Chess Puzzle #9aAXQ — Advanced, Black to move, middlegame

Rating 1616 · Advanced · advantage, deflection, master, middlegame, short.

Position

White: king h1; queen g3; rooks a1/e1; knight h4; pawns a3/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen b2; rooks c8/f8; pawns a7/c4/d5/g7/h5. White is ahead by 1 point of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qe5 — queen g3→e5. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Rf1+ — rook f8→f1, gives check. Opponent replies Rxf1 (rook e1→f1, captures rook).
  3. Best move: Qxe5 — queen b2→e5, captures queen.

Tactical themes

advantage, deflection, master, middlegame, short. The key move is Rf1+.

Position data

FEN: 2r2rk1/p5p1/8/3p3p/2p4N/P5Q1/1q4PP/R3R2K w - - 0 32

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.