Winning blow: rook to g5 (d5·2)
c9-15034naming 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 1010 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 b1, queen f4, rook d1 d5, bishop b3, knight f3, pawn a3 d3 b4 c5.
Black: king g8, queen g7, rook f8, bishop f6, pawn g3 b6 a7.
10 white and 7 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 30.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 9 points of material (29 against 20; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on b1, the black king on g8.
It is White to move on move 30, with 51 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 4 pawns, Black 3. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): e, f, h — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: g.
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
30. Rg5+ Rf7 31. Qxf6 Qxg5 32. Nxg5
Why it works
- Best move. rook to g5 is exactly what the engine plays (#4).
- Spot on — queen to f6 (#3).
- Precise: knight to g5 is the top choice (#2).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Rf7, then Qb8+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 30. Rg5+ — rook to g5 with check
Types in this puzzle
Discovered check
The moving piece opens a check — and is free to grab anything meanwhile.
With a discovered check the moving piece unmasks a check from the piece standing behind it. While the king deals with the check, the piece that moved grabs whatever it likes, free of charge. Look for your long-range piece on a line with the enemy king, with exactly one of your own pieces in between. The rule: among all the ways to step aside, pick the one that captures or attacks the most expensive loot.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #497.
SP-497 · BastionGuard — Off-centre king (c/f), no knight on the a- or h-file.
The king starts on f1, the rooks on b1 and h1, the queen on c1.
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.
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 555.
The engine's main line opens with c4.
Morozov Balance Index: 98 of 100 — class A — most balanced. Engine evaluation of the starting position: 0 centipawns for White (depth 46, 400 000 000 nodes).
In 50 self-play games White scored 48.0% (95% CI 34.8–61.5%).
Explore position #497Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 006 · SP-497
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