Chess Puzzle #Au7O1 — Intermediate, Black to move, opening

Rating 1488 · Intermediate · equality, fork, master, opening, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen d1; rooks a1/f1; bishop c1; knights b1/f3; pawns a3/b2/b3/d3/e4/g2/h2. Black: king e8; queen d8; rooks a8/h8; bishops c8/f8; knight g8; pawns a5/b5/c6/e5/f7/g7/h7. Material is balanced. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Nxe5 — knight f3→e5, captures pawn. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Qd4+ — queen d8→d4, gives check. Opponent replies Kh1 (king g1→h1).
  3. Best move: Qxe5 — queen d4→e5, captures knight.

Tactical themes

equality, fork, master, opening, short. The key move is Qd4+.

Position data

FEN: r1bqkbnr/5ppp/2p5/pp2p3/4P3/PP1P1N2/1P4PP/RNBQ1RK1 w kq - 0 11

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