 ii.g7 3.g3 d6 4.ll:lf4 ll:l c6 5.ll:lg2
The Rook's Fianchetto:

l.h3 d5 2.g4 ll:lf6 3.Irh2 e5 4.Irg2
The Queen's Fianchetto:

l.g3 c6 2.d4 d5 3.�d3 ll:lf6 4.�f3 ii.g4 5.�g2
I thanked the Baron for sharing his new ideas. "I'm sure that every chess player
will study your suggestions carefully. They are fresh and promising."
But in my heart, I was not so confident that Munchausen will have many
followers.
Munchausen - Smith, is in fact the game Natan Bimboim - Moshe Katzir, Israeli
Premier League, 2000.
IM Bimboim was a top player - a three-time Israeli champion, who won battles
against luminaries such as Korchnoi, Dzindzichashvili, Romanishin, Sax etc. Nowadays
he plays forfun, inventing his opening schemes during a battle, which results in some
fascinating games, like the one you'vejust witnessed.
*A.fianchetto is a pattern of development wherein a bishop is developed to the second

rank of the adjacent knightfile, the knight pawn having been moved one or two squares
forward.
133
CHAPTERS
LOST CONNECTION AND A LOOSE KING
I don't know if I've mentioned it, but I hold a flying license. Last Tuesday I took
Munchausen on a leisure flight over the French Riviera.
An acquaintance of mine joined us as a second passenger. He introduced himself
to M.: " I am Dr. Evil, pleased to meet you."
They had a polite chat, during which the Baron found out that his co-passenger
was keen on chess. " I have played in major competitions and have some famous
scalps to my credit," he boasted.
Naturally, the Baron had a proposal: "Would you cross chess swords with me,
Mr. Evil?"
"It 's Dr. Evil. I didn � spend six years in Evil Medical School to be called 'mister, '
thank you very much. "
The Baron tactfully chose to ignore the hostile tone.
They had agreed on the terms ("One hour for each to complete 40 moves; I'll take
the white pieces," said Dr. Evil. " Fine with me, " agreed Munchausen); then a slight
problem had emerged.
"We don't have a chess set in the plane, " I observed, which instantly cooled their
enthusiasm.
There is a solution to every problem, though. Dr. Evil soon contacted someone
on the ground who arranged that a chess board with pieces would be available for
us.
Justifying his reputation as a technological wizard, Evil offered the Baron clever
transmitters, through which both men could deliver direct orders to their chess
pieces, ten kilometers beneath.
Play began, and consequently the following position appeared on the ground
board.
134
DR. EVIL- BARON MUNCHAUSEN
Black to play
2l...Wd7 22.axb5 axb5 23.lladl We6

"This is odd, " observed Munchausen, scrutinizing the board on the ground with
a telescope. " I do not recall dispatching my king to the middle of the board. . . "
24.llfel + Wd5
By now the Baron was in a mild state of shock. He checked his electronic device
and discovered, to his horror, that he had lost contact with his pieces some moves
beforehand.
"In the absence of orders from me, the black king made his moves of his own free
will, " said M. as he came to the inevitable conclusion. This was unbelievable.
I glanced at Dr. Evil. I had suspected that the loss of contact was not accidental:
the White player may have fixed this mishap.
25. .i.xc3 Wc4 26..i.a5 Wxb3 27.llbl+
135
CHAPTERS
Reacting to the audacious journey of the black king, Dr. Evil raged: "That makes
me angry "- he raised his voice - "and when Dr. Evilgets angry, Mr. Bigglesworth gets
upset. And when Mr. Bigglesworth gets upset. . . people DIE!"
Years of familiarity with the Dr. taught me that he is always serious; and wicked.
Come to think about it, he is seriously wicked. The situation became extremely
tense.
"With utmost concentration, I finally succeeded at this point to renew connection

with my king, by telepathy, " said Munchausen. " I sent him an order: 'get back! Get
back NOW!'
" My king understood me at once. Obedient as always, it hurried to safety at full
speed. "
27 ...�c4 28J:i:ecl+ � d5 29.c6 � d6 30Jhb5 l:i:b8 3Lib4+ � e6 32.l:i:el+ �f6
33..1il e7+ �fl 34.l:i:d5 l:hc8 35.l: d7 �g8
" Phew!" The Baron wiped drops of sweat from his forehead. "That was a lucky
escape. "
The game was eventually drawn.
Shortly afterwards the plane landed safely. The Baron and Dr. Evil departed with
no handshake. Gamesmanship is one thing Munchausen does not like.
Shirov - Timman, Hoogovens 1996. Later in the game Black made some e"ors and
lost (curiously, he resigned in a drawn position).
The quotations arefrom thefictional Dr. Evil, nemesis of Austin Powers.
Mr. Bigglesworth is Dr. Evil's cat.
136
Chapter 6
Historical Events
Munchausen reveals unknown facts about the way the

royal game was played in primal times -illuminates critical
occurrences in chess history -reveals the impetus for the
French Revolution -demonstrates his kind human nature,
by helping children in distress -gives a recount ofhis rich
biography -provides solid evidence regarding his great
achievements -reports on a bold initiative to organize a
diferent kind of competition -takes an agonizing view on
the future of chess.
CHAPTER 6
� !i� �t!,Q,�� ,�t!,� Q�.!�

"'"""'"""""""'""""""""""'"""""""""" . ,., .,. ,. ,, "'""""""""'"""""""""""'"""""'""""""
The Moscow Ministry of Culture announced its intention to publish an updated

and expanded encyclopedia of the history of chess. To this end they sent a delegate
to converse with the Baron, as his reminiscences went as far back as two thousand
years ago.
I took the chance and invited myself to Munchausen's apartment, to listen to the
world's most renowned history-teller.
"Chess has come a long way, " M. told the Russian delegate. " I remember, when
the Indian sailor Hari-Rama originally invented the game in the 6'h Century, the
board consisted of 28\12 squares; each of the three sides had ten pieces only... "
" I beg your pardon?"
The Russian folk were evidently unfamiliar with M.
"Yes, three sides, this is correct," insisted the Baron. "Green, blue and purple;
and each side had in his disposal ten cats. "
The Russian gentleman chuckled and then he raised a question with his soft voice.
" How could they manage with 30 pieces altogether, on a 28\12 squares board?"
''Aha! " declared the Baron triumphantly. " Squares 15 and L9 were allowed to
contain several cats at one and the same time. "
As the conversation went on, my friend disclosed amazing data about the
origins of our beloved hobby. Did you know, for example, that the first officers to be
developed from the original "cats, " were camels and bees? Did it occur to you that
the original chess clocks were operated according to the motion of the moon? And
did any reader ever hit on the discovery that "Kramnik " is the Russian equivalent of
the ancient "Ercole del Rio " ?
All very instructive, although perhaps somewhat bizarre. However, the most
illuminating fact (jact?) I had learnt from Munchausen on this meeting concerned
the change in power of opposite-colored bishops. To put it shortly, M. claimed that
for 12 centuries at least, the very existence of opposite-colored bishops on the board
- considered nowadays as a drawing factor - actually increased the chances of
victory for... White! See for yourselves. . .
138
HISTORICAL EVENTS
I. J VATZEV
USSR 1955
l.e5+ <J;e7
t . . .<J;d5 2.<J;g5! <J;xe5 3 .<J;h6 .itg8 4.<J;xg6 and the black bishop is doomed.
2.<J;g5 <J;f7
Another way to lose is 2 ... .itg8 3 . .itb4+ <J; e8 4.<J;f6 g5 5.<J;g7 .it f7 6.g4!.
3.<J;h6 <J; g8 4 .itg5 <J;h8 5.g3! <J;g8 6.g4 <J;h8 7 .itf6+ <J;g8 8.g5 1-0
• •
A. HERBSTMANN
USSR 1956
l..itf5+ <J; h6
t . . .<J;h5 2.<J; f7! <J;h6 3 .<J;g8 g4 4.h4 <J;h5! 5.<J; h7! and White wins.
2.<J; e7
Sidesteps the cunning 2.<J;f7? g4! 3 .hxg4 <J;g5 4.<J;xg7 stalemate.
2 g4 3.h4 <J;h5 4.<J;f7 <J;h6 5.<J;g8 <J;b5 6.<J;h7 .itf8
•.•
Black finally extricated his bishop ... alas -

7 .itg6#.
•
139
CHAPTER 6
HISTORY REVISITED
The Baron put away a chess book he was holding, with an expression of disgust.
" Pure nonsense, " he said. "Chess players are completely ignorant of chess
history. "
I invited him to back up this critical remark.
"Once again I see my game vs. Mr. Wicked, from Greece, 1485, reproduced as
Adams - Torre, New Orleans 1 920. And there are many more examples of false
data."
I was eager to look at things from Munchausen's angle. After all, "History, "apart
from being a science, is also a combination of the words "his and "story. "
"
BOTVINNIK - CAPABLANCA, AVRO 1938
White to play
"I was present at the time, in the tournament hall. "

"Were you a spectator?"
The Baron looked surprised.
"I was Botvinnik's coach. Is this fact also unknown?"
I kept quiet.
''Anyway, Botvinnik, who found it very difficult to concentrate during a game,
fell asleep. When I woke him up, through a telepathic connection, he thought for a
few seconds, to decide between l .'iVc7+ and I .j, a3+, both ofwhich win on the spot.
Finally he decided on the bishop move, but when he played I .j, a3 , his adversary
just captured the bishop. Suddenly Botvinnik had realized that the piece on e7 is a
queen, while the king is placed on g7. You know, the difference in shape between the
royal pieces is small . . . "
140
HISTORICAL EVENTS
(co"ect diagram)
"What happened?"
"Well, Botvin contemplated resignation, but out ofsheer despemtion made a few more
moves (l.Jka3 'iVxa3 2.li:Jh5+ gxh5 3.'iVg5+ 'it>f8 4.'iVxf6+ \t>g8 5.e7, and White won).
" Pure luck, " announced Munchausen, "and certainly not a planned, genius act."
AVERBAKH- KOTOV
Candidates' Tournament, Zurich 1953
Black to play
"This is another case of praising what, in essence, was an accident. I stood by

Kotov's side . . . "
''l\8 his coach?"
"No" - His Majesty replied - "I was participating in the Candidates tournament
as guest of honor. Of course, when I made 100% , the tournament's director decided
not to publish my games - it was too humiliating for the other players. Anyway... "
"Yes?"
"In the diagram position, Alexander Kotov, who was a pedantic and quite
obsessive person, began to put every one of Averbakh's pieces in the center of their
141
CHAPTER 6
squares. He took each piece, said 'J'adoube' and put it where he thought they should
be. The final correction was the white pawn on h3. But here, a nasty mishap had
occurred: he forgot to announce 'J'adoube � "
"You don't say! "
"I'm afraid this is what actually happened. Averbakh insisted that the h3-pawn
should be taken. Poor Kotov had to continue l...'ixh3+ and it was only after 2.Wxh3
l:rh6+ 3.Wg4 Cl:lf6+ 4.Wf5 that everybody realized that it was White who was in trouble
(4 ...Cl:lg4!! is strongest here, with the threat 5 . . . l:rf8+ 6.Wxg4 I!g8+ 7.Wf5 I!f6#).
"When Kotov won the game, he created the impression that capturing h3 was a
well thought-out sacrifice. I didn't want to contradict him in public; he was a nice
fellow and a regular customer of mine: our life-long score was 1 2 -2 in my favor. "
"Great stuffi " I thought we had enough for one episode, but M. went on.
" Frequently I see in the books Najdorfs Evergreen Game. It never really
happened, you know."
I was stunned.
"Well, there was such a game, (Glucksberg - Najdorf, Warsaw 1935) and it did
follow the sequence l.d4 f5 2.c4 Cl:lf6 3.Cl:lc3 e6 4.Cl:lf3 d5 5.e3 c6 6..it d3 .it d6 7.0-0
0-0 8.Cl:le2 Cl:lbd7 9.Cl:lg5 .itxh2+ lO.Whl Cl:lg4 l l.f4 'ie8 12.g3 'ih5 13.Wg2 .itgl
14.Cl:l xgl 'ih2+ 15.Wf3 e5 16.dxe5 Cl:l dxe5+ 17.fxe5 Cl:lxe5+ 18.Wf4 Cl:lg6+ 19.Wf3
"Only here, Black took a draw by repetition (Cl:le5+ followed by Cl:lg6+ and so
on). It was only some months later, when Miguel Najdorf came to me for chess
tuition, that I showed him the correct way: 19...f4! 20.exf4 .itg4+! 21.Wxg4 Cl:l e5+!
22.fxe5 h5#.
''Authors should really refer to this game as Glucksberg vs. Munchausen (with
Najdorf) . " said M.
"I want to thank you deeply, and I believe I can speak on behalf of all readers, for
opening our eyes," I told Munchausen. ''After these revelations, chess history will
never be the same again. "
142
HISTORICAL EVENTS
Last week I felt sick, and phoned the Baron to cancel our weekly meeting.
Munchausen was reluctant and insisted that he would come to see me, ignoring my
warning that he could catch the flu.
I noticed that he was dressed in new clothes. "I leafed through a fashion
magazine, and there was a particular photograph, which gave me an idea," he
explained.
I tried to fake an appreciative glance but the Baron sensed that it was not
genuine.
"You should also get some ideas from your environment," he preached. "You
know, you are not the cleverest person around."
A fact I freely acknowledged.
"This may be useful in chess, too."
I vaguely recalled how he once presented me with an idea he got from a carnivorous
flower.
"Let me show you something, " He said, as set up the pieces.
MUNCHAUSEN- THE BIRD MAN

Paris, 1 789
White to play
''After a tough battle, we reached the diagram. I looked at my position in despair, "
admitted the Baron. "It seems that Black is able to force a liquidation into a won
pawn ending: L�xf4 gxf4 2.<;t>g4 <;t>xg2 3.<;t>xf4 <;t>Q, or I .i. e l <;t> g l 2.g3 <;t>n 3.gxf4
gxf4 are not encouraging. My opponent expected my resignation. I looked around
to search for salvation. "
"You looked around? I always thought that one should seek salvation on the
board."
143
CHAPTER 6
"I already commented on your mental abilities, " said M. in a stern voice, which
shut me up.
" My adversary was a middle-aged bachelor, who lived in a large apartment, with
many birds. Small and large, multi-colored, the birds were all over the place. "
" So, you got a n idea from a bird."
Munchausen stared at me, and shrugged his shoulders: " I really don't know why
I bother."
This was painful.
Then he said, "The birds were in cages. Now, THIS gave me inspiration."
l..th2!! .txh2
l . . .g4+ 2.<;t>xg4 .txh2 3.<;t>f3 .t c7 4.g4 .txa5 5.g5 draws, as Black cannot keep
his pawns and stop the advanced g-pawn at the same time.
2.g4!
White puts himself in a stalemate position.
2....tgl 3.<;t>g3 .tf2+ 4.<;t>h3!
Funnily enough, the black bishop finds itself in a cage.
4....tgl 5.<;t>g3 .t h2+ 6.<;t>h3
Draw.
"Three days after this game, the French Revolution had started, " revealed the
Baron. "You see, after this game, my opponent also felt like he was in a cage. He led
the crowd towards the Bastille. Ifyou think about it, the move l . .th2 actually started
the French Revolution. "
"What happened to the birds?" I asked.

The Baron stood up and walked out. The visit had come to an end.
The diagram is a study by the great composer A. S. Gurvich (1960).
144
HISTORICAL EVENTS
THE HUMAN SIDE OF CHESS
Munchausen and I had a lively discussion on the subject of chess commentary.

