Fork: pawn to c4
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The tactical motive
Fork: one piece attacks two targets at once — they can't both be saved.
Difficulty 1387 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 d1, knight a6, pawn c2 f2 g2 b3 h3.
Black: king d5, knight b5, pawn c6 g6 c7 g7 h7.
7 white and 7 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 34.
The position in numbers
Material is level — 8 points of pieces on each side (pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9).
The white king stands on d1, the black king on d5.
It is White to move on move 34, with 16 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 5 pawns, Black 5. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): a, d, e — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
The White king has 4 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
34. c4+ Kd6 35. cxb5
Why it works
- Great move! pawn to c4 keeps the pressure (+4.5).
- Well found: pawn to b5 (+4.8).
- You win a piece — the knight.
- If instead Kd6, then cxb5 and you win the knight.
Move by move
- 34. c4+ — pawn to c4 with check
- Kd6 — king to d6
- 35. cxb5 — pawn to b5 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Winning blow
Find the strike that wins material by force.
A winning blow is a forced material gain that does not fit a single textbook motif. The general tactical recipe applies: spot loose pieces, an awkwardly placed king, overloaded lines. Go through the forcing moves in order of violence — checks, captures, threats — because most combinations start with one of them. Do not judge by feel: calculate the concrete line until the outcome is beyond doubt.
Minor-piece endgame
Bishops and knights duel — geometry decides.
A minor-piece endgame leaves only bishops and knights with pawns, and geometry decides. The bishop loves an open board and play on both wings; the knight loves fixed pawns and outpost squares. Check which color squares the pawns stand on and where the knight can actually reach in time. Practical tip: against a knight, spread the play across both flanks — short legs cannot cover everything.
Provenance
Derived from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0).
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 010
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