Winning blow: bishop to f6 (g7·4)
c9-25442naming 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 h2, queen c7, bishop g7, knight h5, pawn a2 g2 h4.
Black: king e7, queen d3, rook e1, knight c8, pawn b4 a5 b6 h6 d7 f7.
7 white and 10 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 25.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 5 points of material (18 against 23; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on h2, the black king on e7.
It is White to move on move 25, with 33 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 3 pawns, Black 6. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): c, e — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: b, d, f.
The White king has 0 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
25. Bf6+ Ke6 26. Nf4+ Kxf6 27. Nxd3 Re4 28. Qxc8
Why it works
- Great move! bishop to f6 keeps the pressure (+5.2).
- Well found: knight to f4 (+5.5).
- Precise: knight to d3 is the top choice (+5.7).
- Best move. queen to c8 is exactly what the engine plays (+5.6).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Ke6, then Nf4+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 25. Bf6+ — bishop to f6 with check
- Ke6 — king to e6
- 26. Nf4+ — knight to f4 with check
- Kxf6 — king to f6 (capture)
- 27. Nxd3 — knight to d3 (capture)
- Re4 — rook to e4
- 28. Qxc8 — queen to c8 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Royal fork
A fork with check: the king must move, and the second piece is lost.
A royal fork is a fork with check — one of the two targets is the king itself. The check must be answered first, so nobody is left to rescue the second piece. Look for squares where your piece gives check and simultaneously attacks an undefended queen or rook. It is the most reliable fork of all, because your opponent literally has no choice.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #304.
SP-304 · BastionScout — A knight on the a- or h-file, king on c or f — the mirror twin lands here as well.
The king starts on f1, the rooks on e1 and g1, the queen on d1.
Castling short simply swaps the two pieces: the king on f1 and the rook on g1 trade places.
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: h2.
The setup belongs to the BastionScout family; read right to left it becomes position 367.
The engine's main line opens with c4.
Morozov Balance Index: 40 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +29 centipawns for White (depth 47, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #304Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 011 · SP-304
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