Mate in 3: queen to f2 (f1·2)
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The tactical motive
Mate in 3: a forced sequence that ends in checkmate.
Difficulty 2306 ShuffleRating — expert level — few solve it at first try.
Black to move — find the best continuation
How to recognize this tactic
In a mate in three every move must be forcing; the defender should never get a free tempo. Find the check or threat that herds the king, calculate the single defence to each, and confirm the net closes on the third 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 e3, queen a8, knight b4, pawn c3 h3 a4 d5.
Black: king g3, queen f1, bishop g2.
7 white and 3 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 50.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 4 points of material (16 against 12; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on e3, the black king on g3.
It is Black to move on move 50, with 27 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 4 pawns, Black 0. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): b, e, f, g — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for Black: a, c, d, h.
The Black king has 3 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
50... Qf2+ 51. Kd3 Bf1+ 52. Ke4 Qf4#
Why it works
- Great move! queen to f2 keeps the pressure (#2).
- Well found: bishop to f1 (#1).
- Strong! queen to f4 is the sharp choice (#).
- The line ends in a forced mate in 3.
- If instead Kd3, then Bf1+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 50… Qf2+ — queen to f2 with check
- 51. Kd3 — king to d3
- Bf1+ — bishop to f1 with check
- 52. Ke4 — king to e4
- Qf4# — queen to f4 and it is checkmate
Types in this puzzle
Supported queen mate
The queen delivers mate face to face, protected by a friend.
The supported queen mate is the most common pattern of all: the queen lands next to the king and mates because a friendly piece or pawn protects her. The king is helpless — capturing is impossible, and the queen covers every neighboring square herself. Hunt for a protected square beside the enemy king: a knight, bishop or pawn eyeing it turns her invasion into mate. Verify one thing — that the square really is defended, or the king eats her.
Mate in 3
A forced checkmate in three moves.
Mate in three is a forced staircase: each of your moves narrows the opponent's choices, and the third one ends the game. Look for the start among checks and sacrifices — quiet first moves are rare in mating problems, but deliciously sneaky. Keep the tree in your head: every defense gets its own branch. Do not stop calculating after move two — see the final mating picture with your own eyes.
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).
Pack 015
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