Chess Puzzle #46D8B — Beginner, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1010 · Beginner · deflection, endgame, long, mate, mate in 3, queenside attack.

Position

White: king h1; queen d1; knight b5; pawns a4/c4/f3/g2/h2. Black: king b8; queen e3; bishops b4/b7; pawns a5/b6/c7/f5/g5/h5. Black is ahead by 4 points of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Ba6 — bishop b7→a6. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qd8+ — queen d1→d8, gives check. Opponent replies Bc8 (bishop a6→c8).
  3. Best move: Qxc7+ — queen d8→c7, captures pawn, gives check. Opponent replies Ka8 (king b8→a8).
  4. Best move: Qxc8# — queen c7→c8, captures bishop, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

deflection, endgame, long, mate, mate in 3, queenside attack. The combination ends with Qxc8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 1k6/1bp5/1p6/pN3ppp/PbP5/4qP2/6PP/3Q3K b - - 3 31

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