Chess Puzzle #9f3JJ — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1968 · Advanced · attraction, endgame, mate, mate in 5, sacrifice, very long.

Position

White: king h2; queen e5; rook h4; pawns f3/g2/h3. Black: king h7; queen b1; rook c5; knight d5; pawns a7/b6/e6/f7/g6/h6. Black is ahead by 6 points of material. White to move.

Solution (5 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qf5 — queen b1→f5. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Rxh6+ — rook h4→h6, captures pawn, gives check. Opponent replies Kxh6 (king h7→h6, captures rook).
  3. Best move: Qh8+ — queen e5→h8, gives check. Opponent replies Kg5 (king h6→g5).
  4. Best move: h4+ — pawn h3→h4, gives check. Opponent replies Kf4 (king g5→f4).
  5. Best move: Qd4+ — queen h8→d4, gives check. Opponent replies Qe4 (queen f5→e4).
  6. Best move: Qxe4# — queen d4→e4, captures queen, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

attraction, endgame, mate, mate in 5, sacrifice, very long. The combination ends with Qxe4# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 8/p4p1k/1p2p1pp/2rnQ3/7R/5P1P/6PK/1q6 b - - 0 36

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