Chess Puzzle #9o4TA — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1786 · Advanced · deflection, kingside attack, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, pin.

Position

White: king h1; queen e5; rook f5; bishop b2; knights d2/g3; pawns a2/b3/c4/d5/g2/h2. Black: king h8; queen g5; rooks f7/f8; bishop b6; pawns a6/b7/c7/g7/h7. White is ahead by 2 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qxd2 — queen g5→d2, captures knight. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qxg7+ — queen e5→g7, captures pawn, gives check. Opponent replies Rxg7 (rook f7→g7, captures queen).
  3. Best move: Rxf8# — rook f5→f8, captures rook, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

deflection, kingside attack, mate, mate in 2, middlegame, pin, sacrifice, short. The combination ends with Rxf8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 5r1k/1pp2rpp/pb6/3PQRq1/2P5/1P4N1/PB1N2PP/7K b - - 0 26

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.