Chess Puzzle #YE8gY — Expert, White to move, middlegame

Rating 2305 · Expert · endgame, mate, mate in 4, sacrifice, very long.

Position

White: king g1; queen e1; rook a1; bishop c5; pawns d4/d5/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen e8; rook f3; knight c3; pawns b5/c4/c6/e6/g6/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 3 points of material. White to move.

Solution (4 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Rd3 — rook f3→d3. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qxe6+ — queen e1→e6, captures pawn, gives check. Opponent replies Qxe6 (queen e8→e6, captures queen).
  3. Best move: Ra8+ — rook a1→a8, gives check. Opponent replies Qc8 (queen e6→c8).
  4. Best move: Rxc8+ — rook a8→c8, captures queen, gives check. Opponent replies Kf7 (king g8→f7).
  5. Best move: Rf8# — rook c8→f8, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

endgame, mate, mate in 4, sacrifice, very long. The combination ends with Rf8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 4q1k1/6pp/2p1p1p1/1pBP4/2pP4/2n2r2/6PP/R3Q1K1 b - - 1 29

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