Winning blow: knight to e8 (f6·3)
c9-26957naming 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 b1, queen g1, rook a1 e1, bishop e3, knight d1 f6, pawn c2 d2 g2 h2 b3 f3 a4.
Black: king d8, queen g7, rook a8 e8, bishop f8, knight d4 c6, pawn e4 a5 e5 g6 b7 c7 d7 h7.
14 white and 15 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 13.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 1 points of material (35 against 36; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on b1, the black king on d8.
It is White to move on move 13, with 36 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 7 pawns, Black 8. No file is fully open, so the heavy pieces have to be pried in. 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
13. Nxe8 Kxe8 14. Nb2 Qg8 15. Bxd4 exd4 16. fxe4
Why it works
- Brilliant! The knight on e8 is a sacrifice that works — you stand better (+2.4).
- knight to b2 develops smoothly.
- Precise: bishop to d4 is the top choice (+2.9).
- Best move. pawn to e4 is exactly what the engine plays (+2.7).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Kxe8, then Nb2 and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 13. Nxe8 — knight to e8 (capture)
- Kxe8 — king to e8 (capture)
- 14. Nb2 — knight to b2
- Qg8 — queen to g8
- 15. Bxd4 — bishop to d4 (capture)
- exd4 — pawn to d4 (capture)
- 16. fxe4 — pawn to e4 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Win the pinned piece
The pinned piece cannot run — attack it again and win it.
A pinned piece cannot flee, which means you can win it outright by attacking it one more time. Count attackers against defenders: if you outnumber them, the piece is yours. The best extra attacker is a pawn, since it costs less than anything it might capture. Do not rush the capture — build up the pressure first, then harvest.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #574.
SP-574 · BastionGuard — Both knights begin inside the board while the king stands on c or f; a position and its mirror twin share this family.
The king starts on c1, the rooks on a1 and e1, the queen on h1.
The king already stands on c1, so castling long moves only the rook, from a1 to d1.
The bishops stand on f1 and g1; their long diagonals reach a6 and a7 once the e- and f-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 BastionGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 484.
The engine's main line opens with f4.
Morozov Balance Index: 43 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +28 centipawns for White (depth 44, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #574Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 008 · SP-574
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