Chess Puzzle #0y90s — Beginner, White to move, middlegame

Rating 941 · Beginner · mate, mate in 1, middlegame, one move, smothered mate.

Position

White: king g1; queen g8; rooks a1/f1; knight h6; pawns a2/b3/e3/f4/g2/h2. Black: king h8; queen b2; rook a8; bishop f6; knight h7; pawns a7/b7/c7/g7. White is ahead by 4 points of material. White to move.

Solution (1 move)

  1. Opponent setup: Rxg8 — rook a8→g8, captures queen. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nf7# — knight h6→f7, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

mate, mate in 1, middlegame, one move, smothered mate. The combination ends with Nf7# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: r5Qk/ppp3pn/5b1N/8/5P2/1P2P3/Pq4PP/R4RK1 b - - 2 22

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.