Chess Puzzle #bM5BR — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1882 · Advanced · equality, fork, middlegame, very long.

Position

White: king g1; queen c2; rook d1; bishop b7; pawns a6/e3/f2/g3/h4. Black: king g8; queen f6; rook f8; bishop a8; knight e5; pawns a7/e6/f7/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 3 points of material. White to move.

Solution (4 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qe7 — queen f6→e7. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Bxa8 — bishop b7→a8, captures bishop. Opponent replies Rxa8 (rook f8→a8, captures bishop).
  3. Best move: Qe4 — queen c2→e4. Opponent replies Rd8 (rook a8→d8).
  4. Best move: Rxd8+ — rook d1→d8, captures rook, gives check. Opponent replies Qxd8 (queen e7→d8, captures rook).
  5. Best move: Qxe5 — queen e4→e5, captures knight.

Tactical themes

equality, fork, middlegame, very long. The key move Rxd8+ captures with check, forcing a response.

Position data

FEN: b4rk1/pB3ppp/P3pq2/4n3/7P/4P1P1/2Q2P2/3R2K1 b - - 0 25

Solve this puzzle interactively on Brilliant Knight — free tactics training powered by Stockfish 18, no signup required.

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