Chess Puzzle #1zi93 — Intermediate, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1470 · Intermediate · mate, mate in 2, middlegame, short.

Position

White: king h1; queen h6; rook f7; bishop f1; knight g5; pawns a2/b2/e4/h3. Black: king g8; queen e5; rooks c1/e8; knights d3/f8; pawns a7/b7/d4/h7. Black is ahead by 5 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Nf4 — knight d3→f4. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Rxf8+ — rook f7→f8, captures knight, gives check. Opponent replies Rxf8 (rook e8→f8, captures rook).
  3. Best move: Qxh7# — queen h6→h7, captures pawn, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

mate, mate in 2, middlegame, short. The combination ends with Qxh7# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 4rnk1/pp3R1p/7Q/4q1N1/3pP3/3n3P/PP6/2r2B1K b - - 2 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.