Winning blow: pawn to e6 (d5·6)
c9-06989naming tag (square·N)Opens in the app if installed, otherwise downloads the APK.
The tactical motive
Chess960 twist: use the unusual starting setup of the pieces.
Winning tactic: there is a move that gains a decisive advantage — find it.
Difficulty 780 ShuffleRating — for beginners taking their first steps in Chess960 tactics.
White to move — find the best continuation
How to recognize this tactic
In Chess960 the pieces start on unfamiliar squares, so tactics appear earlier and from unusual angles. Do not trust classical patterns — read the actual lines of the bishops, the rooks and the queen from where they really stand in this position.
This position hides a concrete tactic that wins material or mates. Start with the most forcing candidate moves — checks, captures and threats — and calculate each to a clear end before choosing; the winning line is usually the one the opponent cannot meet.
General method: before you move, list the forcing candidates — every check, every capture, every direct threat — and calculate those first. The solution to a tactic is almost always among them.
Position on the board
White: king e1, rook d1 f1, bishop a1 b1, knight c1 g3, pawn a2 g2 h2 f3 b4 c4 d4 d5.
Black: king c8, queen e6, rook d8 f8, bishop b7 b8, knight e7 h8, pawn b6 c6 f6 a7 g7 h7.
15 white and 14 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 10.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 7 points of material (30 against 37; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on e1, the black king on c8.
It is White to move on move 10, with 7 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle. White are in check right now, so every reply must answer the check.
White keeps 8 pawns, Black 6. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): e — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
The White king has 2 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
10. dxe6 Ba6 11. Bd3 Nhg6 12. Nh5
Why it works
- Great move! pawn to e6 keeps the pressure (+2.9).
- bishop to d3 develops smoothly.
- Precise: knight to h5 is the top choice (+2.6).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Nhg6, then Nce2 and you win the queen.
Move by move
- 10. dxe6 — pawn to e6 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Hanging piece
A piece is left without protection — just take it.
A hanging piece is simply an unprotected piece you can take for free. It sounds primitive, yet most amateur games are decided exactly this way. Build the habit: before every move, sweep the board and note every undefended piece, yours and theirs. The classic mistake is hunting for a brilliant combination when all you need to do is bend down and pick up the gift.
Only move
Everything else loses — find the only move that holds.
An only move is a position where everything loses except one single continuation. You cannot play "by hand" here: run through fundamentally different defenses — run away, block, trade, counterattack — and discard the ones that fail. The hallmark of these puzzles is that the obvious moves lose quickly while the solution often looks strange. First understand exactly what the threat is — then the one saving move reveals itself.
Development punish
Half the army still asleep — the attack breaks through.
Punishing lazy development: half of your opponent's army is asleep on its starting squares, which means you outnumber him where the fight is. Count not the pieces on the board but the pieces in play — if five or more of his pieces have never moved, look for a forcing attack. The sign is a development lead plus open lines toward his king. Strike immediately: give him two quiet moves and the advantage evaporates.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #352.
SP-352 · ThroneScout — A knight starts on the edge (a/h) and the king sits centrally on d or e; the mirror twin stays in this family too.
The king starts on e1, the rooks on d1 and f1, the queen on g1.
The kingside rook already stands on f1, so castling short moves only the king, from e1 to g1.
A bishop starts in the corner on a1: it has a single diagonal, which the b-pawn unlocks, running out to h8.
Every pawn on the second rank is defended from the very first move.
The setup belongs to the ThroneScout family; read right to left it becomes position 319.
The engine's main line opens with c4.
Morozov Balance Index: 26 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +34 centipawns for White (depth 47, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #352Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 003 · SP-352
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