A colour complex is a group of squares of one colour, light or dark, that one side controls and the other cannot defend, usually because its bishop of that colour is gone.
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A bishop covers only one colour. When one side has lost a bishop and its pawns stand on the other colour, no pawn or bishop guards the squares that bishop used to cover. Pieces can hold one or two of them, not all.
How to do it
- 1Notice which bishop the opponent has lost and which colour their pawns stand on.
- 2Put your pieces on the weak colour, close to the enemy king if you can.
- 3Trade the pieces that defend those squares.
For your level
When a bishop has gone, count the pawns on each colour. Your pawns should cover the colour the missing bishop used to guard.
Check you have it
Question 1 of 1
Which file has no pawns of either colour standing on it?
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Common mistakes
- Trading your fianchettoed bishop to win a pawn, then losing the squares around your king.
- Putting your pawns on the colour of your remaining bishop, so both cover the same squares.
Questions
- Is a colour complex the same as a weak square?
- It is a whole group of weak squares of one colour. One weak square can be covered by a piece; a whole complex has too many squares for the pieces to cover.