Queen side attack

Can anyone tell me what is the purpose of Queen-side attack?

I have the whole course of ICS year 1 but can't see any teaching on QSA, only King side attack in month 2.

It is described in following month 5 or 6 i guess, when they talk about pawn minority attack and pawn chains on a,b,c,d files.

What is the purpose of Queen side attack?
To create a pawn weakness?

I got all the material for 1st year already but won't want to jump as I'm still doing month 2 - terribly slow...

Is QSA like King side attack but superiority of forces on Queen side?

I think you have it.

The objectives of the QSA are the same as in the Centre, or on the Kingside (of course the Kingside offers the potential for an early checkmate if the King happens to be there).

Creating a superiority of forces is one objective of an attack, creating weakness in you opponents pawn structure is another. For example, you will also attack with the objective of creating outposts, opening of files and diagonals, controlling key squares, gaining space, restricting your opponent's ability to coordinate his own peices, etc., and of course the always popular winning of material.

More advanced techniques such as the Minority Attack often appears on the queenside, and it's primary purpose is to convert a half-open file to an open file. As HK points out you will be introduced to an array of techniques and when to use them in later months of the course.

You have the right idea in taking your time; the information in the first few months are essential to the understanding positional evaluation, so don't rush through those early sections until you thoroughly understand.

It's a good question: I often play openings that call for queenside expansion, which is much less obvious what the hell is going on that things like king's gambit where you are attacking the king like a maniac.

This is related to, but not quite the same as, minority attack (you can have a kingside minority attack, after all).

What months is this covered, and is it covered in any books? It's subtle and important.

Thanks PawnCustodian, blue, and hangingking....

So it is covered in ICS course?

The focus of the course is the middle game and the coverage is complete.

The opening modules provide a comprehensive repertoire focused on positional play, which complements the main course perfectly, although some may prefer a more active repertoire. I didn't study the e4 repertoire, it may be more agreeable for those looking for more action.

The only thing missing is endgame theory, so don't look for things like "rook distance", "coordinating squares", etc. The endgame is covered by general guidelines as commentary to complete games.

That's pretty generic....:O