" Frequently an annotator is not present at the scene of play, and he gives wrong
explanations as to why certain moves were played," I opined.
"You can't imagine how right you are." Evidently, the Baron supported my view.
"Sometimes a player moves fast and this is interpreted as great confidence on his part, while
in fact he is just revealing impatience and wants the game to be over as soon as possible."
''At other times, " I added, "a player sidesteps theory because he simply forgets his
intended line, but the annotator states that this was a planned innovation!"
Munchausen's eyes lit up. I knew that to be a sign that he recollected a nice story.
"One of the most famous chess tournaments took place in New York in 1 924.
In one of the rounds, the American champion Frank Marshall was playing the
future World Champion Alexander Alekhine. To make it even more interesting, the
organizers decided to produce a spectacular event, applying small children as chess
figures; in other words, a game of living chess. "
I was not aware o f any game from the New York tournament played as living
chess; but then, I am not the Baron.
"The organizers !lominated me as the kids' coach, " revealed M. "The children
were very small, I believe just six or seven years old, and one had to coordinate them
and to deal with their special needs."
I wondered what did he had in mind by "special needs " but I didn't have to wait
long to find out.
MARSHALL- ALEKHINE
New York 1 924
White to play
145
HISTORICAL EVENTS
"The kid was all right by now, " I observed, "and he was sent to carry out new
assignments. "
"Correct, " replied the Baron. " But here we had another incident. Joan Wells, a
thin girl in the role of the b7-pawn, had a sudden urge to use the toilet and had to be
rushed off to the loo as quickly as possible."
"So?"
"The trouble was that the sole available facility was behind the white army: quite
a distance from b7, I'd say. Again, a move was chosen on the basis of human, non
chess considerations."
23...b6! 24.ll'lxd5 bxc5

24. . . cxd5? 25.l:rc6! is advantageous for White.
25.ll'lc7 cxd4! 26.ll'lxe8 dxe3!
"With giant steps, little Joan gets closer to her destination, " noted the Baron with
satisfaction.
27.ll'lxd6
27.f4 exf3 e.p. 28.ll'lxd6 is met by 28 ... f2+ (not 28 . . . e2 29.�c8+ rJ:Jg7 30.�h8+!!
'lt>xh8 3 l .ll'lxf7+) 29.rJfl e2+! 30.rJxe2 �xc l 3 l .�fl �b2+ 32.rJe3 �c3+ and
draws.
27... exf2+ 28.rJxf2
" Run, girl, run! " exclaimed M . gleefully. Little Joan made it safely to the loo.
28... �d2+ 29.rJ gl �e3+! 30.rJg2 �f3+ 31.rJgl �e3+ 32.rJg2 Y2:Y2
"The protagonists didn't get wet either, " the Baron commented shrewdly.
Details of the game, tournament place and date are true.
147
CHAPTER 6
THE INTERVIEW
The other day, the Baron and I went to the seashore. I watched my hero building
towers and castles in the sand while he recollected his past adventures.
"You know, " he said, "Tom Reilly phoned me last week. "
"Who is he?"
Munchausen peeped at me with surprise: "Why, he is the editor of The Baron,
the famous inter-galactic magazine. Don't tell me you've never come across this
journal . . . "
"I see. What did h e want?"
" He said that the readers are already well acquainted with all my adventures, and
suggested that I write something on my childhood memories."
"Childhood memories? "
"Yes, you know, " M. looked uneasy, " ... my early years, how I grew up ... ".
"Newspapers are indeed interested in this kind of stuff, " I groaned. "You turned
him down, I presume."
"Actually, no ... " The Baron was perplexed. "I suggested to him that I 'll say
something about it in the context of an interview. "
"That's okay. who will the interviewer be?"
The Baron looked at the waves with deep concentration. "You will."
* * *
We: Let us start with some background information.

The Baron: I was born in 1 245*, in what is now known as the state of
Czechoslovakia. My parents were ordinary, middle-class people; My Baron title did
not come to me through inheritance, but was bestowed upon me much later, when I
made the scientific discovery that the moon is made of gum.
We: How can you explain your longevity?
The Baron: I actually almost died in my seventies, like plain mortals. The holy
river's water kept me alive.
We: What were your best achievements?
The Baron: (impatient) I don't think we should bother the readers with stories
that are well known. Many books about my fantastic adventures have been written.
We: Very well. Let us focus, then, on your chess career. When did you start to
show interest in the noble game?
The Baron: Well, like many champions, I picked my early experiences from
my dad. One day I watched him playing against his friend, reaching a totally lost
position. See for yourself:
*The exact age of the Baron is vague. He gives diferent dates throughout the book.
148
HISTORICAL EVENTS
MUNCHAUSEN'S DAD- N.N.
Black to play
We: Something is missing.

The Baron: You bet. 'Where is your king, you moron?' yelled my dad's friend;
'You're playing without your king, you patzer!'
We: Some friend.
The Baron: Indeed. My father was quite upset. 'It must havefallen on thefloor, 'he
apologized. 'Where do you want me to put it ?'
The 'friend' burst into laughter. 'Put it anywhere you like, it doesn't matter. '
I realized that this gave my father a chance. I fetched the king from the floor, and
placed it on h6. The game was immediately drawn: Black cannot avoid stalemate!
We: Remarkable. How old were you, at the time?

The Baron (blushing) I'd better keep this to myself, lest all the wunderkinder of
this world be embarrassed.
We: Let's go on with your story.
The Baron: After that everyone understood that I had a huge talent. I soon became
a very strong player, and at the age of 1 0 was certainly of Grandmaster class.
Here is one of my best games, from that period:
149
CHAPTER 6
N.N. - MUNCHAUSEN
l .e4 CZ'l c6 2.d4 b6 3.CZ'lf3 i.b7 4.i.c4 0-0 (?!)
We: (amazed): What is THIS?

The Baron: Well, back in the old times, people interpreted the concept of castling
in various ways. The game proceeded:
S.CZ'lc3 CZ'laS 6.i. d3 cS 7.d5 cxd4 (?!)
We: And what is THIS?

The Baron: The enpassant rule. You must understand that chess in the 1 3'h century
was a bit different from the chess that is played today. Back to the game:
8.i.d2 e6
We: Sorry to interrupt once again, but what kind of game were you playing? Why
did he leave his knight under attack, and why did you refrain from capturing it?
The Baron: Exchanging my d-pawn for a mere knight? That was not how we were
playing in those days!
This became too bizarre for me, and I pleaded to terminate the interview.
" Readers of The Baron will not be pleased from the interruption of the interview
halfway through," Munchausen warned me.
" But the readers ofthis book will be grateful, " I assured him.
With these words we rose on our feet and went to the sea, to ride on the whales.
150
HISTORICAL EVENTS
THE PROOF
"What's the matter?" asked the Baron.

Munchausen is a perceptive guy; when I'm down he senses it at once.
I opened my heart. " People don't believe me. They think I'm making up these
stories about you. "
'�d what do you tell them?" asked M .
"I try to convince them that you are real, but I ' m afraid many remain skeptics."
"Why don't you give them a proof?" he wondered.
" ... Because I don't have any, " I said. "No one has ever seen you, except me. "
Munchausen was astonished.

"I don't understand it, " he said; "Why don't you show these unbelievers some
hard evidence?"
"Like what?"
His Majesty gave me a pitiful glance, one that he keeps for particularly slow, half
retarded people.
He pressed some keys in his computer and we entered the Wikipedia site.
couldn't believe my eyes:
Karl Friedrich Hieronymus Freiherr von Miinchhausen ( 1 1 May 1 720 - 22
February 1 797) was a German baron who in his youth was sent to serve as page to
Anthony Ulrich II, Duke of Brunswick-Liineburg and later joined the Russian
military. He served until 1 750, in particular taking part in two campaigns against the
Turks. Returning home, Miinchhausen supposedly told a number of outrageous tall
tales about his adventures. The Baron was born in Bodenwerder and died there as well.
" Here is your proof, " asserted M. "That should end all doubts. "
" But...it says you have died , " I whispered.
"It also says that I've reached the rank of an army captain and that I've been
married twice, with a gap of 50 years between both marriages," the Baron groaned.
[yes, it does; check Wikipedia] . "Al nonsense, but as it is printed on the Internet,
people are likely to believe it."
Are you familiar with a multi-player storytelling game titled The Extraordinary
Adventures of Baron Miinchhausen? According to Wikipedia,
players of the game take on the role of a noble person and challenge one another to
relate an improvised tale based on an opening line given by another player (for example:
'Grand Poobah, please tell our assemblage about the time you single-handedly defeated
the entire Turkish army using only a plate of cheese and a corkscrew!'). Players are able
to inte!ject and introduce a limited number of complications to the tall tale at any time
(' But, my dear Grand Poobah, is it not true that you have a horrible allergy to cork?'),
and eventually all vote for the best storyteller.
151
CHAPTER 6
" I like it. Tell me, Grand Poobah, is it true . . . "

M. didn't think it was funny. "Oh, shut up!"
" Let's see some chess, shall we?"
To this he had no objection.
WHITE: AN ORDINARY GUY

BLACK: KARL FRIEDRICH HIERONYMUS
FREIHERR VON MUNCHHAUSEN
Russia 2007
l .c4 fS 2.g3 eS 3 . .i!l.g2 Lilf6 4.b3 L'Ll c6 S . .i!l.b2 d6 6.L'Ll c3 g6 7.d3 .i!l.g7 8.e4 0-0
9.L'Llge2 f4 10.f3 L'Llg4! l l.L'Lld5 L'Llb4!
A spectacular, successive offer of both knights. A move earlier, l l .fxg4 is met by

l l . . . f3; now 1 2.L'Llxb4 is strongly countered by 1 2 . . .L'Lle3.
12.L'Llec3 L'Ll xd5 14.L'Ll xd5 c6 14.fxg4 fxg3!
The captain is continuing his bold play.
15.hxg3 cxdS 16 ..i!l. f3 'iVaS+ 17.<.t>e2 .i!l.d7 18.cxd5 l:It7 19.!:!0 I:!af8 20.'iVel
'iVb6 21.'iVf2 l:Ixf3! 22.'iVxb6 .i!l. xg4
White resigned.
23.'iVxa7 I:!f2+ +! mates.
"Wil my readers believe that the Baron played this game?'' I asked
Munchausen.
" If they have faith in Wikipedia, they'll easily believe this," he answered.
The game is Sliwa - Gottardi, Konstantinopolsky Memorial (corr.) 1993.
152
HISTORICAL EVENTS
THE NEW MELODY AMBER
The organizers of the annual Melody Amber tournament, where top Grand
masters compete in Rapid and Blindfold games, have decided to upgrade the contest.
Their objective was to present tougher obstacles for the competitors. A New Melody
Amber was thus announced, but nobody seems to have heard about it.
Eyewitness Baron Munchausen was present at the scene of this special
competition, held last June in Monaco; we are honored to present his report.
"The modern conception of sponsor Van Oosterom was very bold. But the
tournament was brimming with nasty accidents and had to be halted halfway through.
This is why it was kept in secret from the public. "
"The first round was conducted i n the mode of mute-chess. Players were forbidden
to utter a sound. In Gelfand - Karpov, the esteemed ex-world champion reached the
following drawn position ( l . . .'it' t7), but then touched White's f-pawn, intending to
adjust it cleanly on its square. "
Black t o play
" However, unable to say 'J'adoube' he was forced to capture the pawn, with
catastrophic consequences ( 1 . . .12.Jxf5?? 2.12.Jg7+! 12.Jxg7 3.h6 1 -0)."
"The second round was held under deaf-mode conditions. Large ear plugs were
placed in the players' ears so that they wouldn't be able to hear a thing. Peter Leko
won a game against Topalov. Afterwards it transpired that the young Hungarian
offered a draw on the 2 1 " move, as well as on his 3Qth and 371h tum, but his opponent,
having no clue about this, ignored the offers and lost."
153
CHAPTER 6
"Things deteriorated in the third round: Nigel Short, promoted into this elite
tournament on the basis of his recent results, was seeded against Shirov. As usual,
the Latvian put fre on board, but since this was a no-smell chess game (the nostrils
of all competitors were blocked), the Englishmen had failed to take notice and was
seriously burned. "
"There was worse to come. On the fourth round - standstill mode the players
-
were required to freeze, not moving a single facial muscle. By reaching a lost
position, the cunning Judit Polgar put her queen 'en prise 'where it could be captured
by no fewer than four enemy pieces. When Vishy Anand opened his mouth wide in
bewilderment, he was immediately defaulted."
"The fifth round was expected to be calm. Indeed, competing in handless chess
appeared to be harmless. Still, the sight, (moreover, the smell) of 1 2 people moving
pieces with their bare feet was not particularly pleasant. "
"The next two rounds featured chess without pieces and one color for all."
A typical "one colorfor all " Ruy Lopez
"Then came the eighth round, which was so bad that the whole event had to be
terminated. Van Oosterom had an intriguing idea to test the relationship between
brain function and chess performance. So, after 1 5 minutes, oxygen was sucked out
from the playing hall - to create a non-brain chess. 90 seconds later, the number of
living contestants was sharply reduced, which probably attests that oxygen might be
vital to chess, at least on the higher levels. "
154
HISTORICAL EVENTS
MOROZEVICH- KRAMNIK
Position after Black's 8'h move

No further moves were made
The Melody Amber tradition came to an end after 20 years, in 2011.
155
CHAPTER 6
A GLIMPSE INTO THE FUTURE OF CHESS
I was relaxing in my flat, reading an article discussing the future of the royal
game, when the Baron came for a visit and joined me on the porch.
"What are you reading?" he inquired.
" Some experts are suggesting directions in which the chess world is heading," I
replied.
Munchausen waved his hands scornfully. " People don't know anything about the
future," he said. "They just take the present situation and make an extrapolation
towards the future; for instance, if chess is getting stronger in China, they predict
that a future World Champion will emerge from there. In view of modem time:
controls, they tend to think that the game will be played in faster tempo as years go
by. That's rubbish. "
"Well, how do you imagine chess will be played i n the future?"
He seemed surprised with my question. "I don't have to imagine, Amatzia; I
know. "
I was stunned, but quickly understood what he meant. Of course: someone with
such remarkable gifts as those possessed by the Baron may also be able to travel in
time. Munchausen saw chess as it will be played in the future! With a little dose of
persuasion, he is going to reveal it to me, I thought.
" I beg you, my friend, not to keep secrets from me. How will chess be played in,
say, 1 00 years from now?"
He looked concerned. "You really want to know?"
I assured him that I did, but from the expression on his face I sensed that I was
not going to like it.
" Let me think. . . 1 00 years from now, you say. .. that's two World Wars ahead, one
internal and the other against Martian invaders . . . There will not be many people left
on Earth . . . "
My intuition proved to be correct, and it gave me no pleasure.
"I suppose people will mainly play the game over the Internet...?" I dared to
guess.
"There is no Internet a hundred years from now!" proclaimed the Baron,
emphatically.
"What?"
" So much chaos had developed on the net, that the World Council had appointed
a manager to control viruses, uncensored data and such-like maladies. But the
manager efforts were in vain and by 2037 the net was closed down. "
1 56
HISTORICAL EVENTS
"What about chess tournaments?"

"Well, the human race faced acute problems of survival and had little time for
leisure activities. There were only a few tournaments - and the final blow came in
2085, in the World Cup organized in Brussels."
"What happened?" I was really frightened to hear the answer.
"3000 chess enthusiasts assembled there to take part in the various events. But
after just one hour of play, the city was completely obliterated. It transpired that
a certain player from the Under- 1 800 tourney had become so frustrated with the
position he had reached from the opening that he detonated a semi-nuclear bomb.
Nobody survived. "
I was speechless. It seemed to get worse with every revelation.

''After this, the game became almost obsolete within a short period of time. You
see, there weren't many serious players left, and the memory of the disaster induced
everybody to erase the word 'chess' from their minds."
I became deeply depressed.

"Tell me, Baron, will chess literature become extinct, too?"
"Only the book you are writing now will stand the test oftime, " said M. ''After all,
someone will have to keep telling my stories!"
It is well known that the Baron never lies, so, sad as it may be, the above description
is indeed thefuture ofchess.
On the bright side, it is possible that what Munchausen saw was only one ofseveral
possible scenarios, and that if we 'II take responsibility for our actions we might succeed
in shaping a diferent, brighterfuturefor ourselves.
1 57
Chapter 7
Tricks and Magic
His Majesty takesfull advantage of a tip given to him by

a fortune teller -reconstructs reminiscences ofthe world
famous Harry Potter -presents a convincing act, which
befits his stature as a true magician -juggles some pieces to
divert the games result -shows himselfas a master of the
art of bluffing.
TRICKS AND MAGIC
THE FORTUNE TELLER
" Do you believe in magic?"

