Chess Puzzle #ei40G — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1859 · Advanced · discovered attack, discovered check, equality, long, middlegame, queenside attack.

Position

White: king g1; queen h4; rook d1; bishop e2; knight d2; pawns a2/f2/g2/h2. Black: king d7; queen b2; rooks a8/d8; bishop e6; pawns a7/b7/c7/f7/g7. Black is ahead by 3 points of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Kc8 — king d7→c8. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qxd8+ — queen h4→d8, captures rook, gives check. Opponent replies Kxd8 (king c8→d8, captures queen).
  3. Best move: Nc4+ — knight d2→c4, gives check. Opponent replies Ke7 (king d8→e7).
  4. Best move: Nxb2 — knight c4→b2, captures queen.

Tactical themes

discovered attack, discovered check, equality, long, middlegame, queenside attack, sacrifice. The key move Qxd8+ captures with check, forcing a response.

Position data

FEN: r2r4/pppk1pp1/4b3/8/7Q/8/Pq1NBPPP/3R2K1 b - - 9 28

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.