Chess Puzzle #4pDdT — Beginner, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1060 · Beginner · fork, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, short.

Position

White: king c1; queen h5; rook h1; bishop f1; pawns a2/b2/c4/e5/f2/g2/h7. Black: king h8; queen d7; rook a8; bishop c8; knights b8/g5; pawns a6/b7/c7/d6. Black is ahead by 3 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qg7 — queen d7→g7. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qe8+ — queen h5→e8, gives check. Opponent replies Qf8 (queen g7→f8).
  3. Best move: Qxf8# — queen e8→f8, captures queen, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

fork, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, short. The combination ends with Qxf8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: rnb4k/1ppq3P/p2p4/4P1nQ/2P5/8/PP3PP1/2K2B1R b - - 1 23

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