Chess Puzzle #GJkH4 — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1697 · Advanced · attraction, back rank mate, endgame, long, mate, mate in 3.

Position

White: king g1; queen e7; rook e2; knight c5; pawns a2/b2/c3/d4/g2/h3. Black: king g8; queen f5; rook f8; bishop c7; pawns a7/c6/d5/f7/g7/h7. Material is balanced. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qf4 — queen f5→f4. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qxf8+ — queen e7→f8, captures rook, gives check. Opponent replies Kxf8 (king g8→f8, captures queen).
  3. Best move: Nd7+ — knight c5→d7, gives check. Opponent replies Kg8 (king f8→g8).
  4. Best move: Re8# — rook e2→e8, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

attraction, back rank mate, endgame, long, mate, mate in 3, sacrifice. The combination ends with Re8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 5rk1/p1b1Qppp/2p5/2Np1q2/3P4/2P4P/PP2R1P1/6K1 b - - 4 28

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