Chess Puzzle #5MMwf — Intermediate, Black to move, endgame

Rating 1219 · Intermediate · crushing, endgame, short, skewer.

Position

White: king f6; queen d8; knight d5; pawn a2. Black: king a7; queen g4; pawns a6/b7/c7. White is ahead by 1 point of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Nxc7 — knight d5→c7, captures pawn. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Qh4+ — queen g4→h4, gives check. Opponent replies Ke5 (king f6→e5).
  3. Best move: Qxd8 — queen h4→d8, captures queen.

Tactical themes

crushing, endgame, short, skewer. The key move is Qh4+.

Position data

FEN: 3Q4/kpp5/p4K2/3N4/6q1/8/P7/8 w - - 0 53

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