Thanks for the diagrams & analysis micawer!

I think it would be interesting to upload another diagram to see that the fortress also holds after 32. b5 c3, but with the minor pieces on - I don't think White has a way to infiltrate Black's position even with the minor pieces on..

Do fortressess have practical value was a question in this thread.
Well Kramnik just saved game 7 with a fortress.



After Kxc3 white has no entry points.

Just note that white can do nothing on the kingside.
If white transfers his king to say g2 or g3 and follows up with h4,
black need not react.
After hxg5 he closes the kingside with g6, when even two extra pawns dont mean a thing.
while after h5 white has locked himself out.

Actually a side variation could produce a similar fortress.

From the following position:



32.bxa5 (iso 32.b5 as played by Anand)
32........, bxa5
33.Rb1  , Nc5
34.Bxc5 , Rc5
35.Rc1   , Kf7!



36.e4      With the plan Ke3-d4 etc
36....,  c3!
37.Kd3, c2!
38.Rxc2,Rxc2
39.Kxc2,Ke7!


Again a fortress has appeared on the board.

Black has only to take a minimum of care.
He is just in time to answer Kc4 or Kd4 with Kc6 or Kb6
and he can pendle between c6 and b6 without any problem.

Hello:

Ye are probably right. Just hoping there was something an older player could do better than these high rated younger players. So maybe just better overall endgame knowledge and continued work on tactics, etc. as opposed to hoping to end up in a fortress position.

I am still interested to see what that fortress section will be like.

Take care,

Gerry

Gerry1970 wrote on 08/21/08 at 03:24:04:


I'd suspect that would only happen very rarely, at least compared to the situations where it would help to know rook endgames better, be better at tactics or have more knowledge of typical middle game structures.

I notice that Müller and Pajeken's book (How to Play Chess Endings, which is supposed to be the companion volume to Fundamental Chess Endings) appears to have about a 33-page chapter on fortresses.