Chess Puzzle #3Ipqt — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1917 · Advanced · equality, middlegame, short.

Position

White: king a4; queen b8; rooks g1/g7; bishop h3; knight c3; pawns a2/b2/c4/d3/e4/h2. Black: king e8; queen f6; rooks d7/h8; bishop d8; knights c2/d4; pawns c5/d6/e6/f7/h7. Black is ahead by 2 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Ke7 — king e8→e7. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nd5+ — knight c3→d5, gives check. Opponent replies exd5 (pawn e6→d5, captures knight).
  3. Best move: Bxd7 — bishop h3→d7, captures rook.

Tactical themes

equality, middlegame, short. The key move is Nd5+.

Position data

FEN: 1Q1bk2r/3r1pRp/3ppq2/2p5/K1PnP3/2NP3B/PPn4P/6R1 b - - 2 27

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