Chess Puzzle #5ixg0 — Intermediate, Black to move, opening

Rating 1556 · Intermediate · advantage, opening, short, trapped piece.

Position

White: king g1; queen a4; rooks a1/f1; bishop c1; knights c3/e2; pawns a2/b2/d4/e5/f2/g2/h2. Black: king e8; queen d8; rooks b8/h8; bishops d7/f8; knight g8; pawns a5/c6/c7/d5/f7/g7/h7. Material is balanced. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qxa5 — queen a4→a5, captures pawn. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Ra8 — rook b8→a8. Opponent replies Qxa8 (queen a5→a8, captures rook).
  3. Best move: Qxa8 — queen d8→a8, captures queen.

Tactical themes

advantage, opening, short, trapped piece. The key move is Ra8.

Position data

FEN: 1r1qkbnr/2pb1ppp/2p5/p2pP3/Q2P4/2N5/PP2NPPP/R1B2RK1 w k - 4 13

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