Chess Puzzle #18v9X — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Position

White: king f2; queen g3; rook g2; bishop e2; pawns a2/d4/f3/h7. Black: king h8; queen h6; rooks f8/h5; knight g7; pawns a7/c4/d5/e6. Black is ahead by 5 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

1. Opponent setup: Nf5 — knight g7→f5. Now White to move.
2. Best move: Qg8+ — queen g3→g8, gives check. Opponent replies Rxg8 (rook f8→g8, captures queen).
3. Best move: hxg8=Q# — pawn h7→g8, captures rook, promotes to queen, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

advanced pawn, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, promotion, short. The combination ends with hxg8=Q# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 5r1k/p5nP/4p2q/3p3r/2pP4/5PQ1/P3BKR1/8 b - - 9 36

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