Winning blow: rook to f7 (f8·3)
c9-13813naming 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 1060 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, queen e4, rook b1 f8, bishop g7, knight e1, pawn g2 h2 a3 d3.
Black: king d7, queen g3, rook c8, pawn b5 g6.
10 white and 5 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 30.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 13 points of material (29 against 16; 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 d7.
It is White to move on move 30, with 55 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 4 pawns, Black 2. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): c, e, f — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: b.
The White king has 2 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
30. Rf7+ Kd6 31. Qd4+ Kc6 32. Rc1#
Why it works
- Best move. rook to f7 is exactly what the engine plays (#2).
- Spot on — queen to d4 (#1).
- Precise: rook to c1 is the top choice (#).
- The line ends in a forced mate in 3.
- If instead Kd6, then Qd4+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 30. Rf7+ — rook to f7 with check
- Kd6 — king to d6
- 31. Qd4+ — queen to d4 with check
- Kc6 — king to c6
- 32. Rc1# — rook to c1 and it is checkmate
Types in this puzzle
Ladder mate
Two heavy pieces climb line by line, cutting off every retreat.
The ladder mate uses two heavy pieces climbing rung by rung: one cuts the king off along a line, the other checks on the next line, driving him toward the edge. It is the classic two-rook technique — check, the king retreats one rank, the other rook checks, until mate on the last rank. The only danger is the king creeping close enough to attack one of your rooks. If it does, simply slide that rook to the far side of the same line.
Mate in 3
A forced checkmate in three moves.
Mate in three is a forced staircase: each of your moves narrows the opponent's choices, and the third one ends the game. Look for the start among checks and sacrifices — quiet first moves are rare in mating problems, but deliciously sneaky. Keep the tree in your head: every defense gets its own branch. Do not stop calculating after move two — see the final mating picture with your own eyes.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #774.
SP-774 · ThroneScout — King on a central file (d/e) with a knight starting on the rim (a/h).
The king starts on d1, the rooks on b1 and g1, the queen on a1.
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.
The bishops stand on c1 and f1; their long diagonals reach h6 and a6 once the d- and e-pawns step aside.
One second-rank pawn starts with no defender at all: h2.
The setup belongs to the ThroneScout family; read right to left it becomes position 182.
The engine's main line opens with b3.
Morozov Balance Index: 97 of 100 — class A — most balanced. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +6 centipawns for White (depth 43, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #774Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 006 · SP-774
Similar puzzles
In your browser or in the Android app. Nothing to install · Free, no ads