Chess Puzzle #qYrw3 — Expert, White to move, middlegame

Position

White: king g1; queen h5; rooks c1/f1; bishop h7; knight f7; pawns c3/d4/f2/f4/g3/h4. Black: king h8; queen a3; rooks a8/h6; bishop c8; knight c6; pawns a7/b7/c7/d5/e5/g7. Material is balanced. White to move.

Solution (4 moves)

1. Opponent setup: Kxh7 — king h8→h7, captures bishop. Now White to move.
2. Best move: Ng5+ — knight f7→g5, gives check. Opponent replies Kg8 (king h7→g8).
3. Best move: Qf7+ — queen h5→f7, gives check. Opponent replies Kh8 (king g8→h8).
4. Best move: Qe8+ — queen f7→e8, gives check. Opponent replies Qf8 (queen a3→f8).
5. Best move: Qxf8# — queen e8→f8, captures queen, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

mate, mate in 4, middlegame, very long. The combination ends with Qxf8# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: r1b4k/ppp2NpB/2n4r/3pp2Q/3P1P1P/q1P3P1/5P2/2R2RK1 b - - 3 20

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