Chess Puzzle #LGwu8 — Intermediate, Black to move, opening

Position

White: king e1; queen d1; rooks a1/h1; bishops b5/c1; knights c3/f3; pawns a2/b2/c2/d3/e4/g4/h3. Black: king e8; queen d7; rooks a8/h8; bishops c5/g6; knights c6/g8; pawns a7/b7/c7/e5/f7/g7/h7. Material is balanced. Black to move.

Solution (3 moves)

1. Opponent setup: Nxe5 — knight f3→e5, captures pawn. Now Black to move.
2. Best move: Qd4 — queen d7→d4. Opponent replies Qf3 (queen d1→f3).
3. Best move: Qxe5 — queen d4→e5, captures knight. Opponent replies Bxc6+ (bishop b5→c6, captures knight, gives check).
4. Best move: bxc6 — pawn b7→c6, captures bishop.

Tactical themes

advantage, long, middlegame. The key move is Qd4.

Position data

FEN: r3k1nr/pppq1ppp/2n3b1/1Bb1p3/4P1P1/2NP1N1P/PPP5/R1BQK2R w KQkq - 1 10

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