The Fifth Directive

"Flexibly maintain framework barriers!"

Note well that this directive is subordinate to the previous four. If it comes down to a choice between maintaining your own framework links or stopping your opponent's then the former must win out. But having played a framework spoiler or successfully attacked an opponent's framework link, although the individual stones are expendable, it is otherwise logical to maintain the barrier that these stones provide to your opponent's framework connections.

Ideally you should make your isolated stones just live but without giving your opponent forcing moves that enable a counterattack on your own framework links. This is usually somewhat of a tall order! So it is perhaps more practical to ensure that, at all times, the barrier can easily live, thus guarding against a double attack. In particular it would be a mistake to rely on connecting out barrier stones to stones forming a framework link which are not yet themselves solidly, or at least closely, connected.

As Black with four or more handicap stones, you may never need to play an isolated stone. But as White in a handicap game this is almost inevitable. Coping with isolated stones is tricky. The GCS directives are designed to minimise the complexity without sacrificing effectiveness. Emphasis is given to building your own frameworks where there is the space, and once a framework link is established the GCS adherent spends most of his or her time maintaining that link rather than creating a potentially chaotic position.

¨Settling a framework spoiler
¨Flexible maintenance of a framework barrier