Chess Puzzle #ICPF8 — Advanced, White to move, opening

Rating 1692 · Advanced · advantage, opening, pin, sacrifice, very long.

Position

White: king e1; queen d1; rooks a1/h1; bishops a4/c1; knights c3/f3; pawns a2/b2/f2/g2/h2. Black: king e8; queen d8; rooks a8/h8; bishops f8/g4; knights e5/f6; pawns a7/b7/d6/e7/f7/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 2 points of material. White to move.

Solution (4 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Nfd7 — knight f6→d7. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nxe5 — knight f3→e5, captures knight. Opponent replies Bxd1 (bishop g4→d1, captures queen).
  3. Best move: Bxd7+ — bishop a4→d7, captures knight, gives check. Opponent replies Qxd7 (queen d8→d7, captures bishop).
  4. Best move: Nxd7 — knight e5→d7, captures queen. Opponent replies Bg4 (bishop d1→g4).
  5. Best move: Nxf8 — knight d7→f8, captures bishop.

Tactical themes

advantage, opening, pin, sacrifice, very long. The key move Bxd7+ captures with check, forcing a response.

Position data

FEN: r2qkb1r/pp2pppp/3p1n2/4n3/B5b1/2N2N2/PP3PPP/R1BQK2R b KQkq - 3 9

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