Winning blow: queen to b5 (a4·4)
c9-13548naming 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 b3, queen a4, rook d1 e1, bishop d5, knight e2, pawn f5 a6.
Black: king c8, queen h2, rook d8 f8, pawn b5 g5 f6 c7 d7 e7.
8 white and 10 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 (27 against 25; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on b3, the black king on c8.
It is White to move on move 23, with 45 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 2 pawns, Black 6. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): h — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: b, c, d, e, g.
The White king has 6 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
23. Qxb5 Qh3+ 24. Nc3 Qxc3+ 25. Kxc3
Why it works
- Best move. queen to b5 is exactly what the engine plays (#4).
- knight to c3 develops smoothly.
- Precise: king to c3 is the top choice (#2).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Qh3+, then Nc3 and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 23. Qxb5 — queen 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 #83.
SP-83 · ThroneGuard — King home on d or e, knights kept off the a- and h-files — the family of the standard starting array.
The king starts on e1, the rooks on d1 and f1, the queen on g1.
The kingside rook already stands on f1, so castling short moves only the king, from e1 to g1.
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: c2.
The setup belongs to the ThroneGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 867.
The engine's main line opens with g4.
Morozov Balance Index: 40 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +29 centipawns for White (depth 48, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #83Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 009 · SP-83
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