Winning blow: king to f3 (f2)
c9-10078naming 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 970 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 f2, queen a1, rook e1 h1, bishop c1, knight c3, pawn b2 c2 g2 d3 a4 e4.
Black: king g8, queen h2, bishop c8 d8, knight g4, pawn c5 b6 g6 a7 d7 e7 g7 h7.
12 white and 13 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 14.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 5 points of material (31 against 26; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on f2, the black king on g8.
It is White to move on move 14, with 3 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 6 pawns, Black 8. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): f — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: h.
Black hold the bishop pair, an edge in open lines. The White king has 3 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
14. Kf3 Ne5+ 15. Ke2 Qxg2+ 16. Kd1
Why it works
- Great move! king to f3 keeps the pressure (+2.4).
- king to e2 develops smoothly.
- Strong! king to d1 is the sharp choice (+2.7).
- You reach a winning position (+2.7).
- If instead Ne5+, then Ke2 and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 14. Kf3 — king to f3
Types in this puzzle
Winning blow
Find the strike that wins material by force.
A winning blow is a forced material gain that does not fit a single textbook motif. The general tactical recipe applies: spot loose pieces, an awkwardly placed king, overloaded lines. Go through the forcing moves in order of violence — checks, captures, threats — because most combinations start with one of them. Do not judge by feel: calculate the concrete line until the outcome is beyond doubt.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #293.
SP-293 · BastionScout — King shifted to c or f, with a knight committed to the corner from move one.
The king starts on f1, the rooks on e1 and g1, the queen on a1.
Castling short simply swaps the two pieces: the king on f1 and the rook on g1 trade places.
The bishops stand on c1 and d1; their long diagonals reach h6 and h5 once the d- and e-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 378.
The engine's main line opens with Ng3, bringing the knight out to g3.
Morozov Balance Index: 26 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +34 centipawns for White (depth 44, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #293Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 005 · SP-293
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