Why do strong players sometimes make small 'waiting' moves with the general or an advisor while executing an endgame technique?
These answers restate the rules implemented by our open-source engine, which follows the WXF laws and is regression-tested against the official 110-diagram repetition casebook. Where an answer refers to a specific position, that position lives on the linked reference page, where the build verifies it against the engine before publishing.
Direct answer
A small, genuinely harmless move, often with the general or an advisor, passes the obligation to move back to the opponent without committing anything real. When every other available move would weaken the position or hand the opponent a chance, a quiet shuffle inside the palace can be the single best move on the board, purely because it changes nothing.
Why this is not the same as wasting a move
A move that improves nothing but also gives up nothing is not equivalent to an aimless one; it deliberately keeps the position exactly as good as it already was while forcing the opponent to make the next real decision. This is closest in spirit to the idea of a waiting move from the opening, applied to the very different context of finishing a technique.
When it is actually the right choice
It is most useful in a position that is already winning but where every currently available forcing move would either fall one move short or slightly worsen your structure, and where simply waiting keeps the advantage intact until a genuinely useful move becomes available. Do not use it as a substitute for making real progress when a real improving move exists; it is a tool for specific moments, not a general strategy.
Related questions
Does this risk the sixty-move rule?
It can, if overused; see how the sixty-move rule affects the endgame for why genuine progress still needs to happen eventually.
Is any quiet move a valid waiting move?
No, it has to be genuinely harmless; a quiet move that happens to weaken a square or a defender is not the same thing and can cost you the advantage.
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