Fork: rook to e7
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The tactical motive
Fork: one piece attacks two targets at once — they can't both be saved.
Difficulty 1108 ShuffleRating — club-player level.
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 g2, rook a1 e1, bishop c1, pawn b2 c2 f2 a3 d3 h3 g4.
Black: king d7, rook h4 a8, bishop e7, pawn a5 c5 d5 g6 b7 f7 g7.
11 white and 11 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 20.
The position in numbers
Material is level — 20 points of pieces on each side (pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9).
The white king stands on g2, the black king on d7.
It is White to move on move 20, with 32 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 7 pawns, Black 7. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): e — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
The White king has 6 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
20. Rxe7+ Kxe7 21. Bg5+ Kd7 22. Bxh4
Why it works
- Great move! rook to e7 keeps the pressure (+4.4).
- Well found: bishop to g5 (+4.5).
- Strong! bishop to h4 is the sharp choice (+4.5).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Kxe7, then Bg5+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 20. Rxe7+ — rook to e7 (capture) with check
- Kxe7 — king to e7 (capture)
- 21. Bg5+ — bishop to g5 with check
- Kd7 — king to d7
- 22. Bxh4 — bishop to h4 (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.
Endgame tactic
Tactics live in the endgame too — strike while material is scarce.
Tactics do not retire when the queens come off: forks, pins and double attacks live on in the endgame. With so little material left, every tactical loss is almost always decisive. The signs are the usual ones — undefended pieces, king and piece on one line, a pawn about to promote. Even in a "technical" ending, scan for a shot before every move, both yours and your opponent's.
Remove the defender
Capture the guard first — then take what it protected.
Removing the defender is the straightforward plan: capture the guard first, then take what it guarded. Unlike deflection, the defender is not lured away — it is traded off or destroyed on the spot. Stare at the target you crave and ask who defends it, and whether that defender can be profitably eaten. Count the whole capture sequence, not just the first move — the trade must pay off at the end.
Provenance
Derived from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0).
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 007
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