Winning blow: rook to c7 (c6·5)
c9-17650naming 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 1430 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 b2, queen e7, rook c6, pawn h2 d3.
Black: king b7, queen g8, rook g7, pawn a5 f5 c7 h7.
5 white and 7 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 32.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 2 points of material (16 against 18; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on b2, the black king on b7.
It is White to move on move 32, with 42 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 2 pawns, Black 4. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): b, e, g — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: a, c, f.
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
32. Rxc7+ Kb8 33. Rb7+ Kc8 34. Qxg7 Qxg7+ 35. Rxg7
Why it works
- Great move! rook to c7 keeps the pressure (+6.2).
- Spot on — rook to b7 (+7.1).
- Precise: queen to g7 is the top choice (+7.2).
- Great move! rook to g7 keeps the pressure (+7.5).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Kb8, then Rb7+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 32. Rxc7+ — rook to c7 (capture) with check
- Kb8 — king to b8
- 33. Rb7+ — rook to b7 with check
- Kc8 — king to c8
- 34. Qxg7 — queen to g7 (capture)
- Qxg7+ — queen to g7 (capture) with check
- 35. Rxg7 — rook to g7 (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.
Simplification
Trade the heavy pieces and steer into a won endgame.
Simplification is how you convert an advantage: by trading queens and rooks you extinguish the counterplay and steer the game into a won endgame. The rule is simple — the side with extra material trades pieces but keeps pawns. Look for exchanges once the material is already won and your opponent is still rattling threats. The mistake is avoiding the queen trade and letting him muddy the water forever.
Winning exchange
A forced series of captures on one square ends in your favour.
A winning exchange is a forced series of captures on one square that leaves you ahead in material. It is pure arithmetic: count the attackers and defenders of the square and note the value of every piece in the queue. Capture in the right order — cheap pieces first, expensive ones later — or a winning trade turns into a losing one. The classic error is stopping the count halfway and missing the opponent's final recapture.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #958.
SP-958 · RampartGuard — Both knights begin on inner files while the king sits on the wing (b/g); mirror twins stay together in this family.
The king starts on b1, the rooks on a1 and c1, the queen on h1.
From b1 the king makes the longest journey Chess960 allows when castling short: five squares to g1.
The bishops stand on f1 and g1; their long diagonals reach a6 and a7 once the e- and f-pawns step aside.
One second-rank pawn starts with no defender at all: d2.
The setup belongs to the RampartGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 4.
The engine's main line opens with e4, putting a pawn straight into the centre.
Morozov Balance Index: 11 of 100 — class D — largest edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +42 centipawns for White (depth 44, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #958Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 010 · SP-958
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