Chess Puzzle #RlThE — Master, Black to move, middlegame

Rating 2535 · Master · endgame, equality, short.

Position

White: king b1; queen f4; rook h1; knight e5; pawns c3/e3/h4. Black: king g7; queen a3; bishop f6; pawns b2/b7/c6/g6/h7. White is ahead by 3 points of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qb4 — queen f4→b4. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Qxb4 — queen a3→b4, captures queen. Opponent replies cxb4 (pawn c3→b4, captures queen).
  3. Best move: Bxe5 — bishop f6→e5, captures knight.

Tactical themes

endgame, equality, short. The key move Qxb4 wins material.

Position data

FEN: 8/1p4kp/2p2bp1/4N3/5Q1P/q1P1P3/1p6/1K5R w - - 0 38

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