Chess Puzzle #9cHJ5 — Intermediate, White to move, opening

Rating 1537 · Intermediate · equality, fork, opening, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen d1; rooks a1/f1; bishop c1; knights a4/f3; pawns a3/b3/c2/e4/f2/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen e8; rooks a8/f8; bishop a7; knights c6/f6; pawns a5/b7/c7/d6/e5/g7/h7. Material is balanced. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Nxe4 — knight f6→e4, captures pawn. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qd5+ — queen d1→d5, gives check. Opponent replies Qf7 (queen e8→f7).
  3. Best move: Qxe4 — queen d5→e4, captures knight.

Tactical themes

equality, fork, opening, short. The key move is Qd5+.

Position data

FEN: r3qrk1/bpp3pp/2np1n2/p3p3/N3P3/PP3N2/2P2PPP/R1BQ1RK1 b - - 3 14

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