Bishop and pawn versus bishop ending

In a bishop and pawn versus bishop ending, one side tries to turn its pawn into a new piece while the defender uses the king and bishop to stop it. The extra pawn does not guarantee a win. The result depends on the colors controlled by the bishops, available diagonals, king placement, the pawn's file and advance, and the side to move.

Same-colored bishops

If both bishops travel on the same color of square, they can confront each other on the same diagonals. The attacker tries to use the king to drive away the defending king and the bishop to displace or deflect its counterpart. The defender seeks to place the king in front of the pawn, attack the pawn, and keep more than one diagonal available so the bishop can move without abandoning the defense. Centurini's rules describe critical positions in this family, including setups where the defending king reaches a square in front of the pawn that the bishops cannot control.

Opposite-colored bishops

If one bishop moves only on light squares and the other only on dark squares, they cannot attack each other. This often favors the defender, who may blockade the pawn on squares the attacking bishop cannot reach. It does not make every position a draw: a very active king, a far-advanced pawn, or a badly placed defending bishop can still allow a win.

The attacker normally needs to bring the king forward before pushing the pawn and must avoid granting a stable defensive square. The defender tries to keep the king in front, control the promotion route, and be ready to sacrifice the bishop for the pawn if that removes all mating material. These positions belong to endgame theory, the study of exact results and methods when few pieces remain.