Chess Puzzle #BdIWe — Intermediate, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1548 · Intermediate · crushing, endgame, pin, very long.

Position

White: king h2; queen b8; rook f8; pawns a4/b4/c3/e4/g2/h3. Black: king h7; queen e7; rook d2; pawns a6/b7/c6/e6/g7/h6. Material is balanced. White to move.

Solution (5 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qg5 — queen e7→g5. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Rh8+ — rook f8→h8, gives check. Opponent replies Kg6 (king h7→g6).
  3. Best move: Qe8+ — queen b8→e8, gives check. Opponent replies Kf6 (king g6→f6).
  4. Best move: Rf8+ — rook h8→f8, gives check. Opponent replies Ke5 (king f6→e5).
  5. Best move: Rf5+ — rook f8→f5, gives check. Opponent replies Qxf5 (queen g5→f5, captures rook).
  6. Best move: exf5 — pawn e4→f5, captures queen.

Tactical themes

crushing, endgame, pin, very long. The key move is Rh8+.

Position data

FEN: 1Q3R2/1p2q1pk/p1p1p2p/8/PP2P3/2P4P/3r2PK/8 b - - 4 29

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