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Cutting Stones
Keywords: Tactics, Strategy, Go term
A group of stones that divides the enemy forces into two or more groups. May initially consist of a single stone at a cutting point.
Here the circled black stone is a cutting stone. Black shouldn't sacrifice it, because if it lives the white group above it will be weak, and the white group on the side a little weak.
Black
If the game goes this way
Therefore White should take better care of the upper stones. This development is fine for Black, though. In general, cutting stones shouldn't be sacrificed if they keep separated groups of the opponent which are even a little weak (they are key stones).
If however stones are non-cutting, like these two circled black stones, saving them may have no strategic meaning and can be pointless. This is a copy of the living page "Cutting Stones" at Sensei's Library. ![]() |