Discovered attack: queen to h2 (h6)
li-0AMj9naming tag (square·N)Opens in the app if installed, otherwise downloads the APK.
The tactical motive
Discovered attack: one piece steps aside, unleashing another's attack.
Difficulty 2249 ShuffleRating — expert level — few solve it at first try.
Black to move — find the best continuation
How to recognize this tactic
A discovered attack fires when one piece steps aside and unmasks the piece behind it. Look for your own units that block a rook, bishop or queen: moving the front piece — ideally with a threat of its own — springs two attacks in one move.
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 b3, rook c1 f1, bishop d2 f3, pawn h2 a5 b6.
Black: king g8, queen h6, rook f4 e8, bishop e5, pawn c5 d6 e6 g6 a7 h7.
9 white and 11 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 33.
The position in numbers
Material is level — 28 points of pieces on each side (pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9).
The white king stands on h1, the black king on g8.
It is Black to move on move 33, with 41 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 3 pawns, Black 6. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): f — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for Black: b.
White hold the bishop pair, an edge in open lines. The Black king has 4 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
33... Qxh2+ 34. Kxh2 Rxf3+ 35. Kh1 Rxb3
Why it works
- Great move! queen to h2 keeps the pressure (+3.9).
- Well found: rook to f3 (+4.0).
- Strong! rook to b3 is the sharp choice (+4.5).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Kxh2, then Rxf3+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 33… Qxh2+ — queen to h2 (capture) with check
- 34. Kxh2 — king to h2 (capture)
- Rxf3+ — rook to f3 (capture) with check
- 35. Kh1 — king to h1
- Rxb3 — rook to b3 (capture)
Types in this puzzle
Sacrifice attack
Give up material to unleash a decisive attack.
A sacrificial attack gives up material on purpose to rip the king's shelter open and launch a decisive assault. The sac is sound when you get concrete assets in return: open lines to the king, tempi, pieces ready to pour in. The signs: a poorly sheltered king, your forces aimed at its home, defenders stranded far away. The iron rule is to calculate, not hope — once the material is gone, there is no way back.
Simplification
Trade the heavy pieces and steer into a won endgame.
Simplification is how you convert an advantage: by trading queens and rooks you extinguish the counterplay and steer the game into a won endgame. The rule is simple — the side with extra material trades pieces but keeps pawns. Look for exchanges once the material is already won and your opponent is still rattling threats. The mistake is avoiding the queen trade and letting him muddy the water forever.
Win the pinned piece
The pinned piece cannot run — attack it again and win it.
A pinned piece cannot flee, which means you can win it outright by attacking it one more time. Count attackers against defenders: if you outnumber them, the piece is yours. The best extra attacker is a pawn, since it costs less than anything it might capture. Do not rush the capture — build up the pressure first, then harvest.
Provenance
Derived from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0).
Pack 015
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