1.Pawn Structure In Front: Of The King

We begin by exploring the most important factor - the pawn structure in front of the king. The safety of the king can mean everything in a game. Most often, a king castles or feels safe in general behind a pawn shelter and that's fine with us, however, we should always keep in mind some slight changes in the pawn structure in front of the opponent's king that may seem insignificant, but they can be a literal game-changer. Whether minor or major weaknesses are being created in front of the opponent's king, they can be potential hooks for us to open files by pushing the right pawns accordingly, or considering a piece sacrifice is also an option.