Chess Puzzle #f308v — Advanced, White to move, opening

Rating 1919 · Advanced · attraction, kingside attack, long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame.

Position

White: king g1; queen h3; rooks a1/g4; bishops e2/f6; knights b1/f5; pawns a3/d4/e5/f2/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen c6; rooks a8/f8; bishops d7/d8; knight c4; pawns a7/b5/b7/e6/f7/g6/h7. White is ahead by 2 points of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: exf5 — pawn e6→f5, captures knight. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qxh7+ — queen h3→h7, captures pawn, gives check. Opponent replies Kxh7 (king g8→h7, captures queen).
  3. Best move: Rh4+ — rook g4→h4, gives check. Opponent replies Kg8 (king h7→g8).
  4. Best move: Rh8# — rook h4→h8, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

attraction, kingside attack, long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame, sacrifice. The combination ends with Rh8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: r2b1rk1/pp1b1p1p/2q1pBp1/1p2PN2/2nP2R1/P6Q/4BPPP/RN4K1 b - - 0 21

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.