Chess Puzzle #63Zsa — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1714 · Advanced · advantage, fork, middlegame, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen e1; rook a1; bishop f4; knights d6/f3; pawns a2/b2/f2/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen d8; rooks a8/f8; bishop d3; knight e7; pawns a7/b7/c5/d4/f6/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 4 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Nd5 — knight e7→d5. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qe6+ — queen e1→e6, gives check. Opponent replies Kh8 (king g8→h8).
  3. Best move: Qxd5 — queen e6→d5, captures knight.

Tactical themes

advantage, fork, middlegame, short. The key move is Qe6+.

Position data

FEN: r2q1rk1/pp2n1pp/3N1p2/2p5/3p1B2/3b1N2/PP3PPP/R3Q1K1 b - - 1 16

Solve this puzzle interactively on Brilliant Knight — free tactics training powered by Stockfish 18, no signup required.

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