Chess Puzzle #FFxv2 — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1637 · Advanced · advantage, endgame, long, pin.

Position

White: king h1; queen f5; rook d8; pawns a2/b2/c3/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen a5; bishop c5; knight f8; pawns a7/b6/c4/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qxa2 — queen a5→a2, captures pawn. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qd5+ — queen f5→d5, gives check. Opponent replies Kh8 (king g8→h8).
  3. Best move: Qxc5 — queen d5→c5, captures bishop. Opponent replies Qb1+ (queen a2→b1, gives check).
  4. Best move: Qg1 — queen c5→g1.

Tactical themes

advantage, endgame, long, pin. The key move is Qd5+.

Position data

FEN: 3R1nk1/p5pp/1p6/q1b2Q2/2p5/2P5/PP4PP/7K b - - 1 25

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