Chess Puzzle #0rP3r — Intermediate, Black to move, middlegame

Rating 1221 · Intermediate · advantage, fork, opening, short.

Position

White: king e1; queen d1; rooks a1/h1; bishops b5/f4; knight e5; pawns a2/b2/d4/e3/f2/g2/h2. Black: king e8; queen d8; rooks a8/h8; bishops f5/f8; knights d7/f6; pawns c5/e6/f7/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 1 point of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: dxc5 — pawn d4→c5, captures pawn. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Qa5+ — queen d8→a5, gives check. Opponent replies Qd2 (queen d1→d2).
  3. Best move: Qxb5 — queen a5→b5, captures bishop.

Tactical themes

advantage, fork, opening, short. The key move is Qa5+.

Position data

FEN: r2qkb1r/3n1ppp/4pn2/1Bp1Nb2/3P1B2/4P3/PP3PPP/R2QK2R w KQkq - 3 11

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