Chess Puzzle #2g2mP — Advanced, White to move, opening

Rating 1803 · Advanced · fork, long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame, sacrifice.

Position

White: king g1; queen h6; rooks a1/e1; bishop f1; knights g3/g5; pawns a2/b2/c3/d3/e4/f2/g2/h3. Black: king g8; queen d8; rooks a8/f8; bishops d7/e7; knights f6/g6; pawns a7/b7/c5/d4/e5/f7. Black is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Re8 — rook f8→e8. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nh5 — knight g3→h5. Opponent replies Nxh5 (knight f6→h5, captures knight).
  3. Best move: Qh7+ — queen h6→h7, gives check. Opponent replies Kf8 (king g8→f8).
  4. Best move: Qxf7# — queen h7→f7, captures pawn, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

fork, long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame, sacrifice. The combination ends with Qxf7# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: r2q1rk1/pp1bbp2/5nnQ/2p1p1N1/3pP3/2PP2NP/PP3PP1/R3RBK1 b - - 2 17

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Puzzle data from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0). Analysis powered by Stockfish 18 in your browser.