Chess Puzzle #HaKXZ — Advanced, Black to move, middlegame

Rating 1703 · Advanced · advantage, fork, middlegame, very long.

Position

White: king d3; queen h4; rooks a1/h1; bishops c1/f3; pawns a3/b4/c4/d4/d5/e4/h2. Black: king g8; queen g6; rooks a8/e8; knight f6; pawns a6/b7/c7/f2/f7/g7/h7. White is ahead by 3 points of material. Black to move.

Solution (4 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qxf2 — queen h4→f2, captures pawn. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Nxe4 — knight f6→e4, captures pawn. Opponent replies Bxe4 (bishop f3→e4, captures knight).
  3. Best move: Qxe4+ — queen g6→e4, captures bishop, gives check. Opponent replies Kc3 (king d3→c3).
  4. Best move: Qxh1 — queen e4→h1, captures rook. Opponent replies Bb2 (bishop c1→b2).
  5. Best move: Qe4 — queen h1→e4.

Tactical themes

advantage, fork, middlegame, very long. The key move Qxe4+ captures with check, forcing a response.

Position data

FEN: r3r1k1/1pp2ppp/p4nq1/3P4/1PPPP2Q/P2K1B2/5p1P/R1B4R w - - 3 21

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