Winning blow: rook to h7 (h1·8)
c9-09972naming 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 1290 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 f1, queen g3, rook d1 h1, bishop b1, knight d4, pawn a2 b2 c2 g2 e3 f3 g6.
Black: king g7, queen e8, rook d8, bishop b8 c8, knight e5 b6, pawn d3 b5 d5 f6 a7 e7 h7.
13 white and 14 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 17.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 1 points of material (32 against 33; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on f1, the black king on g7.
It is White to move on move 17, with 40 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 7 pawns, Black 7. No file is fully open, so the heavy pieces have to be pried in. Half-open for White: d, h.
Black hold the bishop pair, an edge in open lines. 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
17. Rxh7+ Kg8 18. Rh8+ Kg7 19. Rxe8
Why it works
- Great move! rook to h7 keeps the pressure (+3.6).
- Spot on — rook to h8 (+3.6).
- Precise: rook to e8 is the top choice (+3.5).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Kg8, then Rh8+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 17. Rxh7+ — rook to h7 (capture) with check
- Kg8 — king to g8
- 18. Rh8+ — rook to h8 with check
- Kg7 — king to g7
- 19. Rxe8 — rook to e8 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Skewer
A line attack forces the valuable piece to move, exposing the one behind it.
A skewer is a pin turned inside out: the valuable piece stands in front and something cheaper hides behind it. The big piece must step aside, and you collect the one that was sheltering in its shadow. Scan for the enemy king or queen sharing a file, rank or diagonal with another enemy piece. The deadliest version comes with check — the king moves, the rook behind it dies.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #324.
SP-324 · BastionScout — King off-centre on c or f with a knight starting on the rim (a/h).
The king starts on f1, the rooks on d1 and g1, the queen on e1.
Castling short simply swaps the two pieces: the king on f1 and the rook on g1 trade places.
The bishops stand on b1 and c1; their long diagonals reach h7 and h6 once the c- and d-pawns step aside.
One second-rank pawn starts with no defender at all: h2.
The setup belongs to the BastionScout family; read right to left it becomes position 350.
The engine's main line opens with O-O, bringing the king out to g1.
Morozov Balance Index: 86 of 100 — class A — most balanced. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +15 centipawns for White (depth 48, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #324Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 009 · SP-324
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