Chess Puzzle #f33Wu — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1924 · Advanced · exposed king, long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame, sacrifice.

Position

White: king h1; queen e2; rooks g1/g3; bishop d3; knights h4/h6; pawns a2/b2/c3/d4/e3/f4/h2. Black: king h7; queen f7; rooks g7/g8; bishops b7/d6; knight e4; pawns a7/b6/c5/d5/e6/f6. White is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Kxh6 — king h7→h6, captures knight. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nf5+ — knight h4→f5, gives check. Opponent replies exf5 (pawn e6→f5, captures knight).
  3. Best move: Rh3+ — rook g3→h3, gives check. Opponent replies Qh5 (queen f7→h5).
  4. Best move: Qxh5# — queen e2→h5, captures queen, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

exposed king, long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame, sacrifice. The combination ends with Qxh5# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 6r1/pb3qrk/1p1bpp1N/2pp4/3PnP1N/2PBP1R1/PP2Q2P/6RK b - - 0 24

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