Winning blow: king to b1 (c1·29)
c9-25989naming 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 1250 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 c1, queen h1, rook d1, bishop h5, knight d3, pawn b2 c2 a3 c3 h4 e7.
Black: king b8, queen e3, rook a5, knight c4 e5, pawn a4 b6 c7 d7 h7.
11 white and 10 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 22.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 1 points of material (26 against 25; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on c1, the black king on b8.
It is White to move on move 22, with 2 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle. White are in check right now, so every reply must answer the check.
White keeps 6 pawns, Black 5. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): f, g — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: d.
The White king has 1 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
22. Kb1 Ng6 23. Re1 Qxe7 24. Rxe7
Why it works
- Great move! king to b1 keeps the pressure (+4.8).
- rook to e1 develops smoothly.
- Precise: rook to e7 is the top choice (+5.0).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Ng6, then Re1 and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 22. Kb1 — king to b1
- Ng6 — knight to g6
- 23. Re1 — rook to e1
- Qxe7 — queen to e7 (capture)
- 24. Rxe7 — rook to e7 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Winning blow
Find the strike that wins material by force.
A winning blow is a forced material gain that does not fit a single textbook motif. The general tactical recipe applies: spot loose pieces, an awkwardly placed king, overloaded lines. Go through the forcing moves in order of violence — checks, captures, threats — because most combinations start with one of them. Do not judge by feel: calculate the concrete line until the outcome is beyond doubt.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #762.
SP-762 · RampartGuard — King on the wing (b/g) with both knights on inner files.
The king starts on b1, the rooks on a1 and g1, 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 e1 and f1; their long diagonals reach a5 and a6 once the d- and e-pawns step aside.
The pawn on c2 is defended by the king alone — the same soft spot f2 is in the classical setup.
The setup belongs to the RampartGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 389.
The engine's main line opens with g4.
Morozov Balance Index: 34 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +31 centipawns for White (depth 42, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #762Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 009 · SP-762
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