This was a strange question, corning from the Baron.
" Do you?" he asked again.
"Well. . . " - I tried to give a diplomatic response - " ... personally I don't, but I've
heard of some people who ... "
He didn't let me finish. " I do - I was a skeptic once, I admit, but not any
more."
"What is it that convinced you?"
"A chess game," said Munchausen; " . . . a mere chess game."
" Go on." I didn't want to miss that.
" Mr. Ashenby was a typical HTHIAC, like many others," M. began his story.
" He was what?"
" He Thinks He Is a Champion, " said the Baron, as he explained the peculiar
acronym. " But nobody else does. Anyway, this Ashenby lost many battles against
me, and being an ambitious fellow, he wanted to take revenge. In fact, he wanted to
beat me so badly that he even appealed for help from a magician. "
I've already learned to conceal any hint of surprise at anything the Baron might
say.
"The night before we met in the great tournament at Oslo, 1 993, Mr. Ashenby
actually paid $200 to a certain quack-wizard.
" 'Give me a charm' - he pleaded - Jor tomorrow I must gain victory over
Munchausen!'
"The wizard gave him a talisman. But Ashenby was still not reassured. He went to
a fortune teller and, for another $200, asked him to predict the result of our game.
"You should be quite proud ofyourself, " I noted. ''A guy spends a substantial sum
of money to overcome your skills ... !?"
The Baron took it for granted. "Well, if one wants to defeat Munchausen on the
chessboard, one has to take certain measures. "
Of course.
''Anyway, I learned about all this only after the event. Our game went like this:
MUNCHAUSEN- ASHENBY
l.d4 d6 2.�f3 .! g4 3.e4 .!xf3

''Ashenby hurried with this move, and he looked at me with an air of victory. I
couldn't understand his sudden joy."
159
CHAPTER 7
"This looks strange indeed, " I concurred.

''As I found out afterwards, the fortune-teller told Ashenby that he is going to
win, on one condition. "
'If your opponent reaches an endgame, having two knights vs. your rook, h e wil save
himself Such was the warning.
" I see!" Ashenby's third move suddenly made sense; "he exchanged your knight,
to prevent the possibility of such an ending. "
"Correct" - agreed M. - " . . . and later on, he exchanged rooks as well. Soon I
found myself in a very precarious position. "
White t o play
"White's position appears to be resignable. Ashenby, sensing that his great

moment was about to arrive, bent over the table and told me the story I've just
revealed to you. The wizard, the fortune-teller, and the danger of a certain endgame
he skillfully avoided . . .
"
" It's not very smart to reveal one's secrets while the game is still in progress, "
I opined.
"I agree, " said M. " . . . because at that point, I suddenly knew precisely what I had
to do. "
l.d6! ll:JbS 2.dxe7

2.d7? ll:Jd6+ 3.'>ig8 ll:Jb7.
2...We5 3.e8=ll:J ! ii. b8 4.Wg8 Wxe6
After 4 . . . a3 5.Wxh8 a2 6.h7 a l ='iV 7.Wg8 'iVg l + 8.ll:Jg7 Black cannot win.
5.'>i xh8 '>ifl 6.h7 a3 7.ll:Jd6+! '>if8
7 . . . ll:J xd6? is a draw by stalemate.
8.ll:J xb5 a2 9.ll:J d4! al =l':r!
Promoting to a queen results in another stalemate.
10.ll:Je6+ Wfl l l.ll:Jd8+ '>i g6 12.'>i g8 l':ra8 13.h8=ll:J +!
160
TRICKS AND MAGIC
"Cold sweat was pouring from poor Ashenby. " Munchausen didn't even try to
hide his joy. "The prophecy turned out to be true!"
13...\t>f6 14.tlht7 Draw.
" So, you turned into a believer, " I observed.

"I sure did."
"What ifthe magician predicted that you were bound to lose, no matter what you
did?" I wondered.
" Be serious, " Munchausen snorted; " ...there is a limit to what a magician can
do. "
This "magical "position i s the creation of the great Russian composer A. P. Kazantsev
(1948).
161
CHAPTER 7
MEET HARRY
"Why don't you publish a book of memoirs from your rich chess career?" I
suggested to my friend. It was a recurring theme of discussion in our conversations.
"In such a book you could describe your ideas, present your games. . . " I was really
trying to talk him into it.
"You know, " he answered, after a pause, "I find that frequently the most
memorable moments revolve around one's opponents. Some months ago I met a
young lad who was performing real magic."
"Who was he?" I wondered, expecting to hear the name of a Grandmaster.
" I don't know, Harry something. Look at one of his games:
HARY- N.N.
White to play
l.d7 a2 ( 1 . . . '\t> b l 2.d8='iV) 2.d8=..1t !

2.d8='iV? a l ='iV 3 .'iVf6+ 'it> xb3! 4.'iVxa l stalemate.
" But this is not all, " said the Baron, who was clearly appreciative.
If 1...'it> xb3 then 2.d8=l':I!
Not 2.d8='iV? a2; or 2.d8=..\t? 'it> a2!.
Munchausen was quizzical. "You seem disappointed. "

"Well. . . It's very nice, of course, but when you said magic I was thinking of
something out of the ordinary, " I apologized.
" I see. You want to see a real magic, do you? Well, this Harry could do that as
well. Watch:
1 62
TRICKS AND MAGIC
HARY- DRACO MALFOY
White to play
·� far as I can see, White is quite lost , " I said.

"Yes, he is, " the Baron countered. " But otherwise there was no need for magic. "
l.Psssssst!$&*@
"That was Harry's first move," M. explained patiently. "The symbol stands for
twisting your legs, whispering an ancient spell, while holding a lizard's tail. As a
result, Black's g-pawn moved back to his original square. "
l...g5-g7?!
"What the devil...?"
"That's precisely what Harry's opponent had said. He took his g-pawn and put
it frmly back on g5."
2.hxg6 e.p. mate!
I looked at the Baron in disbelief.

" Look, you asked for magic, didn't you?" Munchausen made a slight gesture
with his nose and vanished into thin air.
Thefirst diagram is a study by B. Kovalenko, Shakhmaty v SSSR 1986. The second

position was sent to us by Harry.
163
TRICKS AND MAGIC
I had to be tactful before raising a question, else he might become furious.

"Of course, I am."
''Although I wonder. . . , " I said slowly, " . . .what exactly is the definition of a chess
magician? A lot of guys can hit on a brilliant move or a startling plan once or twice,
but this does not tum them into magicians. "
"This is true."
" So ... "
I felt a bit uncomfortable, as I didn't wish to explicitly doubt him.

Finally he took me out of my embarrassment.
" I'll show you a chess magic, and you'll grasp in an instant what differentiates me
from the crowds."
CHAMPION O F SOMETHING- THE BARON
Black to play
"In this game from Mesopotamia Championship, around 1 700 years BC, I was
playing Black. White was confident ofthe strength of his position; the threat of ctJxh7
seems especially hard to meet."
I feared for my friend's position. "It does seem that White has an overwhelming
attack."
He smiled. "Let me remind you: I am, after all, Baron Munchausen."
l...'iVfl+ 2.Wh2 .t xg2!
A bolt from the blue! Or, in fact, a bolt from Munchausen. 3.l:!xg2 'iVxg2+!
4.Wxg2 loses to 4 ... CiJxf4+. Meanwhile Black threatens mate on the move.
" Is this chess magic?" I asked.
"Not yet."
3 .tgl .tc6 4.ctJxh7
.
Black appears to be finished. . .

4 'iVe2+!!
...
165
CHAPTER 7
White resigned.
5.�xe2 �xh7+ 6.l:Ih3 l:Ixh3+ H2ixh3 tZ'lf4+ succumbs to the same nasty fork.
"Now, THIS is chess magic - pulling the same trick twice! "
And he went o n t o show me another example.
White to play
According to His Highness, this fragment is taken from the same tournament,
against the same opponent (it was a double-round robin). "We played two games in
a day. The previous encounter was played in the morning and the present one - at
night. This time I had the white pieces. "
One would expect White to regain his pawn with l .fxe5. Naturally, the Baron had
better ideas.
l �xh5+!
.
The queen is immune to capture, as l . . .gxh5?? allows 2.iU5 + \t> h6 3.fxe5+ - a

lethal discovered check which mates after 3 ... �d2 4Jlxd2.
I.. . .th6 2.�xe5 .tg7 3.�e2
Wisely avoiding the unclear 3.�xc7 �e l + 4.\t>g2 tZ'le6.
3 ... e6 4.f5! exf5?
Allows M. to repeat the same motif:
5.�h5+! Black resigned. It is mate next move.
Performing an identical trick twice, against the same opponent, on the same
day. . . WOW.
This is indeed a chess magic.
The first game is Gajewski - Maze, Dresden Olympiad 2008.

The second one is Christiansen - Sanz, US. Open 2004.
166
TRICKS AND MAGIC
THE ELBOW TRICK
The Baron burst into my fat, a sparkle in his eyes. " Have you seen it?" he asked,
very excitedly.
"I sure have," I was happy to report. We both referred to the newly published
book: Chess Secrets I've Learned From My Fritz. The author, Tony Priest, had spent a
considerable time with a Tibetan monk, who taught him the language of computers.
When Priest came back to Europe, he purchased several chess software packages
and invested a year in an attempt to discover chess secrets that were unknown to
humankind. His startling results were published in the aforementioned book.
"I was impressed with the finding that the white-squared knights (b l , g8) were
stronger than their counterparts (g l , b8)," I claimed.
"Right. I've always suspected that," said Munchausen, " ...but had no statistical
back-up, until now. "
He proceeded: "You know, the chapter I liked the most was the one in which
Priest, aided by Fritz, revealed that short castling is particularly beneficial when your
c-pawn has crossed the 4'h rank."
"I believe it's the 3'ct rank, Baron."
He waved his hand. "Whatever... the point is ... "
"We'd better check it out," I ventured, cautiously. "We don't want some reader
writing a letter to the editor, do we?"
Munchausen turned pale, and hurried to the bookshelf. After a while, he
muttered, meekly: "It's the 3'd rank all right. "
I sometimes get the impression that the Baron is not as brave as he likes us to
believe.
I became curious. "Will we see some chess today? You know, readers might. . . "
"Yeah, yeah, " - M. didn't let me finish - "I see what you're getting at."
" Frankly, after this book, one doubts if there are any more secrets to reveal, " I
said.
The Baron was provoked. "Well, let me show you the elbow trick."
"The elbow trick?"
1 67
CHAPTER 7
MUNCHAUSEN- INNOCENT
White to play
M. spoke slowly. "This one happened during one of my simultaneous exhibitions

on Mars. - Among the participants there were all kind of creatures; this particular
one had two heads."
He paused for a while, to increase the dramatic effect.
''As you can see, White is utterly lost."
"Indeed he is. "
" Pretending I was just about to make a move, I used my right elbow to sweep all
of Black's kingside pieces from the board. Naturally, I apologized, and helped my
opponent reassemble the pieces; only I made sure that they were returned to the
board in a slightly different set-up. "
I wasn't sure i f this tale belonged to the educational stories department.
MUNCHAUSEN- INNOCENT
(improved)
White to play
168
TRICKS AND MAGIC
" Is there a difference, as far as the result is concerned?" I wondered.

The Baron smiled. "You bet!"
l .tt:lg5+! fxg5 2.tt:le5+ Wf6 3.tt:lg4+ Wf7 4.e5!

And Black is unable to prevent both of the threatened checkmates.
" I wonder if you'll find THIS in Chess Secrets," Munchausen claimed,

arrogantly.
The (second) position was created by J. Kling and B. Horwitz, J9h Century pioneers
ofchess studies.
1 69
CHAPTER 7
OUTSMARTING MR. SMART
A wave of extreme heat fell on the city, and people were spending all free time in
their flats, waiting for the crisis to pass.
Despite this inconvenience, I found Munchausen in a cheerful mood.
"I managed to beat Mr. Smart," he explained.
Smart was one of the Baron arch-enemies. Not only was he a notoriously vicious
and unpleasant person, but he also occasionally beat M. in chess, a fact that my
friend resented b itterly.
So, a victory against Smart was certainly a joyful event. I asked to see the game
;.
The Baron gave his consent. "With pleasure!"
MR. SMART- THE BARON
l.e4 cS 2Jbf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tt:lxd4 tt:lf6 5Jbc3 tt:lc6 6. .Jtc4 �b6 7.tbxc6 bxc6
8..Jtb3 .Jta6 9 ..Jte3 �b7 10.f4 g6? l l.eS dxeS 12.fxe5 l:d8
" Here my opponent had a b ig think. I soon realized that I was in a bad state; in
fact, the more I looked into the position, the more pessimistic I became."
"White can acquire a significant edge with the natural 1 3 .�f3 Cbd5 1 4.
0-0-0. A sample line to prove the awkwardness of Black's position is 14 ... e6 1 5 .l:xd5!
exd5 1 6.�f6 l:g8 17 ..Jta4 .Jtb5 1 8 .Lbxb5 cxb5 1 9.e6!! bxa4 20 ..Jtg5 when Black is
helpless."
"I felt that this was a critical moment. I had to divert my enemy from the correct
path. The question is - how?"
He stopped and looked at me.

"I have no idea," I confessed.
1 70
TRICKS AND MAGIC
''At first I too had no constructive thought, but then I saw the possibility of
1 3 .iLxf7+ , winning material."
I looked at the position and had to admit that this option seemed quite promising
for White.
"But in fact it is not," claimed the Baron, " ... and I sought a way to tempt Mr.
Smart into this variation, which brings his demise. "
''At first I thought that maybe I should fake a panic attack. You know, put my
hands over my head, utter agonizing moans, and shrink my body, as if I had noticed
something terrible."
"That's a thought," I said.
"Nay, it is too obvious. In spite of appearances, Mr. Smart is quite, er, smart, and
he would have seen through my tricks. Then I thought that maybe I should stay calm
like a rock, as if I am totally confident in my position. "
"That's interesting," I opined.
He looked at me with chagrin. "No, this is an old and common trick. Smart
wouldn't succumb to such simple bait. "
"I was contemplating the problem in my mind. Perhaps I should look concerned,
so that he might interpret it that I am in fact confident. . . which would lead him to
believe that I am covering my actual distress... which may signal an unshakable belief
in myself. . . "
" ...Which may testify that you think that you are lost!" I followed his deep mind
games.
''At the end I put my trust in a peculiar idea. I went to the arbiter and complained
that Mr. Smart is deliberately teasing me. 'My opponent's queen is threatened; he has
one reasonable square to move it; instead he is sitting for 30 minutes now, as if he is
considering other alternatives. This is unethical!' I told him."
"The arbiter went to Mr. Smart to convey my complaint."
" Mr. Smart objected, in a surprising tone, claiming that he is not forced to move
his queen."
"At this point," Munchausen recalled with joy, "I burst out with: 'Really? What
else can you play'?"
"This upset Mr. Smart so much that without blinking he grasped his lLb3 and
played - "
13.iLxf7+?
"Mission accomplished. I succeeded in reversing the tables. Play resumed:"
13... '3Jxf7 14. �xd8 �xb2 15.'3Jd2 iLh6! 16.�aS !:idS+!
171
CHAPTER 7
17.'ifxd8 .ixe3+ 18.Wxe3 �xc3+ 19.Wf4 gS+ White resigned.
I showed my appreciation. ''I'm impressed. This was a remarkable upheaval!"

