Shogi glossary
Attack on the king's head
Japanese: 玉頭攻め
In shogi, an attack on the king's head (gyokuto-zeme) targets the square directly in front of the enemy king, usually by pushing or dropping pawns there to break the castle open from above.
Attacking the square directly in front of the king, usually with pawns.
What the head is
The king's head is the square straight ahead of it from its owner's side: 2g for a Black king on 2h, or 8c for a White king on 8b in a Mino. Castles are designed mainly against attacks from the side and the corner, and many leave the head guarded by little more than a pawn and a neighboring general. Pressure there goes straight at the king without having to dismantle the whole formation first.
Why pawns are the tool
Pawns are cheap, so throwing them at the king's head costs little. A pawn push forces the defender to capture or allow a promotion, and a pawn dropped right in front of a defender drags it out of position. Once the head is opened, a tokin or a gold can land there, and the gold on the head is the most basic mating pattern of all.
The High Mino, with its gold lifted to 4g, exists largely to make the castle sturdier against this kind of attack from above.
Try it · from “The Boat Castle and Breaking Castles”
Attack the head of White's Mino with your pawn and mate in 5.
FAQ
Is a head attack the same as the gold on the head?
No. The head attack is the plan of breaking open the king's front with pawns; the gold on the head is the finishing pattern, a protected gold placed there to give mate.
Related
Terms:
Lessons: The Boat Castle and Breaking Castles · The Mino Castle
Openings: Mino and Boat Castles
I don't do defense. Hope you brought a castle!
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