Chess Puzzle #Fe84n — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1960 · Advanced · crushing, deflection, endgame, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen d6; rook e2; pawns a2/c2/d3/e4/g3. Black: king b4; queen h5; rooks h2/h8; pawns a7/b5/d4/g6. Black is ahead by 4 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qc5 — queen h5→c5. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: a3+ — pawn a2→a3, gives check. Opponent replies Ka5 (king b4→a5).
  3. Best move: Qxc5 — queen d6→c5, captures queen.

Tactical themes

crushing, deflection, endgame, short. The key move is a3+.

Position data

FEN: 7r/p7/3Q2p1/1p5q/1k1pP3/3P2P1/P1P1R2r/6K1 b - - 1 33

Solve this puzzle interactively on Brilliant Knight — free tactics training powered by Stockfish 18, no signup required.

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