Munchausen appeared indifferent. For him, all ofthis was trivial. After all, in this
�pisode no moon had to be reached, no bear had to be escaped from ... just a well
played (?) game, as usual.
The game is Nutzman - Lyon, USA Continental Open 2009.
1 72
Chapter 8
Distinctive Chess Style
The Baron displays the benefits of focusing -explains

how accurate calculation need not involve any thinking -
reveals a surprising and childish aspect to his character -
exhibits the edge of entering complications -preaches and
behaves under the motto of ((be happy "-mocks
Grandmasters' annotations to their games -expresses his
views on an old attack vs. defense debate -reveals the
origins of chess boxing -philosophizes on chess as work or
as recreation.
CHAPTERS
FOCUS
Munchausen is blessed with many versatile gifts. One special skill, in which he
excels, is his ability to find missing objects. I don't mean spotting one's glasses in a
room or discovering a piece of cheese in the refrigerator - this is ordinary stuff. The
Baron is capable of spotting a tiny pearl on the bottom of the ocean, and to locate
a missing dog in a huge and snowy wilderness. This is why he is always a valued
member of all searching expeditions.
" How do you explain such successes?" I asked my friend. �
"It is actually very simple, " he answered, with uncharacteristic modesty. ''All one
has to do is focus."
" By 'focus' I mean being single-minded, goal-directed. If I have a target I am
fully concentrated on it and deliberately ignore all background noises. Mind you,
this attitude is beneficial in chess too."
He went on to demonstrate a remarkable victory he had gained recently. " See
if you can assimilate the correct approach and find the winning continuation by
yourself, " he challenged me. (The Baron is playing with the white pieces.)
l.e4 e5 2.lZlf3 tl c6 3.Jib5 a6 4.iia4 b5 5.Jib3 tl a5 6.0-0 d6 7.l:e l tlf6 8.d4

tld7? 9.dxe5 tl xb3 lO.JigS!
Initiating a powerful attack.
10 ...f6 l l.exf6 gxf6
Not l l . . .tlxal ? l 2 .t7+ Wxf7 l 3.iixd8. But now White is a piece down while his
rook and bishop are under attack. I was not sure how White should proceed.
"Focus!"- ordered Munchausen. "Choose a target..."
" His king?" - I guessed.
1 74
DISTINCTIVE CHESS STYLE
" Right. Now have a fresh glance at the position and look at nothing else but his
king!"
Adhering to this sage advice I pondered for a while, and then inspiration struck;
disregarding material considerations, White should open lines and storm at the black
monarch.
12.e5!!
"Very well!" Munchausen was pleased.
But was he genuinely happy for me, or just self-content from his achievement of
conveying his wisdom to an ignorant pupil?
12... dxe5
12 ... fxg5 1 3.exd6+ <tlfl 1 4.dxc7 �f6 ( 1 4 ... �xc7? 1 5 .tt:lxg5+! 'tlf6 1 6.tt:le6 �c6
1 7.tt:ld8! and Black must give up the queen or be mated.) 15.axb3 'tlg7 1 6.tt:lc3
�d6 1 7.tt:lxg5 �xd l 1 8 .tt:le6+ <tlfl 1 9.tt:ld8+ 'tlg7 20Jhxd l , winning; 12 . . .tt:lxe5
1 3.0'lxe5 dxe5 ( 1 3 ... fxg5 14.�h5+ 'tle7 1 5.'iVf7#) 14.Ihe5+ etc.
13.tt:lxe5 tt:lxeS 14.Ihe5+! ile7 lS.�hS+ 'tld7 16.ilxf6!
Black is totally busted.
16 ... tt:lxa1 17.ilxe7 �xe7 18.Ihe7+ <tlxe7 19.�c5+ <tlfl 20.�xc7+ 1-0
"This was a very nice battle, " I said, complimenting M. "I wish that one day I
could play in this level and display such a brilliant attack. "
Munchausen frowned. "Focus!"he insisted. "Would you really be able to?"
Focusing deeply into the heart of the matter, the essence, the core of the issue,
the light in the darkness, I had to admit that envisaging me playing a Ia Baron, was
pure fantasy.
The game is Edouard - Tkachiev, championship of France, Be/fort 2010.
175
CHAPTERS
CALCULATION: ADVANCED TRAINING
Every now and then, during my periodical meetings with Munchausen, I try to
learn some chess secrets from him.
This weekend I wished to engage my hero in a conversation about his method of
calculation.
"Chess players all over the world are struggling with the issue of calculation," I
said, as I opened a discussion. "We attempt to analyze some moves ahead but the
mental picture in our mind becomes blurred and we get confused. "
The Baron nodded sympathetically but said nothing.
"In addition" - I went on - "it is not clear how to choose the moves which
should be scrutinized."
·�-ha," said M.
I understood that to receive a valuable response I should pose a direct
question.
" How do you handle an over-the-board analysis, my dear friend? Do you analyze
many moves ahead? Do you make a comprehensive review of all the opponent's
possibilities? Do you select candidate moves and concentrate on them? Please
enlighten me! "
Munchausen sighed: "Nothing of the sort. It seems that you filled your head with
nonsense. "
"So, what do you do?"
"You just have to use your senses; that is all. No amount of mental work is
required. "
Feeling my desperation, he was kind enough to grant a demonstration.
White to play
1 76
"Here, battling in the white pieces against King Henry the Lion, I quickly
discarded the line I .tlc7 �c4 2.tlxe8 J:xe8 3 .f6 g6 4.�e3 J:e6, as I felt I could
squeeze more substantial gains from this position. Therefore -"
I interfered in his monologue. " But how did you come to this conclusion?"
M. simply ignored me and continued:
"So, I turned my attention to the line starting with l .f6, a direct attack against the
enemy's king. I soon realized that this is bound to win."
" HOW?" Again, I simply could not conceal my curiosity.
The Baron was reconciled. He took my hands, looked into my eyes, and led me
to follow HIS way of calculating.
l .f6
"Listen to the painful screaming of Black's kingside pawns, " he said softly.
l...g6 2.�g5 Wh8 3.�h6
" Taste the salinity of the black king's sweat, " said M.
3... J:g8
All this is forced. Now, before any reader rushes to suggest 4.�xh7+, please
notice that after 4 ... Wxh7, White is not allowed to mate by 5.J:h3, as J:d3 is pinned
by the black queen.
Munchausen testifed that the pin did not bother him.
4.tlc7 �c4 5.b3
Forces Black to abandon the pin of l:d3. As he must guard against the threat of
the queen sacrifice, he has one move left.
5 ...�g4 6.J:d4
"Smell the sheer horror of the queen."
I felt like I was participating in a play. And actually, I was.
6 ...�f5+ 7.J:f4 tlg4
8.�g7+!!
1 77
CHAPTERS
"Come closer... Touch the black position ... " The Baron was clearly enjoying
himself.
"It is shaking, trembling, disintegrating," I observed. " Everything falls apart!"
I may be not much of a player, but to give honest evidence as to what lies in front
of me - this I can do.
"Correct."
...As even The Baron agrees.
8 ....l:rxg7 9.fxg7+ 'i!xg7 lO..l:rxfS gxfS l l.lZJxa8 CZJe3+ 12.'i!e2 CZJxd1 13.'i!xdl
�f6 14.'i!d2 'i!eS 1S.CZJc7 f4 16.'i!d3 a6 17.CZJa8
" Watch the humiliation in Black's eyes. "
Black resigned.
"This is how you calculate," said Munchausen as he summed up the meeting,

which turned out to be an instructive lesson. "Watch, listen, smell, taste and
touch. "
"What about thinking?" I dared to ask.
M. waved his hand to downgrade my comment: "Irrelevant. "
Thus spoke Munchausen.
The presented game is Leko - Gelfand, Nalchik 2009.
178
SURPRISE!
Hearing a knock I got up from the sofa and opened the front door; but nobody
was there. Returning to the cozy flat, I heard another knock, this time coming from
the window of the living room. So I got up again and looked - but still there was
nothing.
And then, suddenly, the Baron was tapping my shoulder from behind: " Hello!"
he said, with a broad smile, "I tricked you!"
" How did you get inside?" I wondered.
"I like to switch directions. People expect me to appear from here, and I pop
up from there; they look above their heads, and suddenly I am behind them. That's
fun!"
In case you haven't noticed, Munchausen does have a childish aspect to his
personality.
" Switching directions is a useful surprise weapon in chess," M. argued. "Let me

show you what I mean . . . "
QUEENSIDE- THE BARON

4NCL, Great Britain 2023
"I never understood why books print onlygames from the past, " said Munchausen.
"Let me present you a game, played in the future."
l.tZ:lf3 LZlf6 2.c4 c6 3.LZlc3 dS 4.e3 e6 5.b3 LLlbd7 6 ..1b2 eS 7.cxd5 cxdS 8.l!Wcl a6
•
9 ...1a3 ile7 10 ...Ifie2 0-0 l l .d4 e4 12.LZld2 l:Ie8 13 . ..1fixe7 l:Ixe7 14.l!Wa3
''A bit peculiar, " I dared to express my humble opinion.
"Yes, it is, " the Baron agreed. " My opponent had a fixation on only one wing; he
probably wanted to justify his name."
14 ... tZ:lf8 15.0-0 I.'Ic7 16.l:Ifcl il.d7 17.tZ:la4 ..�fibS 18.JU1 I.'Iac8 19.l!Wb2
1 79
CHAPTER S
1 9.. J:!c6!
''Apparently the sole intention ofthis move is to contest the c-file (20 ... �c7), but
a surprise is in store."
"Who was this?" I asked.
"The commentator, " answered M. without blinking. "Why?"
20.Ihc6 l:Ixc6 21.l:Icl ?! ltJg4!

Switching to the dormant kingside. Black threatens to win on the spot with 22 . . .
�c 7 , eyeing h 2 and c I . 22.g3 � f6 is bad.
22Jhc6
22 ... �h4!! 23 . .itxb5

Or 23.h3 �xf2+ 24.'\t>hl .it xfl .
23 ... �xf2+ 24.'\t>hl axb5 25J:!cl
Apart from the deadly check on e l , Black intended simply to recapture c6.
25 ... �xe3 26.h3
Or 26.tLi fl ctJf2+ 27.'\t>gl tLi h3++ 28.'\t>h l �g l # .
2 6. . .ctJf2+ 27.'it>h2 ctJd3 28.ctJfl �f4+ 29.g3 �f6
White resigned.
Black regains his sacrifices with a bonus: 30.�b l tLl xc l 3 1 .�xc l bxa4 is hopeless
for White.
''A very nice game!" I complimented His Majesty.

"I don't like it at all," the h4 square said angrily, and turned yellow from
bitterness. "The Baron uses me, and then he leaves and I'm left abandoned. I feel so
humiliated!"
Where the hell did THIS come from?
The game is V. Eingom- A. Delchev, from St-Quentin-en- Yvelines 2001.
1 80
THE BEAUTY OF COMPLICATIONS
The other day, the Baron and I were following a certain game of the Indian
Grandmaster, Anand.
" He makes chess appear all too simple!" I commented.
"Yes, he does," Munchausen agreed. "I wonder whether this is a virtue."
"Why, what do you mean?"
"Just that we tend to look at simplicity as a positive thing" - M. philosophized - " ...
for example, every now and then somebody tries to convey Einstein's theories in an easy
to-understand manner; another example: the American way of presenting messages to
the public, is based on the KISS principle (an acronym of 'keep it simple, stupid)."
'1\s for myself, I can see the pluses of complicated stuff. "
He paused, but an inquiring look from my part was all that was needed for him to
continue elaborating his views.
FOX-CASPER
USA
White to play
"When I first became acquainted with this position," said the Baron, " I didn't
expect anything special would come out of it. White can win as he pleases: l .'i¥g5 g6
Hi'f6 gxf5 3 .j_d4 actually forces mate; while Uif3, l .j_d4 or l .L'Llh6+ are decisive
as well. However, the White player chose a brilliant way: "
},j_b6 'i¥xb6 2.'i¥g6!! hxg6 3.L'Lle7+ � h7 4.l:If3 'i¥c5 5.l:Id5!
Black resigned.
''At first I was ambivalent; was this really necessary?" mused M. " But then I
realized that sometimes the artistic side is more important than mere efficiency.
Some time later, I implemented this lesson in a game of mine."
181
CHAPTERS
MR. PIGEON- MUNCHAUSEN
Black to play
" I was a pawn ahead, with the better position. The simple l .. .<:i:Je3 keeps excellent
chances, but I spotted a cleverer method of annihilating my opponent:
t...tl:l h4! 2.�h6
"Mr. Pigeon thought that he caught me here."
2 ... iL:lxg2! 3.iL:lg5
''As planned. 3.Wxg2 f5 loses outright. "
3. . .�xg5! 4.�xg5 iL:lf4!
White resigned.
The double threat . . . iL:lh3# and ... iL:le2# wins the queen back with interest.
"Can we have the bottom line, please?" I asked.

"Conventional wisdom preaches the superiority of big size over small; strong over
weak; rich over poor; clean over dirt, and also of simplicity over complexity; but I'm
not so sure . . . " he contemplated.
" I see. So we should raise some doubts in everyday truisms. "
" Exactly. "
" Like 'Munchausen is the greatest chess player who ever lived in the Universe'."
He coughed.
" I wouldn't doubt this one," he said, resolutely.
Thefirst positions authenticity is under a cloud.

The second position is Ooms- Batenburg, Holland 2001.
182
THE BARON SCHOOL OF CHESS, OR:

THE CONQUEST OF HAPPINESS
The Baron surveyed with interest the pile of chess books on my shelf.
" Hmmm. . . Not many things remain to be discovered, I see," he said.
I agreed. Lately the book market had been flooded with titles that contained
promises to reveal all 'Secrets ', 'Techniques ' and 'Methods '; chess players were
exposed to the Soviet School of Chess, the Chinese School, the Women's School,
the Software School . . . It appeared that everything was already known.
"One thing is missing, though, " said Munchausen, " ... and we'll fill this void right
now. Let me present to you 'Methods of the Munchausen School of Chess '.
AN EAGER TRAINEE- MUNCHAUSEN
l.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.lZlc3 dxe4 4.Li:lxe4 L'Zlf6 5.L'Zlxf6+ exf6

"This is part of stage one," declared M. " Develop naturally and
unpretentiously. "
6..lic4 �e7+ 7.VJe2
Bypasses the fool trap 7 . .lie3? 'ilib4+, when White drops a piece.
7 ....lie6 8 ..lib3 L'Zla6 9..lie3 .lixb3 10.axb3 'ilie6 11.Li:lf3 .lid6 12.0-0 0-0 13J:rfdl
�fe8 14.�d2 L'Zlb4 15.c4 aS
"Stage two," said M. "With my last move I created a target for him, an aim to
focus on."
16.d5 cxd5 17.cxd5 �f5 18..lib6
" Stage three, " announced His Highness, with the utmost solemnity. "Offer our
rival some bait."
18...�a6!
19..lixa5?
1 83
CHAPTERS
1 9.ite3 was required.

"The next step revolves around making the opponent happy. It is the core of my
system, or should I say, the heart of my school of chess. This happiness thing is very
important - I learned it from Hare Krishna."
19...1Iea8 20.itxb4 l:rxa1 2l.itxd6 �xdl+ 22.'ihdl
White is satisfied - he had fulfilled his aims and achieved a material superiority.
22 ...�xd5
"The final implementation of my method. This was Munchausen again,
explaining his system. " Don't forget that at the end, we should be happy too."
White resigned.
The weakness of his first rank results in heavy material loses.
The game is Snapik - Lechtinskaya, Decin 197 9.
1 84
ANNOTATE LIKE A GRANDMASTER
Munchausen and I were discussing, once again, what contribution chess

training tools make to players' strength, when the Baron came up with the following
statement:
"I'm tired of all those titles like 'Play I Think I Train like a Grandmaster '. They
are all useless. I'm certain that one can become a very strong player without working
hard."
I showed a certain interest and he went on: "The important thing is to behave like
a GM, act like one, building a reputation of a GM."
"It makes sense, " I agreed. " But how can you do that?"
"Well" - M. lowered his voice, as ifhe was revealing a secret - " ...you can annotate
like a G M; this would give you a good name and frighten your future opponents."
I wondered what he had in mind.
"Let me give you an example. Here is a game I intend to send for publication to
a famous periodical. "
THE BARON- TATNAYEVSKAYA

Moscow, 20 1 2
"Try to comment on this position, " the Baron encouraged me.

