Winning blow: bishop to d4 (b2·4)
c9-14193naming 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 1200 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 c1, queen c6, rook a1, bishop d1 b2, knight e5, pawn c2 h2 a3 d3 e4 f4.
Black: king a7, queen g8, rook b8 f8, bishop a6 e7, knight f1, pawn b5 c7 g7 h7.
12 white and 11 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 24.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 3 points of material (29 against 32; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on c1, the black king on a7.
It is White to move on move 24, with 39 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 6 pawns, Black 4. No file is fully open, so the heavy pieces have to be pried in. Half-open for White: b, g.
The White king has 1 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
24. Bd4+ Bc5 25. Bxc5+ Rb6 26. Qxc7+ Ka8 27. Qxb6
Why it works
- Great move! bishop to d4 keeps the pressure (#6).
- Spot on — bishop to c5 (#5).
- Strong! queen to c7 is the sharp choice (#4).
- Great move! queen to b6 keeps the pressure (#3).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Bc5, then Bxc5+ and you win the bishop.
Move by move
- 24. Bd4+ — bishop to d4 with check
- Bc5 — bishop to c5
- 25. Bxc5+ — bishop to c5 (capture) with check
- Rb6 — rook to b6
- 26. Qxc7+ — queen to c7 (capture) with check
- Ka8 — king to a8
- 27. Qxb6 — queen to b6 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Win the pinned piece
The pinned piece cannot run — attack it again and win it.
A pinned piece cannot flee, which means you can win it outright by attacking it one more time. Count attackers against defenders: if you outnumber them, the piece is yours. The best extra attacker is a pawn, since it costs less than anything it might capture. Do not rush the capture — build up the pressure first, then harvest.
Remove the defender
Capture the guard first — then take what it protected.
Removing the defender is the straightforward plan: capture the guard first, then take what it guarded. Unlike deflection, the defender is not lured away — it is traded off or destroyed on the spot. Stare at the target you crave and ask who defends it, and whether that defender can be profitably eaten. Count the whole capture sequence, not just the first move — the trade must pay off at the end.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #849.
SP-849 · BastionGuard — King shifted to c or f, knights kept clear of the edges — 168 positions in all.
The king starts on c1, the rooks on b1 and f1, the queen on h1.
The king already stands on c1, so castling long moves only the rook, from b1 to d1.
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: a2.
The setup belongs to the BastionGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 107.
The engine's main line opens with e4, putting a pawn straight into the centre.
Morozov Balance Index: 80 of 100 — class A — most balanced. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +17 centipawns for White (depth 45, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #849Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 008 · SP-849
Similar puzzles
In your browser or in the Android app. Nothing to install · Free, no ads