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

Rating 1641 · Advanced · advantage, middlegame, short, trapped piece.

Position

White: king f1; queen d1; rooks a1/h1; bishops c1/e2; knights a4/f3; pawns a3/b2/c3/e4/g2/h2. Black: king e8; queen a5; rooks a8/h8; bishops f2/g4; knights c6/e7; pawns a7/b7/d6/e5/f7/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Bb6 — bishop f2→b6. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: b4 — pawn b2→b4. Opponent replies Qxa4 (queen a5→a4, captures knight).
  3. Best move: Qxa4 — queen d1→a4, captures queen.

Tactical themes

advantage, middlegame, short, trapped piece. The key move is b4.

Position data

FEN: r3k2r/pp2nppp/2np4/q3p3/N3P1b1/P1P2N2/1P2BbPP/R1BQ1K1R b kq - 0 13

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