Chess Puzzle #5laTS — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Position

White: king h1; queen h5; rook e1; bishop f5; knight d4; pawns a2/g2/h2. Black: king h7; queen d2; rooks e7/h6; bishop d6; pawns a7/b7/c6/d5/g7. Black is ahead by 4 points of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

1. Opponent setup: Kh8 — king h7→h8. Now White to move.
2. Best move: Qe8+ — queen h5→e8, gives check. Opponent replies Rxe8 (rook e7→e8, captures queen).
3. Best move: Rxe8+ — rook e1→e8, captures rook, gives check. Opponent replies Bf8 (bishop d6→f8).
4. Best move: Rxf8# — rook e8→f8, captures bishop, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame, sacrifice, X-ray attack. The combination ends with Rxf8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 8/pp2r1pk/2pb3r/3p1B1Q/3N4/8/P2q2PP/4R2K b - - 3 29

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