I looked at him with a blank expression. "I don't have anything to say. Play has
not started yet. "
Munchausen took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and began to dictate his notes
in a heavy Russian accent:
"When I learned that I would have to confront WGM Tatnayevskaya in a chess

duel, I must confess to the reader, that I had mixed feelings. Strictly speaking, I was,
as they say, the stronger player. 'Alexander -
' my friend, Tolya lvanisevic, approached
1 85
CHAPTERS
me - '... you should show her your awesome power '. But I was not happy with this. The
point is, that some 25 years ago, when both myself and Olga Borisova were still young
kids in the Pioneer Palace, I had the not altogether satisfying habit of losing against
her quite often. This fact, paradoxically, remained tattooed in my brain for several
reasons. Being documented in my little black notebook may be, if you like, one of
them."
"What the Devil..." I started to protest, but the Baron just smiled and
continued:
" Here it would be appropriate to disclose that nowadays, and this is said with no
offensive intent, I play rather better chess than my rival. To be frank, in a match of
ten games I would have complete faith in my abilities. But in a single game, where
the elements of nervousness, luck and correct nutrition are of vital importance,
things might be different.
l.e4 e5
"Olga never uses this move! Well, here my opening preparation went down the
drain ... After the game she confessed that she had specifically prepared this shrewd
weapon against me. But since her trainer, Pavel Smirchopodin, was a childhood
team mate of mine, I should have expected it. I rose on my feet and went to consult
my long-term coach, Oleg Pshichush. 'Pay no attention to her tricks ' - he advised
me, and I sat down and played confidently. "
2.1-{j f3 iLl c6
"We played in the district of Chuka, a well-known location for chess lovers.
The hall was built in the 1 6'h Century; there were paintings on the walls, excellent
food, well-lit conditions, and all kinds of alcohol were freely available. In short, the
atmosphere was full of tension. I'm ready to admit that this might have infuenced
my choice of the next move. . . "
3.d4
" Fascinating," I said "Can we have the point of all this?"
The Baron explained patiently: " Basically, the art of GM annotations rests on
'the theory of infinite rubbish'. Presumably, if the annotator is carried away in his
commentary with things that have no relevance to the game, readers will treat every
piece of nonsense that enters the G M's head as very interesting and highly significant
stuff. Here, for instance, I would like to mention that unlike Tatnayevskaya, who
continues to be an active member of the Communist Party to this very day, I consider
myself a liberal and a humanitarian by nature (so to speak). I am sure that this will
come as essential background material for understanding this immense struggle,
which testifes to the nature of our rich and endless Universe."
1 86
[ "Enough! Cut!! - Editor]

" I 'm afraid we have to stop here," I said to Munchausen. " But during your
presentation I managed to get in touch with my inner feelings, and experienced a
major enlightenment."
The Baron laughed. "You see, your commentary had improved; you're already
half a Grandmaster. "
1 87
CHAPTERS
TO ATTACK OR TO DEFEND?
The other night Munchausen and I went to the theater. A visiting group from Los
Angeles performed the play 'Bobby ', describing the life of the late Bobby Fischer, and
we were obviously keen to watch it.
We were having a great time: Act One ( 'They Are All Against Me!') was followed
by Act Two ( 'To Hell with FIDE ' ), and then Act Three ( 'Anatoly Who ?') and Four
( 'The American Government Tried to Kill Me. ') As an Epilogue we got '/ Have Been
Kidnapped by A liens ' and finally, to the audience's warm applause, the main actor
performed the theme song 'Iceland, My Motherland. 'The impression was enhanced
..
by marvelous scenery, especially imported from Iceland.
On our way back, three mean thugs followed our steps and tried to bully us.
I was inclined to run away, but the Baron was astonished at the mere thought.
"Let me handle the situation, " he said and he used his fighting skills to give them a
good hiding. The gang disappeared within seconds.
Afterwards we had an interesting discussion about the pros and cons of

attack vs. defense. "It is also one of the main dilemmas in chess, you know, " M.
observed. "Sometimes you attack, on other times you have to withstand your rival's
onslaught."
On our arrival to my flat I brought a chess set and the Baron demonstrated two
positions from his vast experience, to back up his views.
White to play
"In a desperate position, I, as White, gambled with the following sacrifice. "
21.Jil.h5!? iYxel+ 22.'i.t>g2
Black is a rook and a knight ahead but he has to take defensive measures. 22 ...
1 88
DISTINCTNE CHESS STYLE
\tJe7 was right, but instead Black opted to finish the game by launching his own
offensive, ignoring his opponent's threats:
22 ... �b5? 2Hihg6+ \tJg8
23 ... \tJe7 24.¥/lhg7+ \tJd8 25.�xf8+ \tJd7 26.�xf5+ loses quickly.
" Poor soul," Munchausen smiled, sadistically. " My rival was blissfully unaware
of the coming blow. "
24.�h7+!! \tJxh7 25.�17#
White to play
Here (again, M. has the white pieces) is a more complicated position. White's
advance b-pawn is strong, but White should be careful regarding the counter-threat
.. .tlh4-f3.
l.b7 llb2 2.ltJb5! llh4!
The alternatives are 2 . . . l:Ixb5 3.!!xd5!; or 2 ... llb l + (hoping for 3.\tJg2llxf4+)
3.Md l ! with advantage to White ..
3.!!dl! llt3 4.Mal+ \tJb4 5.llbl!
A combined action of defense and attack.
5 ... llxbl+ 6.\tJg2 Mgt+ 7.\tJxt3 Mg8 8.lla7
Intending 9 .llc8.
8...Mb8 9.llc6+ and wins.
"Oh, Bobby, " Munchausen sighed, recalling the play. "I long for the days when
you asked me to check your analysis. "
The first diagram is a correspondence game between Keres and To/dsepp - taken
from Tim Harding The Write Move (Chess Mail 2005).
The second diagram is a study by S. P. Filaretov, Jrd prize "Shakhmaty" 192 6.
1 89
CHAPTERS
CHESS BOXING
Sometimes reality is more baffling than any flight of imagination.

I've always thought of chess boxing as a joke, and a bad one. However, in April
201 1 , as many as 600 people gathered in North London to watch a combined event of
chess and boxing (yes, by the same protagonists!). According to the newspapers, some
more eager spectators had to be turned away, for a lack of space in the stadium.
[Chess boxing is a hybrid sport which combines boxing with chess; a match consists of
up to eleven alternating rounds. It begins with a four-minute speed-chess round, which
is followed by two minutes of boxing, with rounds of chess and boxing alternating until
�
��
When telling Munchausen the above, the Baron could not conceal his surprise.
But while my own aversion from the idea stemmed from the very linkage between the
two activities, Munchausen's puzzlement originated from different reasons.
"Why do people have to reinvent old stuff, " he wondered. "I've already used
physical force in my chess games three centuries ago."
This was news to me; but then, almost everything the Baron says is news to me.
"Would you kindly describe your muscle-chess experience?"
M. was in agreeable mood and he showed me the following tussle.
BARON MUNCHAUSEN- GENGHIS KHAN
(Readers might co"ectly observe that ifthe game took place only three hundred years
ago, the Barons opponent couldn't have been Genghis Khan, the legendary Mongol
emperor. However, trust me that expressing overt doubt in Munchausen is not a clever
idea; that is, ifwe'd like to see the game.)
l.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.j,c4 tt'lf6 4.tt'lc3 c6 S,j,b3 d5 6.exd5 cxd5 7.d4 j,b4 8.tt'lf3
0-0 9.0-0 j,xc3 10.bxc3 VJ/ic7 ll.VJ/iel tt'lc6 12.VJ/ih4 tt'le7 13,j,xf4 VJ/ixc3 14.j,d2
VJ/ic7
"I thought that it was time to develop an initiative towards the black king's
position," revealed M . , " ... and I accompanied my next move with a little kick, under
the table, at my opponent's knee."
Imagine my consternation! But Munchausen ignored my non-verbal gestures
and continued to demonstrate the battle.
15.tt'le5 tt'lf5 16.VJ/if4 �e6 17.j,b4 !l:fc8 18.g4 tt'ld6 19.l:\ael tt'lfe4?
190
20.c4!
"After executing this powerful thrust, I stood up and walked to the side of the
room. On my way, I slapped Genghis on his head."
" How did he react?" I asked, in awe, remembering the cruel nature of Khan.
" He had no time to deal with the blows I inflicted on him outside the board. His
position demanded all his attention. "
20 ...dxc4 2L�c2 LLlf6 22.g5 LLlhS 2Hi'f3 g6 24.LLlxg6!
"With this crushing move I stormed at him and punched him on the nose. Khan
started to bleed and tears filled his eyes."
24...hxg6 25..ltxg6 fxg6 26.Iixe6 Wlifl 27.Wid5 LLlfS 28.Iixf5!
Black resigned.
28 ... Wixf51oses to 29.l:txg6+, and 28 ... gxf5 succumbs to 29.g6.
"That's real chess boxing for you, " the Baron announced, " ... not in alternating
turns, but simultaneously!"
We were witnessing the game Morozevich - Anand, Intel Grand Prix, rapid, 19 9 5.
191
WORK V S. FUN
I've been feeling tired for some weeks and therefore took a few days off from work
to regain my composure.
"You work too hard," the Baron reproached. "You should relax, have a bit of
fun."
I inquired what did he had in mind. For instance, is playing chess included in his
concept of 'fun'?
"Sure it is. "
But I wasn't so certain. "Chess players frequently complain that high level chess
involves hard work: you have to prepare your openings, study middlegame plans,
memorize theoretical endgame positions, and perform extensive analysis at the
board ... "
Munchausen disagreed. "Admittedly, a lot of people treat the game much too
seriously. Personally, I think it is a mistake. Playing games is meant for enjoyment; if
it becomes a chore, it loses its charm."
On a philosophical level, he was right, of course. But how is it possible to gain
success by battling leisurely and half-heartedly against a fully committed rival?
I posed the question to the Baron. He gave it a thought and then said: "Let me
tell you a story. "
To this I had never objected.
" Fifty years ago" - started M. - " . . .there was a very strong German chess player,
named Wolfgang. He was a symbol of earnestness. He studied chess day and night;
prepared strong novelties in his opening variations; forced himself to sit at the chess
table and concentrate without a break for the whole game. "
" In his writings, Wolfgang preached for hard work and intensive effort. ' You must
commit yourself to Caissa, he demanded. ' Work continually and you will reap rewards'
'
was his motto."

"1, on the other hand, belong to the school of fun-chess," declared M. "I
approach the board with an intention of having a good time, to amuse myself. "
"It would have been interesting to match the two of you, " I thought loudly.
"We did play a game once," Munchausen revealed, " ... and it proved to be a clash
between our opposing views."
193
CHAPTERS
WOLFGANG- BARON MUNCHAUSEN

Bonn, 1962
White to play
"We have arrived at the diagram position, which is drawish. My opponent was
not satisfied with this result, as he trailed me in the tournament table by half a point.
He was fully concentrated and determined, investing a lot of time and effort in an
attempt to squeeze out a full point."
"What did you do in the meantime?"
Munchausen shrugged. " I just let him work. You know, Amatzia, we do not have
to take everything upon ourselves. On many occasions it is best to let people do the
work for us."
This was an insightful remark.
I,Vj'gS Vj'dJ 2.f5 Vj'e4+ 3.Wg3 Wh7 4.f3 Vj'bi 5.Wf4
"Look at what White had done in his last moves, " the Baron led me by his clever
commentary. " By the advance f4-f5 he paved the way for his king to reach f4. With
Vj'e7-g5 and f2-f3 he created self-blocks on g5 and f3."
1 94
'�I that remained for me to do now is to benefit from the fruits of White's
thoughtful play:
5 �b8mate!
...
" Here is 'work' for you, " the Baron snubbed. "Wasn't it better to care less and
play simple, effortless chess?"
This unbelievable occu"ence actually happened in a game between two GMs:

Belyavsky - Johannessen, Linares 2002.
195
Chapter 9
Aesthetics
The almighty M. succumbs to the temptation of beauty

over �fficiency - misinterprets originality as going into the
wrong direction- introduces the Baroness's incredible new
standards for positional evaluation- presents a far from
usual metaphor for the game - inte"ogates chess pieces
about beauty criterions - underlines the asymmetrical
nature of corners - does Brad Pitt has anything to do
in this ta /e?
AESTHETICS
THE TEMPTATION OF SYMMETRY
That evening Baron Munchausen suggested that we meet in the Opera tower.
"I have a story that must be told in the right environment, " he said, " . . . and your
flat, with all due respect, will not provoke in me the required inspiration. "
I swallowed my pride. From my experience, a good chess story was worth it.
"What you'll hear today is a sad story, my friend," started M . , with mist in his
eyes. "It makes me miserable, feeling pity for myself. "
"You, the great Baron, are acquainted with such negative emotions?" I was
startled. "You, the famous hero, the brave soldier, the bold adventurer... "
"You've made your point, " came the abrupt and frosty answer. "Yes, even such
an incredible human being as THE MUNCHAUSEN can suffer mortal feelings,
from time to time."
I kept silent. I gathered that pressing for the cause of his misery could only ruin
my chances of absorbing another wonderful tale.
"It all began in a most promising way, " said the Baron after a while. "I fought
against Master Castle, and without much trouble, achieved a winning position."
BARON MUNCHAUSEN- CASTLE
Black to play
" I've just played rook from c3 to c5, attacking his g-pawn, and preventing l . ..g4
on account of2.l:th5+, when I noticed, to my misfortune, the aesthetic effect of the
rooks' doubling on the fifth rank."
The game proceeded:
t..Jig4 2.l:tb6+ \t> h5 3Jicc6!
197
C HAPTER 9
"This makes a pleasing sight, " I remarked. "The rooks are doubled again, this
time on the sixth rank."
"Correct," agreed M. " But you haven't seen anything yet!"
3..JU4 4.Mh6+ \t'g4 5.Mb7 MaS 6.a7 h3 7.Mhh7
White's h7-rook effectively aids pushing his passed a-pawn, while making it hard
for Black to advance his h-pawn.
Munchausen lowered his voice. " By now, the idea of doubling and redoubling my
rooks became an obsession with me. I could see the headlines: 'The Baron wins an
immortal game!' 'The evergreen rook-doubling piece!' etc. But here, disaster struck. "
7 ...\t'g3 8.Mbb8 Mxa7
"The end is near, and by continuing 9.Mxa7 I could have brought this game to
its logical conclusion. But how could one avoid the possibility of a fourth doubling of
rooks? So I played. . . "
198
AESTHETICS
9.l:hh8?!
'� glorious move, aesthetically, but a losing one from the chess point of view! My
adversary shrugged his shoulders, advanced his h-pawn, and won the battle."
The Baron couldn't utter another word, since he was all tears. Later on, he
confided that the Chess Academy gave him a special prize for this rare demonstration
of "devotion to one :S principles. " Somehow, it was no comfort for losing the game.
I 've never seen Munchausen so human and fallible as I saw him on that day at
the Opera.
In the game Vitaly Chekhover- Grisha Goldberg, Leningrad 19 4 9, the renowned

