Chess Puzzle #1kDzb — Advanced, Black to move, middlegame

Rating 1649 · Advanced · clearance, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, sacrifice, short.

Position

White: king h2; queen d6; rooks a1/g1; bishop e3; knight b6; pawns a2/b2/c3/d3/e4/g2. Black: king a7; queen g4; rook g8; knight h4; pawns a6/b7/c5/e5/h6. White is ahead by 9 points of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Bxc5 — bishop e3→c5, captures pawn. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Nf3+ — knight h4→f3, gives check. Opponent replies gxf3 (pawn g2→f3, captures knight).
  3. Best move: Qh4# — queen g4→h4, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

clearance, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, sacrifice, short. The combination ends with Qh4# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 6r1/kp6/pN1Q3p/2p1p3/4P1qn/2PPB3/PP4PK/R5R1 w - - 1 30

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.