Chess Puzzle #0szqd — Intermediate, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1516 · Intermediate · endgame, equality, fork, short.

Position

White: king g3; rook c7; knight b6; pawns b2/c2/g4/h2. Black: king h7; rooks a2/e5; pawns a6/c6/g7/h6. Black is ahead by 2 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Rxb2 — rook a2→b2, captures pawn. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nc4 — knight b6→c4. Opponent replies Reb5 (rook e5→b5).
  3. Best move: Nxb2 — knight c4→b2, captures rook.

Tactical themes

endgame, equality, fork, short. The key move is Nc4.

Position data

FEN: 8/2R3pk/pNp4p/4r3/6P1/6K1/rPP4P/8 b - - 0 29

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.