player and study composer was not carried away with "doubling" and played the decisive
9.l:xa7. That game ended:
9.l:xa 7 h2 JO.l:h8 l:h4 1 J.l:xh4 gxh4 12.l:al h3 13.c4 Black resigned.
The ending is not without interest:
13...'itig2 14.c 5 h 1=VJ!i 15.l:xh1'itixh116.c 6 h2 17.c7'itig2 ( 17.'itig1 18.c 8=VJ!i
h 1=VJ!i 19.VJi c I+) 18. c 8=VJ!i h 1=VJ!i 19.VJi b7+ wins.
1 99
CHAPTER9
BACKWARDS
"Two years ago I played an extraordinary game against a certain Shuler, from
Germany, " said the Baron, stretching his legs and sinking into the armchair. "It
was right after I returned from my trip to the moon. You may well remember the
newspapers covering the event; I vividly recall one reporter, who ... "
"You were talking about your game vs. Shuler. . . ?" I reminded him, knowing that
I had to keep this conversation focused.
''Ah yes. At first the game developed in a routine manner. The opening was quite
ordinary, in fact."
SHULER- BARON MUNCHAUSEN
l.e4 e5 2.tt:Jf3 tt:Jc6 3.il.b5 a6 4.il.a4 d6 5.0-0 tt:Je7 6.c3 il.d7 7.d4 Clg6 8.l:el
il.e7 9.tt:Jbd2 0-0 lO.tt:Jfl �e8 l l .il.c2 'it>h8 12.tt:Jg3 il.g4 13.d5
"It was here that a remarkable thought had entered my head," revealed
Munchausen.
At this moment Miss Doubtful entered the room, to serve tea.
" I recalled one of my speeches at Moscow, to a crowd of millions, " the Baron
mused, while Miss Doubtful took an inquiring look at him. Meanwhile, I lectured
on the importance of choosing one's way in life. "It is imperative that you decide
what you aim for, " I told them. "If you don't know where you are going then it
doesn't matter which way you choose!"
"This must have made a strong impression on them, " I thought aloud.
"Are you sure this is your own thought?" said the tactless Miss Doubtful. " Funny,
I could have sworn that I've heard it elsewhere. Wasn't it. . . "
"Never mind!" Baron Munchausen frowned. "Let's not tire ourselves with
details. Anyway, it was in this position that I devised a fantastic plan."
200
AESTHETICS
He made a dramatic pause.
"Well?"
The Baron took a sip from his tea. ''A bit too sweet, " he reproached Miss
Doubtful.
"The game, Baron, the game!" I reminded him.
''Ah yes. You know, there are so many people nowadays who miss half the fun of
life by always and only going forwards."
"I'm sure I've heard this one before, too ... " murmured Miss Doubtful on her way
out. The Baron pretended to have heard nothing.
"I say - why not move backwards? Look at what I played. "
1 3... tt:lb8 14.h3 ii.c8 15.tt:lf5 ii.d8 16.g4 tt:le7 17.tt:lg3 tt:lg8
The Baron was very excited. ''Astounding, isn't it?"

''Ah . . . I'm afraid I don't get it," I confessed. "What is the big idea?"
Munchausen was not an easy man to embarrass. "Don't you see?" he said, clearly
puzzled. "I intend to bring my whole army back to base! Next I'll play e5-e7, d6-d7,
and a6-a7!!"
''And then?" I whispered.
''And then, my dear fellow - White has no target to attack! There are no weaknesses
in my camp! He will be helpless!"
I had to appreciate this bold conception. " Magnificent, Baron. Unbelievable,

indeed!"
He sat proudly and looked at me with victorious eyes. Which reminded me ...
" How did it end?"
" How did the game end? Who won?"
There was silence.
201
CHAPTER9
" Look... " he said, very slowly, " .. .ifyou are going to delve into every trifle . . .
"
I hurried to calm him down. " It doesn't matter. The important thing is the idea,
of course. "
"Naturally. "
And we sat there quietly, drinking our tea.
All this actually happened in the game Emanuel Lasker- Wilhelm Steinitz, Hastings
18 9 5. Lasker was not impressed by Blacks grandiose operation and he won the game in
4 0moves.
Miss Doubtfuls observations about the originality of the Barons pearls of wisdom were
evidently correct. The first literary theft is from Lewis Carrolls Alice's Adventures in.
Wonderland, while the second comesfrom thefather offairy chess, Anthony Dickins.
202
AESTHETICS
THE BARONESS'S MIND
"Very interesting! " enthused Munchausen.

He had just finished reading one of my books, The Grandmaster's Mind (Gambit
Publications, 2004 ).
"Thank you. It is indeed a good book and I am absolutely objective about it. "
That was humble me.
"You know, my wife has read it, too. She liked it even more than I did."
"Really?"
"In fact" - the Baron moved closer - "she had an idea you might find useful."
I was eager to listen.
Strangely, M. began now to move uneasily in his seat.
"You see, " he said slowly, "the Baroness thought about the possibility of you
producing a sequel to your book."
"What would it be about?"
He paused. " She suggested that you explore... er. . . her own mind."
There was silence. I suppose I was a bit shocked.

" Frankly, " said M . , ''I'm not sure if this new book will fill a lot of pages... or
paragraphs... but she insisted that I bring up the idea. . . "
The door opened; SHE entered the room.
" Darling!" exclaimed the Baron as stood up, ready to hug her, " I was just
discussing with our friend here your fascinating new project! "
The Baroness turned to me: "What do you say? Wouldn't it be great? You were
writing about Grandmasters Gelfand, Smirin, Psakhis et al. and here you have the
rare chance of entering a really unique, superior mind!"
Well, what was I supposed to do? I suggested that we look at some positions and
see what comes out of it. The royal couple agreed at once, and Munchausen set up
on the board a random position from one of his many encounters.
203
CHAPTER9
White to play
" Please, tell me what's going on in your mind, when you scan this position," I
asked the Baroness, while pushing the button of my recording machine.
"The first thing that I notice is the emptiness of the fifth rank, " she commented.
"This makes me think of Fifth Avenue in New York and Number 5 Harold Street in
Manchester, where I buy my hats. The fifth should never be empty, I say; so I'm going
to do something about it. Perhaps 1 Jld5? We'll see."
She went on: "Next I look at White's a-pawn and Black's b-pawn. This is really
cruel. Fancy leaving them like this! As a potential mother (she stared in the Baron's
face; he looked elsewhere) I think that children should be looked after, not raised in
lonely surroundings. Therefore, I'll see if I can transfer these pawns to other files,
closer to their friends."
I was trying to question the legality of such an action, but M. signaled to me to
keep quiet.
" Finally, I don't like the colors ofthe chessmen. White and black? Come on, this
is old-fashioned; we are in the 2 1st Century now, you know. I'd rather have them all
in pink. And add some queens on the board, will you? Too many men wandering
around without proper supervision is a bad thing."
"What do you say? Would you do a book on me?"

Of course I would. Let it be announced to all potential readers, that sometime
next year, The Baroness's Mind will be released. Order your copy NOW.
Lest there be a string of protest letters to the editor, complaining that afemale character
was presented unflatteringly, this author hastens to state that he doesn �see it in this light
at all. I strongly believe that chess is much more than a board and wooden pieces; most
men unfortunately miss what the Baroness, with her shrewd perception, had seen.
204
AESTHETICS
CHESS AS A SEA
From time to time, I enjoy delving into philosophical inquiries, regarding the
nature of chess (Oh dear; we better move on to the next story- readers). One intriguing
issue that occupies my mind is what constitutes "beauty" in the noble game.
"You pose a certain position to two players, " I challenged Munchausen, " ... one is
thrilled, yet the other shrugs his shoulders and shows no sign of enthusiasm at all. "
"This i s correct, " the Baron agreed. "Beauty is i n the eye o fthe beholder; totally
subjective. "
"I wonder" - said I , trying my luck - "what does 'chess beauty mean to you, the
'
greatest player of all time?''

He was quick to respond. "Waves," he said.
Not the most natural answer, I'd say.
I asked him to expand his reply.
"When I was young, I used to sit on the seashore, looking at the waves. I was
fascinated: one wave reaches the shore, crashed and disappeared. Then comes
another and another. . . and so on. "
·�ct . . ?"
.
"Well," M. confessed, " ...this is what attracts me in a chess duel. One player
carries out an aggressive act; his opponent defends successfully. The attacker launches
another wave of attack; still the defense holds. But then comes another wave and
another, until the defense crumbles and victory is achieved. "
I must admit that I had never come across this metaphor o f chess as sea waves. It
does make sense, though, when you think about it."
I asked M. for some examples of "beautiful chess. " Here is what he showed me.
E. KOLESNIKOV
Moscow Championship 1 996, !'t place
205
CHAPTER9
"White is a piece up, but he must stop Black's advanced pawn. "
l.Ci:c6+ � a8!
l . . .�b7 2.Ci:Ja5+ with 3.Ci:Jb3 wins.
2.ii.b4
Not 2.ii.h6? ii.c3. "The first phase is over, " explained the Baron; " . . . but it is not
enough."
2 ...ii.f6+ 3.�c8 ii.g5
With the intention of pushing ... d2-d l .
4.Ci:d4! d2 5.Ci:Jb5
"The second wave. 5 ... d l ='&I is unplayable because of 6. Ci:Jc7+ � a7 7.ii.c5#,
while on other moves White continues 6.Ci:c3, securing his edge. Amazingly, Black
is able to ride this wave as well. "
5 ii.e3! 6.Ci:c3 ii.c5!
.•.
The point: 7.ii.xc5 d l ='&l 8.Ci:Jxd l is stalemate. "Watch the third, and deciding
wave!" M. couldn't conceal his joy.
7.ii.a5! ii.b6 8.ii.xb6! dl='&I 9.Ci:Jb5! 1 -0
Notice that if White had played 7.ii.xc5 d l ='&I 8 .Ci:Jb5!?, then Black would have
saved himselfby 8 ... '&1d6!!=. In the fnal position ofthe study, however, 9 ... '&1d6 loses
to 10.Ci:c7+ '&lxc7+ l l .ii.xc7.
K. TARNOPOLSK Y & S. N. TKACHENKO

Rezvov-75 Jubilee, 1 997, 3'd prize
As in the previous position, White is a piece up, but has trouble keeping his
material advantage since l .Ci:Jxf6jti:c7 is met by l .. .�g7=.
l.�g3 f5! 2.�xh4 fxg4 3.ii.g2
It seems that the first wave has ended in a decisive material advantage.
3...Ci:Jd8!
Alas, White loses a piece. A second wave now reaches the shores:
206
AESTHETICS
4.tl:lf6 �g7 5.tlh5+ �xh8 6.1i.d5!

Apparently decisive, as the black knight is now dominated and will be picked up
at leisure by the white king.
6... �h7!
Careful! 7. �xg4 � g6 puts White in Zugzwang: he cannot maintain the influential
positions of his pieces, and Black either runs away with his knight, or else brings up
his king to defend it.
7.�g3!! �g6 8.�xg4
"The third wave , " I said, met by a supportive glance from His Majesty. It turns
out that the position is a reciprocal Zugzwang.
8 ...tlfi 9 . .fi.e4#.
Lastly, Munchausen paid tribute to Garry Kasparov, ...the second best player in
"
the World, "as he likes to refer to him.
KASPAROV- DE FIRMIAN
New York Grand Prix (rapid) 1 995
White to play
"I notice that all your examples are of the simple variety, featuring very few
pieces, " I observed.
"The sea is also simple, " was his obscure comment. He proceeded to demonstrate
the game continuation, which also consists of three waves.
l.�d3
Marching to the queenside. l . . . .fi. xb2 need not be feared, as 2 . .fi.e3 wins easily.
l...�c6 2.1i.et .fi.g5 3.�c4 1i.e3 4.b4 cxb4 5.cxb4 axb4 6 ..fi.xb4
The first stage is over; in addition to h6 and e5, the weaknesses of b6 is also
pronounced.
6....fi.cl 7. .fi.f8 1i.g5 8 ..fi. g7 f6 9.1i.h8!
207
CHAPTER9
To crack Black's solid formation, a Zugzwang is created. The second wave

commences, and Black must make a concession.
"Tea?" That was Miss Doubtful, of course.
"Yes, please," we both obliged.
9 ... \t>d6 10.\t>bS \t>c7 1 t .,ig7 \t>b7 12.,if8 \t>c7 13.,ie7 \t>d7 14.,ib4 ,i e3
Will Black survive?
15.g5!!
A killer. "The third wave usually is, " said M. perceptively. l 5 ... hxg5 16.h6, and
1 5 . . . ,ixg5 16.\t>xb6 are both hopeless.
15 ... fxg5 16.g4! \t>e6 17.\t>c6 ,i d4 18.,id6 1-0
,ic7xb6 is not to be denied.
" Here you are," said Miss Doubtful, as she came back with two cups of her
splendid tea.
"I'm a bit worried," I opened my heart to the Baron. " It is all very instructive,
but not much fun. When readers have read it they will hardly have a smile on their
face."
Miss Doubtful gave me a chilling stare: " But they will acquire an immeasurable
amount of wisdom, " she promised.
208
CHAPTER9
''I'm not sure that I understand what you say. . . hold it! Do you mean we should
let computers decide the issue?"
"Look," M. explained, " ... only the chess pieces are in an objective position to
define what is beautiful and what is not."
This was an extraordinary thought. But I had to admit, the Baron had a point.
Chess players are only observers; the real heroes of the chess battle are those who
actually perform on the board.
"So, what do chess pieces think on this subject?"
"I don't know, " answered Munchausen. " But I'm sure going to explore the
matter. "
Two weeks passed before I met him again. He looked tired, but content.
"I gathered 200 chess pieces to a conference, wishing to resolve the matter of
chess beauty, once and for all. I truly believe that the chess pieces are best suited to
judge what is beautiful in the game. "
I listened attentively.
"It was not an easy task, let me assure you. Talking to kings and queens is not a
problem; I have a lot of experience with living royal members. But conversing with
bishops is quite tricky. "
"It took me some days to acquire the bishops' special language. And when
I thought I finally got it, it transpired that dark-squared bishops speak a different
dialect than light-squared ones."
Fascinating.
"So, what conclusion did you extricate from the conference?"

The Baron smiled. " Defining beauty in chess turned out to be a simple
matter. Whenever the pieces feel comfortable with each other, this is considered as
beautiful. "
Here are two examples, to convey the Baron's discovery to the readers.
210
AESTHETICS
Due to the inevitable promotion of Black's d-pawn, White appears to be lost,

but...
l.'i¥a2!
Intends to win the advanced pawn (2.'i¥d5+), or pin it (2.c4).
A) l...dl='i¥ 2.c4+! 'i:t'f3 3.'i¥f2!+ 'i:t'xf2 drawing by stalemate.
B) l ... b6+ 2.1t'c4 d l='i¥ 3.c3+! 'i:t'f3 4.'i¥f2+! comes to the same conclusion.
C) l ...b6+ 2.\t>c4 b5+ 3.1t'c3 dl='i¥ 4.'i¥g8+ 'i:t'fl 5.'i¥g2+! and here we are
again. Three echo-stalemates! Draw.
Helpmate in 3
A reminder: in such type of problem, Black begins and both sides cooperate so
that at the end Black will be mated.
lJ:!:eS �d5 2.lle6 lle5+ 3.'i¥e4 llf5#!
Sensational: on every move a piece goes immediately to the square left by a piece
of opposite color!
"In both fragments one can realize that the pieces are having great fun. This is
indeed very beautiful," said Munchausen as he summed up his argument.
The first position is taken from a study by I. Jarmonov, P' honor mention, Schach
19 9 8. The first 7 moves were omitted.
The second diagram is by Jean-Marc Loustau and Jacques Rotenberg, :}'d prize Rex
Multiplex 19 8 3. The particular task is called the " Umnow effect. "
21 1
CHAPTER9
THE ASYMMETRICAL NATURE OF A CHESSBOARD
Al weekend long, we suffered from a nasty spell ofweather; unstoppable rain and
heavy fog.
The Baron recalled an incident in similar conditions, which almost cost him his
life ... "I was in a chasing mission, standing on a cliff, observing the valley beneath,
where a notorious villain was hiding. But because it was stormy and foggy, like it is
now, I lost my balance for a second and almost fell down 500 meters."
I expressed my satisfaction that this unfortunate event had not materialized, after
all.
"Yes, it would have been unfortunate. I could have hurt myself' - The Baron''
agreed. " But I drew the right lesson. I went to another comer of the valley, climbed
on another cliff. This new point of view enabled me to spot the villain."
He reflected for a moment and then made an interesting analogy to chess: "All
comers of the board are not alike, " he stated. "What is impossible to achieve in one
comer may be applied in another. "
This seemed to be a significant principle and I asked for an example.
THE BARON- AN EASTERN MANDARIN

China, 1 546
White to play
"When reaching this position I thought the end is near. Al I had to do is prevent
Black's c-pawn from promoting and victory is assured. "
Liiel+
Not l .Jtg5?? e3.
l. .<;t>a6 2.Jtd2 e3 3.Jt cl h4!
..
212
AESTHETICS
Munchausen described the situation: ''After executing his last move, my opponent
gave me a sweet smile and left the board, letting me agonize in private. I looked at my
position with dismay; what was I to do? My two officers are totally paralyzed."
"Why don't you just bring your king to the center and finish him off?" I
suggested.
"This is easy to say, but how can it be done?" inquired the Baron. "Whatever I
play, Black reacts by moving his king along the sixth rank, opposing my own king.
My huge material advantage appears to be useless."
I kept silent, trusting my hero to hit upon some wonderful, unpredictable idea. If
anybody can discover a solution to dead-end situations, it is Baron Munchausen.
I was not mistaken.
''After racking my brains for a full hour, I saw the light. What cannot be obtained
in one corner of the board is feasible on the other one!"
4.<t>b8 <t>b6 5.<t>c8 <t>c6 6.<t>d8 <t>d6 7.<t>e8 <t>e6 8.<t>f8 <t>f6 9.<t>g8 <t>g6
I confessed to the Baron: "To my shame, I admit that I still do not get the point
of this trip."
lO.<t>h8! <t> h6
l 0 . . . <t> h5 1 1 . <t> h7 <t> g5 loses to the same rejoinder.
213
CHAPTER 9
l l .tlf2! White wins.

