Chess Puzzle #fiF2M — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1810 · Advanced · attraction, long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame, queenside attack.

Position

White: king f1; queen d5; rooks d1/h1; pawns a6/b3/f4/g4/h3. Black: king c8; queen b4; rooks e7/h7; knights d7/e4; pawns a7/b6/c7/f7/g6/g7. Black is ahead by 7 points of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Nec5 — knight e4→c5. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qa8+ — queen d5→a8, gives check. Opponent replies Nb8 (knight d7→b8).
  3. Best move: Qxb8+ — queen a8→b8, captures knight, gives check. Opponent replies Kxb8 (king c8→b8, captures queen).
  4. Best move: Rd8# — rook d1→d8, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

attraction, long, mate, mate in 3, middlegame, queenside attack, sacrifice. The combination ends with Rd8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 2k5/p1pnrppr/Pp4p1/3Q4/1q2nPP1/1P5P/8/3R1K1R b - - 1 31

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