Winning blow: queen to a4 (a6)
c9-27968naming 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 b2, queen a6, rook f3, pawn a2 c2 e2 h2 b3 c3 g5.
Black: king d7, queen g6, rook g1, bishop e6, pawn b6 a7 c7 e7 h7.
10 white and 9 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 26.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 1 points of material (21 against 22; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on b2, the black king on d7.
It is White to move on move 26, with 30 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 7 pawns, Black 5. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): d, f — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
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
26. Qa4+ Kd6 27. Qd4+ Bd5 28. Qxg1 Bxf3 29. exf3
Why it works
- Great move! queen to a4 keeps the pressure (+4.0).
- Spot on — queen to d4 (+4.3).
- Strong! queen to g1 is the sharp choice (+4.2).
- Best move. pawn to f3 is exactly what the engine plays (+4.3).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Kd6, then Qd4+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 26. Qa4+ — queen to a4 with check
- Kd6 — king to d6
- 27. Qd4+ — queen to d4 with check
- Bd5 — bishop to d5
- 28. Qxg1 — queen to g1 (capture)
- Bxf3 — bishop to f3 (capture)
- 29. exf3 — pawn to f3 (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 #271.
SP-271 · BastionScout — A c- or f-file king with at least one knight out on the edge.
The king starts on c1, the rooks on b1 and f1, the queen on e1.
The king already stands on c1, so castling long moves only the rook, from b1 to d1.
A bishop starts in the corner on h1: it has a single diagonal, which the g-pawn unlocks, running out to a8.
One second-rank pawn starts with no defender at all: a2.
The setup belongs to the BastionScout family; read right to left it becomes position 592.
The engine's main line opens with f4.
Morozov Balance Index: 10 of 100 — class D — largest edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +43 centipawns for White (depth 47, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #271Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 008 · SP-271
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