Due to the pin along the c l -h6 diagonal, his knight is finally out from his cage
and material superiority soon tells.
A clever study by F. C. Bondarenko and A. Kakovin, P' honorable mention, Platov

memorial tourney, 19 5 4
214
AESTHETICS
TROY
We were walking in the streets, after watching the saga Troy in the movies.
Munchausen opined that the Great War was admirably presented, and mentioned
that Brad Pitt was particularly impressive in the role of Achilles.
Then the conversation shifted to various topics; I recall President Obama,
Madonna, a certain Gypsy and Kramnik, popping up during our talk, in no particular
order.
Finally we arrived at the Baron's place. He switched on his computer and took a
CD from the pile beside his desk.
"Let this be a lesson to us all," said the commentating broadcaster. " Develop
your pieces as a team; do not make successive moves with a single piece. "
"This is nonsense, " said the Baron. "Quite often the contrary is correct and you
have to employ one piece time and again. "
A skeptical look on my face prompted him to give a demonstration.
CAPABLANCA- YATES
New York 1924
White to play
40.tlc3 I:!c5
40 . . .tlxc3? 4 1 .lhd7+ . Now the knight proceeds to make a remarkable tour.
41.tle4 I:ib5 42.tled6 I:!c5 43.tlb7 I:!c7 44.tl 7xa5 (1-0, 77)
215
CHAPTER 9
TCHIGORIN- SCHLECHTER
Monte Carlo 1 902
White to play
l .�d8! axb3 2.�b8 W d6 3.�xb6+ W c7 4.�xb3 il.c6 5.�a3! il.b7 6.�a5! W d6

7.llb5 il.g2 8.�b6+ Wc7 9.�f6!
Virtuoso play by the white rook, completing nine successive moves with great
effect. Black must choose between two evils: exchanging rooks (10.�f7) or giving
White a pair of passed pawns (9 . . ..txh3 1 0.llc6+).
9 ....tb7 10.h4 il.a8 l l.�f7 W d6 12.�xe7 Wxe7 13.lZJd3 and White won.
"I fail to see how we got here from discussing the acting of Brad Pitt, " I said.
Munchausen gave me a patronizing glance. "There is no connection, " he replied.
"That's another problem with your chess understanding; you are always searching
for logical connections."
''And?"
"There are none, " he uttered decisively. "The whole universe is rolling around in
a random manner. "
I wondered whether Achilles would have taken part in the Trojan War, had he
shared the Baron's outlook of a pointless world.
" If we follow your viewpoint regarding the nature of the cosmos, " I dared, " I
should have won an occasional game from you. "
H e stood u p to indicate his displeasure. "The world is random, I said, not sily."
2 16
Chapter 1 0
Miscellaneous
Munchausen does not rest until truth is unearthed -is

charged on the suspicion of murder -composes a mind
boggling test to identify chess addicts -comments on
pointless issues -offers his diagnosis regarding the most
vital organ of a chess player -confronts effortlessly a slight
wave of antagonism -poses for an illustration with his
bodies.
CHAPTER 1 0
THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE
Watching a game of soccer is great fun, and watching soccer with Munchausen is
a particularly enjoyable experience.
Right after a game is finished, the Baron goes home, turns on the TV, and looks at
the replay. "Let's analyze(!), " he always says in his most serious voice. "Let's find the
TRUTH. Was the winning goal a correct decision or should the referee have ruled
for offside? What really happened in the 32"ct minute, when center forward Charlton
fell inexplicably 5 meters from the goal line?"
He goes on: surely the tactics of the coaches were mistaken - they should hay,e
chosen an offensive formation. Besides, why wasn't Bill Shade included in the
Manchester side?
"It's only a game, " I said, trying to quench his zealousness. "It is, after all, a mere
sport, a leisure activity... "
The Baron wouldn't hear of such things. So I played my last card: " Even in chess,
the truth is not so important; what matters is the result. "
Munchausen looked at me contemptuously. "Speak for yourself. From my
standpoint, searching for the truth is a mission of supreme magnitude. In chess, as in
football, we frequently find it only when the game is over. "
Asking for examples is of course the next step, and M. is quick to deliver.
MUNCHAUSEN- DESPERADO
Black to play
''A pawn ahead, I was quite confident in my position," recalled the Baron, " . . .
when suddenly my rival found a remarkable idea:"
218
MISCELLANEOUS
I...j,d2+!! (?)
"This came as a huge shock, confessed M. "I'm afraid I completely panicked
after this sacrifice of a piece which can be captured in four different ways, and soon
lost with H�ib l ? 'i!:¥xd6. After the game we looked at the variations, and found out
that the position was a forced draw!"
2.'1!:¥xd2
2.<;xd2? 'i!:¥xd6+ and 2Jhd2? l:l:xa2 are both wins for Black.
2 ...l:l:xa2 3.'l!:¥b4! l:i:d8!
It seems that White is losing material, as 4.l:i:xd8+ (4.l:i:xf6?? l:l:a l #) 'i!:¥xd8 5.<;b l
is countered by 4. . .'1!:¥a8!; but there is a way out:
4.<;bt! l:i:da8! s.<;ct! l:i:d8! with a positional draw.
" Fascinating!" I was impressed.

" But completely wrong, " Munchausen sighed. "In the quiet of my study, I found
the refutation. I should have won!"
It transpires that I . ..j, d2+ is refuted by 2.'1!:¥xd2 l:i:xa2 3.'1!:¥d3, when neither 3 . . .
'l!:¥xb2+ 4.<;d2, nor 3 ... '1!:¥f3 4.l:l:e l , o r 3 . . .l:l: a l + 4.<;d2 saves Black.
MUNCHAUSEN- MS. MISS
White to play
l .I.'Zlc3?
"I thought this was going to clinch matters, due to the double threat of 2.'1!:¥g8#
and 2.1'Zlxe2. Indeed, it turned out that way after Black's reply. "
l...'l!:¥e6 z.j,dS 'l!:¥e7 3.j,g8+ <;h8 4.j,h7+! Black resigned.
" It was only some years later, when I looked into some old games of mine, that I
found out, to my utter amazement, that Black had means of salvation."
Here it is: l...I'Zlf6!! 2.1.'Zlxe2 1'Zlg4+ 3.<;h3 1'Zlxf2+ and draws by perpetual check,
since White will not dare try 4.<;h4?? j, f6#.
219
CHAPTER l O
" Finding the truth is important," I agreed.

"You see?"
He fell into the trap.
"The truth" - I said calmly - "is that there are certain things that even The
Great Baron doesn't notice at the board; and he needs his home laboratory to clear
things up."
He didn't like my comment one bit.
But hey, it was the TRUTH.
"You think that just because we are friends, you can share part of my fame, talent
and capabilities, " he uttered cruelly. " But you know, you are one gigantic Patzer, no
more."
Painful, but TRUTH again.
Thefirst diagram is Chernishev- Ostrivoj, U.S.S.R 19 6 8. The refutation appears in

the book How to Think in Chess by Przewoznik & Sos:zynski, USA 2001.
The second diagram is Andersson- Smejkal, Amsterdam 197 3.
220
M I SCELLANEOUS
I� M.��Qt� l£�� r?�

lllllli!III !I!IIIIIIIIIIIII IIIHIII!IIIIIIIIIIIIII III lllliiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiii!I I II ll 1111 l tn!!llll t lllllllllll i!!IUI IIIIIIIIII I!Illlllll llllllll llt!fi!UIIIIIIIIIIIIII
"You don't look well," I observed when I met the Baron last week. "Are you ill?"
"I'm perfectly fine, " he replied - but I remained suspicious:
"You don't look healthy. "
Munchausen didn't answer and I glanced at him with inquiring stare.
"Well, all right, " M. admitted reluctantly. "The police were here this morning."
"The police!? What did they want?"
"They were looking for a murderer, " the Baron said, " ... and for a while I thought
they were going to nail me."
" For what?" I asked, with an air of disbelief.
Munchausen pointed in the direction of his DVD, where six chess cassettes were
laying. They were by G M Roman Dzindzichashvili ( The Roman Forum), titled:
A) The King's Indian Assassination

B) Butchering the Grunfeld
C) Queen's Gambit Guillotined
D) Queen's Indian Massacred
E) Killing the Sicilian
F) Slaying the Dragon
"I see," I smiled. "I suppose it took you some time to explain to the policemen
that you are not a vicious killer. "
"I might be, " the Baron humbly confessed, " . . .but only in a chess sense. Look
how I've murdered a friend of mine."
He then proudly presented me the following gem:
BARON MUNCHAUSEN- A FRIEND

(He actually became an ex-friend following this slaughter).
l.LZ:lf3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.e3 c5 4.b4 dxe3 5.fxe3 cxb4 6.1Le2 LZ:lf6 7.0-0 LZ:lc6 8.1Lb2 e6
9.d4 .1e7 10.LZ:lbd2 LZ:lg4 l l .'iVb3 f5 12.e4 fxe4 13.LZ:lxe4 0-0 14.'iVd3 LZ:lf6 15.LZ:lg3
'iVb6 16.\t>hl 'iVaS 17 ..1dl!
Building a battery along the b l -h7 diagonal.
17 ....1d7 18.d5 exd5 19.cxd5 LZ:lb8
l 9 . . . LZ:lxd5 is met by 20 . .1c2 with the possible sequence 20 . . .g6 2 l ..I1Lb3 .1e6
22.'iVe4 1Lf7 23.LZ:le5 LZ:l f6 24.LZ:lxf7! LZ:lxe4 25.LZ:lh6#.
20..1 c2 'iVbS
Black was justly reluctant to play 20 . . ..1b5 2 l .'iYe3 lLxfl 22.'iYxe7 .1c4 23.CZJe5
with a terrific attack.
221
CHAPTER IO
21.�d4 �c5 22.�d2 \t> h8 23.l:Iadl tla6 24.tle5 .il.b5
I was a bit disappointed. "I don't see any killing so far. A strong attacking game,
yes, but is it any more than that?"
"Do watch closely over the next few moves," the Baron invited me.
25.tlf5! .il.xfl 26.�g5! ilh5 27.tlg6+!
27...hxg6 28 ..il.xg7+!
I smiled. "Now I see."
28... \t>h7
28 . . . Chxg7 29.�h6+, or 29 ... \t>g8 29.0:lh6+ \t> xg7 30.�xg6+ clinches matters.
29.'i¥h6+ \t>g8 30.tlxe7+ �xe7 31.�h8+ \t>t7 32.l:Ixfl+ tlf6 33 ..il.xg6+!
Munchausen's pleasure grew with each move.
33... \t>xg6 34.�h6+ \t>t7 35.l:l:xf6+ \t> e8 36.l:Ixf8+ \t>d7 37.�e6+
Liquidating the queens was necessary because Black was actually threatening
mate on the first rank.
37 ... �xe6 38.dxe6+ \t>xe6 39.l:Ixa8
Black resigned.
"Yes, indeed, you are a killer, " I said appreciatively.

Now, coming from a non-police officer, this was taken by the Baron as a
compliment, not an accusation.
The D VD titles are genuine!

The game is Kramer - Drexel, U.S. Championship, New York 19 4 6.
222
MISCELlANEOUS
NUTS
A provocative article in the famous Time magazine raised an old debate.

" Did Chess Drive Him Crazy?" was the headline of a short piece by Charles
Krauthammer. The author, taking Bobby Fischer as an example, wondered whether
over-indulgence in the royal game is detrimental to one's sanity.
I urged the great Baron to share his opinion with us.
"Well" - said M. - "I must admit that I have known quite a few blokes who
became unbalanced following an intense period of playing chess. However -"
"Yes?"
" Based on my rich experience, I am happy to announce that I have devised a test
that diagnoses the degenerative process at an early stage. Therefore I am able to give
members of the public advance warning of the dangers, so they can take preventive
measures. "
He proceeded to present a revolutionary self-test. Readers can check for
themselves: Are you a chess nut?
Question 1: Playing an Internet game, from the following diagram: would you
play on for ages, trying to win on time?
223
CHAPTER 1 0
Question 2: Do you have bizarre dreams in which images like this pop up?
Question 3: White had just played l .'i'¥d2-e2+. Did you consider the variation
1 . . .0-0-0! 2.'i'¥a6+ Wd7 3 .iih3+ We8 4 ..l:he l + 0-0!! ?
Black to play
224
MISCELLANEOUS
Question 4: How can White win from the following position?
White to play
[Answer: By capturing his own pieces! I .lZJxf6+ ! lit'h8 2.hxg7+ ! And now, after
2 ... \t> xg7, back to normality with 3 .lZJxe8+ followed by 4.tt:Jxc7.]
Question 5: Do you aspire to become a chess professional?
Results
Are you crazy?
According to Munchausen, two positive answers out of five are a cause for
concern; three positive answers ought to send you rushing to visit a psychiatrist.
And what if four (or - God forbid - all!) of your answers have been affirmative?
Then you can safely continue to play chess as much as you like, since the damage is
already done.
''An irrevocable state, " said M. dryly. " It comes with a title of OCL: Official Chess
Lunatic. "
225
CHAPTER 1 0
POINTLESS
The other day my friend the Baron celebrated the 1 00'h anniversary of his heroic
battle against Zeus. As we all recall, Munchausen fought the Greek god for three
days until his opponent had pleaded for a cessation of hostilities, calling for U.N.
intervention.
[" There was no United Nations 100years ago"- editor; "So ?"- me.]
I brought M. a gift: a book by the former English Chess Champion, William

