Attack on the uncastled king: bishop to c6 (e4·8)
c9-08389naming 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.
Uncastled king: the enemy king is stuck in the centre — punish it before it castles.
Winning tactic: there is a move that gains a decisive advantage — find it.
Difficulty 1060 ShuffleRating — club-player level.
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.
An uncastled king in the centre is a standing target. Look for ways to open the central files and diagonals against it with checks and threats before it can shelter — every tempo the king spends in the middle is a chance for a combination.
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, queen g2, rook a1 f1, bishop d2 e4, knight g1, pawn a2 b2 h2 c3 g3 d4 e5.
Black: king e8, queen g7, rook a8 f8, bishop g4 a7, knight c6 g8, pawn a5 d6 g6 b7 c7 h7.
14 white and 14 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 14.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 2 points of material (35 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 e8.
It is White to move on move 14, with 41 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 7 pawns, Black 6. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): f — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
The White king has 0 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
14. Bxc6+ Kd8 15. Rxf8+ Qxf8 16. Bxb7
Why it works
- Great move! bishop to c6 keeps the pressure (+3.7).
- Spot on — rook to f8 (+3.4).
- Precise: bishop to b7 is the top choice (+3.6).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Kd8, then Rxf8+ and you win the rook.
Move by move
- 14. Bxc6+ — bishop to c6 (capture) with check
- Kd8 — king to d8
- 15. Rxf8+ — rook to f8 (capture) with check
- Qxf8 — queen to f8 (capture)
- 16. Bxb7 — bishop to b7 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Relative pin
A piece shields a more valuable one behind it — moving it loses material.
In a relative pin the piece shields not its king but something valuable behind it, usually the queen. Moving is legal but costly, because the piece behind falls. Look for three units on one line: your long-range piece, a cheaper enemy piece, and an expensive one hiding behind. Beware the classic trap — a relatively pinned piece can still move with check or a bigger threat, so verify before you cash in.
Uncastled king
The king lingered in the middle — punish the delay.
Punishing the uncastled king: your opponent delayed castling, and now his king is stuck on its starting square under fire. In Chess960 this is deadlier than in classical chess — the king may start in the center or near the edge, and the familiar defensive setups simply do not apply. The signs: the victim still holds castling rights, and the files toward his king are half-open. Open lines before the king manages to hide.
Battery
Two pieces stacked on one line — the front one strikes with double force.
A battery stacks two long-range pieces on one line — a queen behind a bishop on a diagonal, or doubled rooks on a file. The front piece strikes with double force: capture it, and the piece behind recaptures with even more pressure. The battery is ready when both pieces already stare at one point and only the front strike is missing. Build batteries in advance on lines leading to the king — the doubling itself often breeds the combination.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #660.
SP-660 · ThroneGuard — King on a central file (d/e) with both knights on inner files — the classic-type setup.
The king starts on e1, the rooks on a1 and f1, the queen on h1.
The kingside rook already stands on f1, so castling short moves only the king, from e1 to g1.
The bishops stand on b1 and c1; their long diagonals reach h7 and h6 once the c- and d-pawns step aside.
Every pawn on the second rank is defended from the very first move.
The setup belongs to the ThroneGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 206.
The engine's main line opens with f4.
Morozov Balance Index: 59 of 100 — class B — balanced. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +24 centipawns for White (depth 44, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #660Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 006 · SP-660
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