Winning blow: queen to g6 (e4)
c9-28082naming 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 h1, queen e4, rook e1 f1, bishop e3, knight c5, pawn c4 e6.
Black: king g8, queen c8, rook a2 f8, bishop c3, knight h3, pawn g6 h6 a7 e7.
8 white and 10 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 32.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 2 points of material (27 against 29; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on h1, the black king on g8.
It is White to move on move 32, with 43 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 2 pawns, Black 4. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): b, d, f — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: a, g, h.
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
32. Qxg6+ Bg7 33. Bxh6 Qa8+ 34. Ne4 Qxe4+ 35. Qxe4
Why it works
- Great move! queen to g6 keeps the pressure (+5.5).
- Spot on — bishop to h6 (+3.9).
- Strong! knight to e4 is the sharp choice (+4.7).
- Great move! queen to e4 keeps the pressure (+5.1).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Bg7, then Bxh6 and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 32. Qxg6+ — queen to g6 (capture) with check
- Bg7 — bishop to g7
- 33. Bxh6 — bishop to h6 (capture)
- Qa8+ — queen to a8 with check
- 34. Ne4 — knight to e4
- Qxe4+ — queen to e4 (capture) with check
- 35. Qxe4 — queen to e4 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
X-ray
A long-range piece acts through an enemy piece on the same line.
An X-ray lets a long-range piece act through an enemy piece standing on the same line — its power shines straight through. The square behind looks safe or defended, and that illusion is exactly what the tactic exploits. Check your rooks, bishops and queens: is a key square or a target hiding behind an enemy piece on their line? When counting captures on a square, include the X-ray attackers — they join the fight the moment the line opens.
About this position
These pieces come from starting position #526.
SP-526 · ThroneGuard — A centre-file king with no knight on the edge; a position and its mirror twin always share this family.
The king starts on d1, the rooks on a1 and h1, the queen on c1.
Castling ends where it always does: king to g1 and rook to f1 on the short side, king to c1 and rook to d1 on the long one.
The bishops stand on f1 and g1; their long diagonals reach a6 and a7 once the e- and f-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 532.
The engine's main line opens with e4, putting a pawn straight into the centre.
Morozov Balance Index: 26 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge. Engine evaluation of the starting position: +34 centipawns for White (depth 46, 400 000 000 nodes).
Explore position #526Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Pack 013 · SP-526
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