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

Rating 2117 · Expert · crushing, middlegame, very long.

Position

White: king f1; queen e7; rook e1; bishop b2; knight h3; pawns c4/f2/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen a6; rooks a8/f8; bishop c8; pawns a7/b6/c7/e6/f5/g7/h5. Black is ahead by 5 points of material. White to move.

Solution (5 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Rf7 — rook f8→f7. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qe8+ — queen e7→e8, gives check. Opponent replies Rf8 (rook f7→f8).
  3. Best move: Qg6 — queen e8→g6. Opponent replies Qxc4+ (queen a6→c4, captures pawn, gives check).
  4. Best move: Kg1 — king f1→g1. Opponent replies Qg4 (queen c4→g4).
  5. Best move: Ng5 — knight h3→g5. Opponent replies Qxg5 (queen g4→g5, captures knight).
  6. Best move: Qxg5 — queen g6→g5, captures queen.

Tactical themes

crushing, middlegame, very long. The key move is Qe8+.

Position data

FEN: r1b2rk1/p1p1Q1p1/qp2p3/5p1p/2P5/7N/1B3PPP/4RK2 b - - 0 24

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