Chess Puzzle #b7Rzo — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1885 · Advanced · advantage, fork, long, middlegame, trapped piece.

Position

White: king e1; queen g7; rooks a1/h1; knight f3; pawns a2/b2/c2/e3/g4/h3. Black: king e8; queen e4; rooks a8/h8; knight g8; pawns a7/c6/c7/f7/h7. White is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qxf3 — queen e4→f3, captures knight. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qe5+ — queen g7→e5, gives check. Opponent replies Kf8 (king e8→f8).
  3. Best move: Rf1 — rook h1→f1. Opponent replies Qd5 (queen f3→d5).
  4. Best move: Qxh8 — queen e5→h8, captures rook.

Tactical themes

advantage, fork, long, middlegame, trapped piece. The key move is Qe5+.

Position data

FEN: r3k1nr/p1p2pQp/2p5/8/4q1P1/4PN1P/PPP5/R3K2R b KQkq - 0 15

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