Winning blow: knight to d7 (f8·3)
c9-25347naming 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 1700 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 c1, queen h3, rook a1 e1, bishop c2 e7, knight f8, pawn a2 b2 f2 g2 c3 h4.
Black: king b8, queen h8, rook a8 e8, bishop c7 f7, knight d6, pawn e5 a6 c6 b7 g7 h7.
13 white and 13 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 22.
The position in numbers
Material is level — 34 points of pieces on each side (pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9).
The white king stands on c1, the black king on b8.
It is White to move on move 22, with 50 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 6 pawns, Black 6. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): d — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: e.
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
22. Nd7+ Kc8 23. Nxe5+ Kb8 24. Qd7 Rxe7 25. Qxe7
Why it works
- Great move! knight to d7 keeps the pressure (+3.9).
- Spot on — knight to e5 (+4.0).
- Strong! queen to d7 is the sharp choice (+3.9).
- Great move! queen to e7 keeps the pressure (+4.0).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Kc8, then Nxe5+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 22. Nd7+ — knight to d7 with check
- Kc8 — king to c8
- 23. Nxe5+ — knight to e5 (capture) with check
- Kb8 — king to b8
- 24. Qd7 — queen to d7
- Rxe7 — rook to e7 (capture)
- 25. Qxe7 — queen to e7 (capture)
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 #852.
SP-852 · ThroneGuard — King on a central file (d/e) with both knights on inner files — the classic-type setup.
The king starts on d1, the rooks on a1 and f1, the queen on h1.
The kingside rook already stands on f1, so castling short moves only the king, from d1 to g1.
The bishops stand on b1 and c1; their long diagonals reach h7 and h6 once the c- and d-pawns step aside.
Every pawn on the second rank is defended from the very first move.
The setup belongs to the ThroneGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 110.
The engine's main line opens with d4, putting a pawn straight into the centre.
Morozov Balance Index: 24 of 100 — class D — largest edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +35 centipawns for White (depth 43, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #852Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 013 · SP-852
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