Chess Puzzle #1Rp7e — Beginner, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1120 · Beginner · clearance, kingside attack, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, sacrifice.

Position

White: king b1; queen d3; rooks d1/h1; bishop c2; knight e4; pawns a2/b3/c4/e5/g4/h4. Black: king g8; queen b4; rooks b8/f8; bishop c8; knight g6; pawns a5/c6/e6/f7/g7/h6. Material is balanced. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Nxe5 — knight g6→e5, captures pawn. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nf6+ — knight e4→f6, gives check. Opponent replies gxf6 (pawn g7→f6, captures knight).
  3. Best move: Qh7# — queen d3→h7, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

clearance, kingside attack, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, sacrifice, short. The combination ends with Qh7# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 1rb2rk1/5pp1/2p1p1np/p3P3/1qP1N1PP/1P1Q4/P1B5/1K1R3R b - - 0 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.