Chess Puzzle #0R1Ri — Intermediate, White to move, opening

Rating 1506 · Intermediate · advantage, master, middlegame, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen d1; rooks a1/f1; bishop a3; knights c3/e5; pawns a2/b3/d2/d4/e3/f4/g2/h2. Black: king e8; queen d6; rooks a8/h8; bishop e7; knights c6/e4; pawns a5/b7/c7/d5/e6/f7/g7/h6. Material is balanced. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qxa3 — queen d6→a3, captures bishop. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nb5 — knight c3→b5. Opponent replies Qb4 (queen a3→b4).
  3. Best move: Nxc7+ — knight b5→c7, captures pawn, gives check.

Tactical themes

advantage, master, middlegame, short. The key move Nxc7+ captures with check, forcing a response.

Position data

FEN: r3k2r/1pp1bpp1/2nqp2p/p2pN3/3PnP2/BPN1P3/P2P2PP/R2Q1RK1 b kq - 5 12

Solve this puzzle interactively on Brilliant Knight — free tactics training powered by Stockfish 18, no signup required.

Puzzle data from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0). Analysis powered by Stockfish 18 in your browser.