Fork: knight to c5
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The tactical motive
Fork: one piece attacks two targets at once — they can't both be saved.
Difficulty 644 ShuffleRating — for beginners taking their first steps in Chess960 tactics.
White to move — find the best continuation
How to recognize this tactic
A fork is one piece attacking two targets at once. Look for a knight, pawn or queen move that lands where it hits the king (or a bigger piece) and a second undefended unit on the same turn — the opponent can save only one.
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 b4, knight b3, pawn a5.
Black: king d3, queen a6.
3 white and 2 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 59.
The position in numbers
Black are ahead by 5 points of material (4 against 9; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on b4, the black king on d3.
It is White to move on move 59, with 8 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 1 pawns, Black 0. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): b, c, d, e, f, g, h — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
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
59. Nc5+ Kd4 60. Nxa6
Why it works
- Great move! knight to c5 keeps the pressure (+9.1).
- Well found: knight to a6 (#16).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Kd4, then Nxa6 and you win the queen.
Move by move
- 59. Nc5+ — knight to c5 with check
- Kd4 — king to d4
- 60. Nxa6 — knight to a6 (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.
Only move
Everything else loses — find the only move that holds.
An only move is a position where everything loses except one single continuation. You cannot play "by hand" here: run through fundamentally different defenses — run away, block, trade, counterattack — and discard the ones that fail. The hallmark of these puzzles is that the obvious moves lose quickly while the solution often looks strange. First understand exactly what the threat is — then the one saving move reveals itself.
Queen endgame
Queens on an open board — precision above all.
Queen endgames are treacherous: the queen reaches everywhere, and one slip turns a win into perpetual check. The signs are few pawns, exposed kings, and checks hanging in the air. Tuck your king away early, and use your own checks to bring the queen closer or push your passer with tempo. The typical mistake is grabbing pawns while leaving your king exposed to endless checks.
Provenance
Derived from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0).
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 001
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