Chess Puzzle #HHzvo — Intermediate, Black to move, endgame

Rating 1469 · Intermediate · endgame, mate, mate in 2, queen endgame, short.

Position

White: king a3; pawns a2/d5/e7/g2/h2. Black: king a7; queen c2; pawns a5/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 7 points of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: e8=Q — pawn e7→e8, promotes to queen. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Qc3+ — queen c2→c3, gives check. Opponent replies Ka4 (king a3→a4).
  3. Best move: Qb4# — queen c3→b4, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

endgame, mate, mate in 2, queen endgame, short. The combination ends with Qb4# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 8/k3P1pp/8/p2P4/8/K7/P1q3PP/8 w - - 0 55

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