Chess Puzzle #50CMW — Intermediate, White to move, opening

Rating 1200 · Intermediate · mate, mate in 1, one move, opening, smothered mate.

Position

White: king e1; queen d1; rooks a1/h1; bishops c1/e2; knights b1/f5; pawns a2/b2/c2/e4/f2/g2/h2. Black: king e8; queen d8; rooks a8/h8; bishops c8/f8; knights c6/g8; pawns a6/b5/d7/e5/f7/g7/h7. Material is balanced. White to move.

Solution (1 move)

  1. Opponent setup: Nge7 — knight g8→e7. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nd6# — knight f5→d6, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

mate, mate in 1, one move, opening, smothered mate. The combination ends with Nd6# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: r1bqkbnr/3p1ppp/p1n5/1p2pN2/4P3/8/PPP1BPPP/RNBQK2R b KQkq - 1 7

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