Chess Puzzle #Ewqpz — Intermediate, White to move, opening

Rating 1540 · Intermediate · advantage, opening, short, trapped piece.

Position

White: king e1; queen d1; rooks a1/h1; bishops d2/d3; knight a4; pawns a2/b4/c2/e4/f2/f3/h3. Black: king e8; queen d4; rooks a8/h8; bishop f8; knights d7/f6; pawns a7/b7/c6/d6/e7/f7/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Ne5 — knight d7→e5. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Bc3 — bishop d2→c3. Opponent replies Qxc3+ (queen d4→c3, captures bishop, gives check).
  3. Best move: Nxc3 — knight a4→c3, captures queen.

Tactical themes

advantage, opening, short, trapped piece. The key move is Bc3.

Position data

FEN: r3kb1r/pp1npppp/2pp1n2/8/NP1qP3/3B1P1P/P1PB1P2/R2QK2R b KQkq - 1 11

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