Winning blow: pawn to b5 (c4·7)
c9-09959naming 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 1280 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.
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 d1, rook e1, bishop e6, knight b3 g5, pawn a2 g2 h2 c4 g4 d6.
Black: king h8, bishop b5, pawn a7.
11 white and 3 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 35.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 16 points of material (20 against 4; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on d1, the black king on h8.
It is White to move on move 35, with 36 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 6 pawns, Black 1. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): b, e, f — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
The White king has 4 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
35. cxb5 Kg7 36. d7 Kg6 37. d8=Q
Why it works
- Best move. pawn to b5 is exactly what the engine plays (#4).
- pawn to d7 develops smoothly.
- A natural move: pawn to d8.
- You win a piece — the bishop.
- If instead a6, then d7 and you win the bishop.
Move by move
- 35. cxb5 — pawn to b5 (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.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #674.
SP-674 · ThroneGuard — The king starts in the middle of the back rank, on d or e, and neither knight begins in a corner.
The king starts on d1, the rooks on c1 and h1, the queen on b1.
Castling long simply swaps the two pieces: the king on d1 and the rook on c1 trade places.
A bishop starts in the corner on a1: it has a single diagonal, which the b-pawn unlocks, running out to h8.
One second-rank pawn starts with no defender at all: f2.
The setup belongs to the ThroneGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 471.
The engine's main line opens with e3.
Morozov Balance Index: 91 of 100 — class A — most balanced. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +13 centipawns for White (depth 47, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #674Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 009 · SP-674
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