Overview
As a black-pieces player, you are facing a challenge. There is literally a horde of 36 pawns in front of you, and you have just a regular set of pieces to block them.
Well, this is overwhelming. However, the player of the Black pieces can win by using a simple strategy: Attack from behind. In that method, the queen sneaks into the first ranks and then tackle the pawns from there. This incursion typically involves breaking the pawn wall in one of the marginal columns (a or h), since the pawns there are protected only by one pawn.
An example of how it is done is in the game PhilippeSaner-rubdub (Full Disclosure: rubdub is my nickname on Lichess)
The game
1.d5 e6 2. d4 a5
The plan starts with that move, aims to open the A column for the rook.
3. bxa6 Rxa6 4. h5 d6 5. cxd6 cxd6 6. h4 exf5 7. gxf5 Nd7 8. g4 Nb6
The knight aims to eliminate one of the remaining 4 pawns out of the way, so White chooses the only way to avoid it.
9. a5 Nd7 10. g3 b6
Now the first pawn have to go.
11. axb6 Nxb6 12. c5 dxc5 13. dxc5 Nxd5 14. exd5 Qxd5 15. d4 (15. a4 was better, for to protect the A file from the rook_queen attack) 15… Bd7 (Preparing to sacrifice the bishop on 16.a4) 16. c4 Qa8
This doubling of “heavy pieces” (queen and rook) is classical for that maneuvering. Note that the rook must go first, so it can be sacrificed to get the queen inside.
17. a4 Bxa4 18. bxa4 Rxa4 19. c3 Rxa2 20. bxa2 Qxa2
From this position, Black could easily grab all of the pawns, while White has a very little counter plan.
21. d3 Qxa1 22. b5 Kd8 23. c6 Kc7 24. d5 Qxc1 25. e4 Qxb2 26. e5 Qxc3 27. g6 hxg6 28. hxg6 fxg6 29. fxg6 Be7 30. g5 Rh5 31. e6 Qxe1 32. f5 Qxf1 33. f6 gxf6 34. gxf6 Nxf6 35. g4 Rxh4 36. g5 Ng8 37. g3 Rxh2 38. f4 Qxe2 39. f5 Bxg5 40. c5 Be7 41. b6+ Kc8 42. d6 Nf6 43. d7+ Nxd7 44. cxd7+ Kd8 45. c6 Bd6 46. g7 Qg4 47. f6 Qxe6 48. g4 Rxf2 49. g5 Rc2 50. c7+ Bxc7 51. bxc7+ Kxd7 52. h3 Rxc7 53. h4 Rc8 54. h5 Ke8 55. h6 Kf7 56. h7 Qe8 57. d4 Rd8 58. d5 Ra8 59. d6 Qd8 60. d7 Rb8 61. g8=Q+ Qxg8 62. hxg8=Q+ Rxg8 63. g6+ Kxg6 64. f7 Kxf7 65. d8=N+ Rxd8# 0-1
Takeaway Points
- Getting into the first ranks with a queen leads to a huge advantage.
- A typical way to make such an intrusion is to go through the A or H column and make a rook sacrifice on the rear pawn.
- White can avoid that intrusion as long as he can make his frontmost pawn succeed the third row