Hartston: Whats ' What- The Encyclopedia of Pointless Information.
We browsed merrily through the treasure trove of rubbish. It transpires that the
camu-camu fruit, which grows in the Peruvian rain forest, has the highest vitamin
C content of any food (p. 3 1 1 ). We learned that the average American will spend
six months of his life waiting at red traffic lights (p. 235). It was an eye-opener to
reveal that the penis ofthe blue whale is 7 to 8 feet long (p. 452) ["I 'm not impressed"
- Munchausen].
And then, we came across the entry "Chess". Here (p. 87 in the encyclopedia)
one reads that recently a young believer organized a petition claiming that 'chess
was the work of the Devil '. However, after some deliberation, the Russian Orthodox
Church ruled that chess is not a sin ["I'm not so sure about that"- the Baron].
Archbishop Wikenti from Yekaterinburg reasoned as follows: " Passionate games
and arousing games that cause confusion, anger and irritation, are banned by the
Church; but chess is a quiet, intelligent game that encourages people to think."
"Quiet game? Intelligent? Thinking? This is hilarious!" said Munchausen, as he

burst into wild laughter.
Indeed, how anyone can mistake our silly, annoying, random and irrelevant game
for something meaningful, is hard to grasp.
"I assume that His Highness the Archbishop was unfamiliar with incidents such
as this," said M. and he set up the board in the following manner:
226
MISCELLANEOUS
SAVCHENKO- KRIVONOSOV
USSR 1 989
Black to play
l...�eS?? 2.�xe5 '.t'dS 3.�g7?? '.t'c4 Black won.
"I don't see here any trace of thinking, and certainly not of any intelligence,"
Munchausen asserted, cruelly.
Black could have won with l ... '.t' d6 2.c4 �e5 3.c5+ '.t' e6. As played, White could
have saved himself with 3.'.t' d3! '.t'xe5 (3 ... a2? even loses to 4.�h8 a l ='ti' 5.c4+)
4.'.t'c2=.
The Baron then suggested his own description of the royal game.
CHESS: ''An irritating, brainless and pointless form of futile activity, which
creates the impression that something important is going on."
This will probably enter the 'Encyclopedia of Shrewd Observations ', should anyone
(Hartston?) care to write one.
* It is sometimes ba ffling to detect pieces of true data in this book. So we 'd like to
stress that Hartston 's book- quite amusing, if you 're in the right frame of mind - is
very real (Metro Publishing, 2005), although the reputation of its author leaves an open
question whether all information given is serious.
227
CHAPTER l O
THE MOST IMPORTANT ORGAN OF A CHESS PLAYER
The other day there was a heated discussion at the club. A debate arose regarding
what was the most important organ of a chess player. Bob said it is obvious that the
head, where the mind resides, is crucial for success in chess.
Lisa begged to differ, saying that in all her 7 5 years she had never met a chess
player who used his head. She was in favor ofthe hands- which make it possible for
a player to move his pieces on the board.
Jon thought the legs are vital, as their existence permits players to arrive at
tournaments and to walk around between moves.
Murray couldn't imagine playing without his nose- how else was he supposed to-'
smell a rat and sidestep his opponents' traps?
All became quiet when the Baron gave his view: a thought-provoking one, as you
might expect.
"The buttocks are the most important organ of a chess player, " asserted M.
" Frequently we want to move instantly, executing what seems to be a forced and
obvious move. Were we not sitting on our hands, we would be making grave errors; the
buttocks keep us from blundering."
Thus spoke Munchausen.
Two illustrations follow, where a player's natural move fails and he would have
been better off sitting on his hands.
White to play
22.Ihd6 .lkxd6 23.Ct: e4!!

23.�xf7+ is begging to be played, yet after 23 . . . c;t> h8 24.�f6+ c;t>g8 25.�e6+
c;t> h8 26.�xd6 �xc3 27 .:!:l:f8+ c;t> g7! 28. � f6+ c;t> h6 White has no more than perpetual
228
M ISCELLANEOUS
check. The text move wins the bishop (23 ... �a3 24.�xt7+ W h8 25.�f6+) and after
Black's rejoinder - it even mates!
23... .1t.f8 24.�xf7+ W h8 25.ll f6 .1t.g7 26.lbe8! Black resigned.
He can prevent one threat (say, 26 ... e4, against 27.�xg7#) but not the other (27.
�f8+!).
l.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 d4 4.lbf3 lbc6 5 ..1t.f4 .1t.b4+ 6.lbbd2 .1t.e6 7.e3 d3 8.�b3
b5 9 ..1t.xd3 Irb8 10 ..1t.e4 lb ge7 l l .�c2 .1t.xc4 12.0-0-0 .1t.xd2+ 13.Irxd2 lbb4
It takes a really strong character (or tough buttocks) to pass up a move such as
14.llxd8+. Capturing the queen with check is natural and obvious. Nevertheless it
is not so powerful. After 14 . . . Irxd8 1 5.�bl lbxa2+ 16.Wc2 lbb4+ 1 7 . W c l lb a2+
Black forces repetition of moves. By shunning the obvious, White retains winning
chances.
14.�dl!
Sitting on his hands.
14...�c8 15 ..1t. g5 lbxa2+ 16.Wbl �e6 17 ..1t.xe7 �xe7
Or 1 7 ... Wxe7 1 8.lbd4.
18..1t.c6+ Wf8 19.Ird7 �e6 20.Irxc7 lbb4
20 . . .�g6+ 2 l .e4 �xg2 22.Itg l �xf2 loses to the spectacular 23.Irxt7+!!.
2 l.�d6+ �xd6 22.exd6 lbxc6 23.Irxc6 g6 24.lbe5 .1t.e6 25.Itc7 l:td8 26.Irdl f6
27 .lbc6 l:td7 28.lbb8 Irxc7 29.dxc7 Wf7 30.l:td8 Ire8 31.lbd7!
Black resigned.
Both examples are taken from the legacy ofthe late GM Viacheslav Ragozin:
1) Ragozin - Taimanov, Leningrad 19 4 5;
2) Ragozin- Krilenko, USSR.
229
CHAPTER 1 0
The Baron gave me a sympathetic glance.

"I've just read a review of a book of yours, in the latest Kingpin," he said. "The
critic wrote some nasty things about you. Are you okay?"
"I might be, in a year or two , " I muttered.
"Well, such things should be expected from time to time , " he said, as he tried to
comfort me. "Whatever you do, some people are bound to dislike you."
" ... Or you," I added.
The Baron raised his eyebrows. "What do you mean?'' he queried.
"Well. . . listen to this ... " I quoted some derogatory comments from another
source: 'Amatzia does that God awful Baron Munchinrubbish... He should drop (it) and
do some proper columns. ' "
Munchausen became upset. He demanded to know the identity of the impudent

ignoramus who wrote such a groundless criticism.
I gave him the name.
"Surely an imbecile?" suggested M.
"Not at all. Actually both critics are talented writers. It's just that, for some
inexplicable reason, they are not too crazy about me, " I trembled.
" . . . Nor me, " said M. in a melancholy voice.
We sat in silence, wiping our tears. It was hard to adjust to a reality in which some
hostile people refuse to worship the great Munchausen and its author.
A cruel place, this world.
"What now?" I asked.

The Baron refected for a while. "I suppose we'll pretend that nothing has
happened. "
"You mean we'll just go o n with our usual stuff?"
" Exactly. Go fetch Miss Doubtful and Mr. NotSoSober and let us grant the
readers some more God awful Munchinrubbish."
All right!
" I was always fascinated by the phenomenon of transformation," said the Baron
when the four of us gathered. "In the following positions - taken from my match
against King Solomon - I succeeded in transforming quiet, innocent-looking bishop
endgames into brilliant tactical attacks. "
230
M I SCELLANEOUS
White (Munchausen) to play and win
l.a7
l .il.d2? (intending 2.'t>g4#) 't>:xh5; or l .'t>g4? (threatening 2.itd2#) itd4, are
futile.
l...a2 2. 't>g4 e3 3.il.c3! at ='li
3 . . . il. xc3 (3 . . .exf2?? 4.il.d2#) loses to 4.a8='1i a l ='li 5.'iVf8+ il.g7 6.'1if4#.
4.il.xal exf2 5.il.f6!!
Munchausen was visibly proud whilst demonstrating this move. Black must
accept the offer because of the threat 6.il.g5#. Incidentally, the natural 5.a8='iV
fl='iV 6.'\ixc6+ il. f6 surprisingly fails to win: 7.'1ixf6+ 'iVxf6 8.il. xf6; or 7.il.xf6
'lic4(g2)+! 8.'\ixc4 lead to stalemate.
5 ...il.xf6 6.a8='1i fl='iV 7.'iVf8+ il.g7 8.'iVxfl White wins.
White (Munchausen) to play and win
White is a piece up, but the advanced a4-pawn constitutes a serious problem.
l.g5 hxg5
l ... a3 2.gxh6 gxh6 3.g7.
2.il.f3 't>c6 3.il.xd5+! 't>xd5 4.c4+ 't>d4 5.itxa5 a3
23 1
CHAPTER 1 0
The a-pawn is unstoppable, but. ..

6 .\tc7! a2 7 .it d6 at=� 8..\tf8 White wins.
. .
"Very nice!" I complimented my friend.

Miss Doubtful and Mr. NotSoSober exchanged confused glances.
"Why did you want us to join you, Your Highness?" Miss Doubtful dared to ask.
" Don't get me wrong; your play was marvelous; but I fail to see in what way the
presence of Mr. NotSoSober and myself is of any relevance... "
M. was puzzled. " Don't you see? We all experience all sorts of transformations
in our lives, like those you have witnessed on the chessboard right now. You, Miss
Doubtful, transformed from a young, ambitious woman, into a mature housekeeper,,
You, Mr. NotSoSober, have changed from someone who is just a little fond ofbooze,
into a complete addict."
"I'll drink to that," said NotSoSober.
''And you, Amatzia, have developed from an amateur story-teller into a respected
author, an expert in recounting, er. . . "
He was searching for the right expression.
Chorus: "God awful Munchinrubbish. "
Thefirst position is a study by M. Kwiatkowski (Poland) ]st prize in The Problemist

-
1992-9 3. The second position is a study by J. Gerhold, Jrd commendation in Schach

2004-2005.
232
M ISCELLANEOUS
THE TEA PARTY
An envelope that I found in my postbox brought unexpected news: the Baron

decided to throw a party for his many acquaintances, and he invited us all to the
gardens of his luxurious castle.
Upon arriving, I was happy to discover many guests, who were an integral part of
Munchausen's adventures.
Here was a chance for me to meet in person the likes of Mr. Gambler, who was
fond of making various chess bets; Mr. N otSoSober, with his companion vodka glass;
Mr. Sprinter, who could push a passed pawn so quickly, that only the Baron himself
could prevent its promotion; the detestable Mr. Wicked, who finds special pleasure
in torturing his opponents; and many others: the Cyclops; Mr. Woodpusher; the
pair of friends - Mr. Rabbit and Mr. Innocent; and the two women who figure in
Munchausen's life: the loyal Miss. Doubtful and the Baroness.
And then, there was a very strange gentleman, who repeatedly murmured things
like "offwith his head!"and "time is always tea-time. " It took me a while to recognize
in him the Mad Hatter. Poor chap - he'd confused Alice's party with the Baron's
celebration.
True to himself, the Baron presented us with chess stimulation. A huge cake
decorated with a chess diagram:
Amazingly, it was the Mad Hatter who pointed out the solution:
t..t d2! %i'h8+
Against 2.l:l:d3+. Now White seems to be lost: 2.c3 (2.�b l %i'b2#) %i'h l +
mates.
2.l:l:e5!! %i'xe5+
233
CHAPTER 1 0
Else White will continue 3.c3! with the deadly threat 4 ..li c l #. 2 ... 'i¥h i + 3.l:e l
'i¥h8+ 4.c3 just postpones the inevitable.
3.c3 White wins.
After 3 ... 'i¥xc3+ 4 ..lixc3 the pawn on b6 prevents stalemate and leads to 4 ... b5
5.�b l b4 6 ..lib2#.
Then, I gave a speech in honor of our host:

"Dear Munchausen,
"I've been blessed of being your friend for some years now. I accompanied your
travels to Heaven and to Hell; saw you make battle face to face and on the Internet.
You played on a full board and on half a board, in simultaneous exhibitions and
live chess, meeting champions like Tal, Botvinnik, Fischer and Kasparov as well as
beginners; all this in the present, past and the future tense . . .
"You composed intricate chess problems, escaped from a Cyclops, witnessed a
talking knight (horse) . . . You introduced me to the Baroness and to Miss Doubtful,
as well as to Genghis Khan, Mr. Evil and Harry Potter. You are a truth-seeker, a bold
innovator and a profound thinker.
" Baron, you are indeed a unique character and on behalf of everyone here, I
thank you heartily for all that you have done for chess" ( ... andfor the world at large"
- The Baron hastened to add] . "
The crowd applauded; several pictures were drawn to commemorate the occasion;
you can find one of them on the next page.
The diagram is a study by G. Bagdasarian (Grzeban) which won 1sr prize in a 197 1
Wolanski Memorial contest.
234

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Praise for Amatzia Avni's works

"The material (in Creative Chess) is superb... The chess is entertaining,

'�atzia Avni is unique among chess writers. Combining wit, intelligence,

All rights reserved. No part ofthis book may be reproduced

Publisher: Mongoose Press

ISBN 978 - 1 -936277-32-2

Distributed to the trade by National Book Network

Editor: Sean Marsh

First English edition

Chapter 1. AMAZING TRAVELS .................................................................... 11

Chapter 2. RECORDS AND UNUSUAL FEATS ................................................ 34

Against All the Odds ............ . .......... .. ........ ........ . .

Chapter 3. CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS 60

The Baroness .......................... . .

Miss Doubtful Talks . 63

The Zulu Way 66

Mr. Grumble . ... . ... ..

A Drunk Friend and a Strict Arbiter 71

Playing with Beginners .......................................................................... 73

Exciting an Alien ..................................................................................... 90

Chapter 5. TECHNOLOGY AND INVENTIONS ........................................... 116

Chapter 6. HISTORICAL EVENTS ................ ....................................... ......... 137

Chapter 7. TRICKS AND MAGIC ................................................................ 158

Chapter 8. DISTINCTIVE CHESS STYLE ....................................................... 173

Chapfer9. AESTHETICS .............................................................................. 196

Chapter 10. MISCELLANEOUS ................................................................... 217

One day he knocked on my door.

"Why should we be interested?" the readers may well ask.

The Baron is engaged in a chess duel with a hammerhead

TRAVELING INTO THE DEEP OCEAN

BARON MUNCHAUSEN - HAMMERHEAD

A white pigeon landed on my doorstep. It brought a note from the Baron.

"The government asked me to help them," he whispered, looking around to en­

White to play and win

A) l . . .'.!?f5 2.li:le3+ '.!?g6 3.I!g4+ '.!?h7 4.li:lf6+ '.!?h8 5 .I!g8#

SPRINTER- BARON MUNCHAUSEN

sometimes is enough in itself to achieve victory, notwithstanding White's extra bishop!

77 ... � g4! 78.g6 � g5!

BARON MUNCHAUSEN - SLY

Blast. Another stalemate scheme. l O.'iV(or j,)xh3?=; I O.j,f3? 'i¥g2+ l l .'i¥g4

"I turned again to Tal, trembling. 'Misha '? "

Here Jon Edwards, a U.S. Correspondence Champion, found a spectacular win­

The Baron said: "This reminds me of something. "

*A "patzer " is a nicknamefor a very weak player.

"Congratulations!" I was still curious. " How did it end?"

Munchausen had been away on a two-week tour ofAfrica. An expedition ofworld

The Heller Stratagem

27.fxe3 .lixc3+ 28.�c2 '!i'xd5 29.'!i'g4+ .lig7 30J!dl '!i'c6+ 0- 1

Ihe Tolstoy Paradigm

Jhe Ecclesiastes Motivator

CHESS IN A PARALLEL UNIVERSE

The editor called me to his office.

Blood27: "What a patzer!"

DONALD BY RNE - BOBBY FISCHER

THE KING'S JOURNEY

FEARLESS ASSAILANT - BARON MUNCHAUSEN

M. gave me an overview of the occurrence. "White had sacrificed a knight to get

"How did the black king react?" I asked

Now Black threatens 40 . . . l!tc l checkmate!

This spectacular game is Gashimov - Grischuk, World Team Championship, Bursa

Records and Unusual Feats

Munchausen adds a gamble with dice to his chess

CHESS AND DICE

"The government asked me to help them," he whispered, looking around to en

Here Jon Edwards, a U.S. Correspondence Champion, found a spectacular win