Square Color Trainer
Knowing whether a square is light or dark is essential for understanding bishop play, colour complexes, and many tactical patterns. This rapid-fire trainer names a square and you decide: light or dark. Simple concept, surprisingly tricky at speed.
Professor Archer says: Here is a trick I wish I had learned sooner: a1 is always dark. If the file letter and rank number are both odd or both even, the square is dark. If one is odd and one is even, the square is light. Once you internalise this rule, you will never need to count again.
Features
- Rapid-fire light/dark identification
- 60-second timed challenge
- Streak tracking and personal bests
- Visual board reference toggle
- Learn the algebraic pattern for square colours
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does knowing square colours matter in chess?
Square colours are fundamental to bishop strategy. A bishop can only ever reach half the squares on the board. Understanding colour complexes helps you evaluate positions - for example, if your opponent has only a dark-squared bishop, placing your pawns on light squares makes them immune to attack. Many endgame and middlegame strategies revolve around exploiting colour weaknesses.
Is there a formula for determining square colour?
Yes. Assign each file a number (a=1, b=2, ... h=8). Add the file number to the rank number. If the sum is even, the square is dark. If the sum is odd, the square is light. For example, e4: e=5, rank=4, sum=9 (odd), so e4 is a light square.