Winning blow: rook to e8 (h8·5)
c9-19202naming 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 1870 ShuffleRating — for advanced tacticians.
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 a3, rook h8, bishop c6, knight d1 c5, pawn d2 c3 g3 b5 b6.
Black: king b8, rook d6 e8, bishop c8, pawn d3.
10 white and 5 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 39.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 5 points of material (19 against 14; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on a3, the black king on b8.
It is White to move on move 39, with 38 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 5 pawns, Black 1. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): a, e, f, h — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
The White king has 5 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
39. Rxe8 Rd8 40. Na6+ Bxa6 41. bxa6
Why it works
- Best move. rook to e8 is exactly what the engine plays (#4).
- Spot on — knight to a6 (#3).
- Precise: pawn to a6 is the top choice (#2).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Rd8, then Na6+ and you win the rook.
Move by move
- 39. Rxe8 — rook to e8 (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 #743.
SP-743 · RampartGuard — A wing king (b/g) with no knight on the a- or h-file.
The king starts on b1, the rooks on a1 and g1, the queen on f1.
From b1 the king makes the longest journey Chess960 allows when castling short: five squares to g1.
A bishop starts in the corner on h1: it has a single diagonal, which the g-pawn unlocks, running out to a8.
One second-rank pawn starts with no defender at all: h2.
The setup belongs to the RampartGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 402.
The engine's main line opens with a4.
Morozov Balance Index: 69 of 100 — class B — balanced. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +21 centipawns for White (depth 47, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #743Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 014 · SP-743
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