Rules for Knights (HTRYC 3rd)

1. Knights need advanced support points to be effective.
2. Knights are very useful pieces in closed positions.
3. Knights are the best blockaders of passed pawns.
4. Knights are usually superior to Bishops in endings with pawns on only one side of the board (due to their ability to go to either color)

Rules for less experienced players (regarding Knights)

1. Knights on the first and second ranks are purely defensive and are usually on their way to greener pastures;
2. A Knight on the third rank is useful for defense and is ready to take a more aggressive stance by jumping to the fifth;
3. A Knight on the fourth rank is as good as a Bishop and is well poised for both attack and defense;
4. A Knight on the fifth rank is often superior to a Bishop and constitutes a powerful attacking unit;
5. A Knight on the sixth rank is often a winning advantage.  It spreads disharmony in the enemy camp to such a degree that the opponent will sometimes feel compelled to give up material to rid himself of it.

Note 1: Rule for Knights on 4th, 5th and 6th ranks means they are on unassailable points.

Note 2: A support point (for the Knight) is only useful if it is in an area of the board where action is taking place.

Misc. Items

Example of a plan involving Knights: You recognize you have Knights; you decide to make them better; you find or create weak squares in the opponent's camp and you get your Knights to these weak squares.