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

Position

White: king c1; queen c3; rooks h1/h6; pawns a2/b2/d3. Black: king g8; queen f3; rook d8; bishop h7; pawns a7/b7/c6/e6/f7/g5. Black is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (3 moves)

1. Opponent setup: Rxd3 — rook d8→d3, captures pawn. Now White to move.
2. Best move: Qe5 — queen c3→e5. Opponent replies Qf4+ (queen f3→f4, gives check).
3. Best move: Qxf4 — queen e5→f4, captures queen. Opponent replies gxf4 (pawn g5→f4, captures queen).
4. Best move: Rxh7 — rook h6→h7, captures bishop.

Tactical themes

advantage, endgame, long. The key move is Qe5.

Position data

FEN: 3r2k1/pp3p1b/2p1p2R/6p1/8/2QP1q2/PP6/2K4R b - - 1 30

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