Day 254: Castling to safety

Target Rating 924

Lesson of the day

Castling to safety: the only escape from the attack is to castle — one move whisks the king to g1 or c1 and brings the rook into play as a bonus. In Chess960 this leap can cross half the board, which is exactly why it slips out of sight. Whenever your king is under pressure, ask first: can I still castle? The typical blunder is throwing that right away with a careless king or rook move.

Types of the dayCastling to safety Hanging piece Uncastled king

Warm-up

1. Winning blow: rook to b8 (b1·2)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

2. Attack on the uncastled king: pawn to d5 (c4·80)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

3. Attack on the uncastled king: knight to c4 (a5)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

4. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to b5 (a4·3)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

5. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to b4 (b1·3)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

6. Attack on the uncastled king: bishop to h6 (d2·2)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

7. Attack on the uncastled king: knight to d5 (c3·8)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

8. Attack on the uncastled king: pawn to h5 (g4·10)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

9. Attack on the uncastled king: rook to b8 (b1·7)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

10. Winning blow: pawn to e5 (d4·7)Shuffle Rating 780 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

Core set

11. Castling-960 to the rescue on a1Shuffle Rating 1150 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

12. Castling-960 to the rescue on c1 (d1·2)Shuffle Rating 1150 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

13. Castling-960 to the rescue on a1 (b1)Shuffle Rating 1150 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

14. Castling-960 to the rescue on b1 (d1)Shuffle Rating 1150 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

15. Castling-960 to the rescue on a1 (c1)Shuffle Rating 1150 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

16. Fork: knight to f7 (d6)Shuffle Rating 1007 Analysis

Black to move — find the best continuation

17. Pin: knight to f3 (e5)Shuffle Rating 1008 Analysis

Black to move — find the best continuation

18. Attack on the uncastled king: knight to b4 (d5·4)Shuffle Rating 920 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

19. Winning blow: bishop to d3 (c2)Shuffle Rating 920 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

20. Winning blow: rook to h8 (e8)Shuffle Rating 920 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

21. Winning blow: pawn to f4 (g3·7)Shuffle Rating 920 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

22. Attack on the uncastled king: knight to f7 (e5·16)Shuffle Rating 920 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

23. Winning blow: bishop to f4 (c1·2)Shuffle Rating 920 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

24. Attack on the uncastled king: pawn to h4 (h2)Shuffle Rating 970 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

25. Winning blow: knight to e6 (d4)Shuffle Rating 920 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

Challenge

26. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to a5 (b4·2)Shuffle Rating 1090 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

27. Mate in 3: pawn to g4 (g2)Shuffle Rating 1177 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

28. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to d8 (d3)Shuffle Rating 1220 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

Review

29. Winning blow: rook to b8 (b1·7)Shuffle Rating 1060 Analysis

White to move — find the best continuation

30. Mate in 1: pin on g3Shuffle Rating 1077 Analysis

Black to move — find the best continuation

Day complete — every puzzle solved. See you tomorrow!