Winning blow: queen to f6 (b2·6)
c9-23045naming 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 e2, queen b2, rook b1, bishop a1, pawn f2 e3 a4 b4 c4 f4 d5.
Black: king h7, queen e8, rook f6 b7, bishop a8, knight d8, pawn g4 f5 b6 c6 d6 a7.
11 white and 12 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 27.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 7 points of material (24 against 31; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on e2, the black king on h7.
It is White to move on move 27, with 27 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 7 pawns, Black 6. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): h — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: g.
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
27. Qxf6 Qe4 28. Rh1+ Qxh1 29. Qh8+ Kg6 30. Qxh1
Why it works
- Great move! queen to f6 keeps the pressure (+4.7).
- Spot on — rook to h1 (+5.3).
- Strong! queen to h8 is the sharp choice (+5.3).
- Best move. queen to h1 is exactly what the engine plays (+5.4).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Qe4, then Rh1+ and you win the rook.
Move by move
- 27. Qxf6 — queen to f6 (capture)
- Qe4 — queen to e4
- 28. Rh1+ — rook to h1 with check
- Qxh1 — queen to h1 (capture)
- 29. Qh8+ — queen to h8 with check
- Kg6 — king to g6
- 30. Qxh1 — queen to h1 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Skewer
A line attack forces the valuable piece to move, exposing the one behind it.
A skewer is a pin turned inside out: the valuable piece stands in front and something cheaper hides behind it. The big piece must step aside, and you collect the one that was sheltering in its shadow. Scan for the enemy king or queen sharing a file, rank or diagonal with another enemy piece. The deadliest version comes with check — the king moves, the rook behind it dies.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #595.
SP-595 · ThroneGuard — A central king (d or e) and two knights tucked onto inner files: the family that holds the standard array, SP-518.
The king starts on e1, the rooks on b1 and f1, the queen on c1.
The kingside rook already stands on f1, so castling short moves only the king, from e1 to g1.
A bishop starts in the corner on a1: it has a single diagonal, which the b-pawn unlocks, running out to h8.
The second rank carries 2 pawns with no defender at all: a2, h2.
The setup belongs to the ThroneGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 259.
The engine's main line opens with b4.
Morozov Balance Index: 91 of 100 — class A — most balanced. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +13 centipawns for White (depth 46, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #595Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 008 · SP-595
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