Chess Puzzle #Dpzhw — Expert, White to move, middlegame

Position

White: king g1; queen a8; rook a1; bishops f4/g2; knight f3; pawns a2/d4/e2/f2/h2. Black: king g8; queen c3; rook f8; bishop f5; knights b8/f1; pawns a7/c6/d5/f7/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

1. Opponent setup: Nd7 — knight b8→d7. Now White to move.
2. Best move: Rc1 — rook a1→c1. Opponent replies Qxc1 (queen c3→c1, captures rook).
3. Best move: Qxf8+ — queen a8→f8, captures rook, gives check. Opponent replies Nxf8 (knight d7→f8, captures queen).
4. Best move: Bxc1 — bishop f4→c1, captures queen.

Tactical themes

advantage, fork, long, middlegame. The key move Qxf8+ captures with check, forcing a response.

Position data

FEN: Qn3rk1/p4ppp/2p5/3p1b2/3P1B2/2q2N2/P3PPBP/R4nK1 b - - 0 17

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