Winning blow: rook to c4 (e4)
c9-12651naming 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 d2, queen f7, rook g3 e4, bishop a1, knight e3, pawn a2 e2 f2 h2 d5.
Black: king h6, queen h5, rook c4 g6, bishop a8, knight e6, pawn b6 a7 d7.
11 white and 9 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 23.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 2 points of material (30 against 28; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on d2, the black king on h6.
It is White to move on move 23, with 52 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 5 pawns, Black 3. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): c, g — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: b.
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
23. Rxc4 Nd4 24. Bxd4 Qxe2+ 25. Kxe2
Why it works
- Best move. rook to c4 is exactly what the engine plays (#5).
- Spot on — bishop to d4 (#4).
- Precise: king to e2 is the top choice (#3).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Nd4, then Bxd4 and you win the rook.
Move by move
- 23. Rxc4 — rook to c4 (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 #560.
SP-560 · 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 e1, the rooks on c1 and g1, the queen on h1.
Castling ends where it always does: king to g1 and rook to f1 on the short side, king to c1 and rook to d1 on the long one.
A bishop starts in the corner on a1: it has a single diagonal, which the b-pawn unlocks, running out to h8.
The pawn on e2 is defended by the king alone — the same soft spot f2 is in the classical setup.
The setup belongs to the ThroneGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 495.
The engine's main line opens with g3.
Morozov Balance Index: 7 of 100 — class D — largest edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +46 centipawns for White (depth 45, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #560Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 009 · SP-560
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