Win the hanging pawn on h6 (g7)
li-0BdCZnaming tag (square·N)The tactical motive
Hanging piece: your opponent left a piece undefended — take it.
Difficulty 2121 ShuffleRating — expert level — few solve it at first try.
Black to move — find the best continuation
Position on the board
White: king a2, queen h6, rook g1, knight g3, pawn b3 f3 e4.
Black: king g8, queen e7, rook d8, pawn a3 d4 e5 f6 b7 g7.
7 white and 9 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 29.
Solution & explanation
Main line
29... gxh6 30. Nf5+ Kf8 31. Nxe7 Kxe7
Why it works
- Great move! pawn to h6 keeps the pressure (+4.8).
- Well found: king to f8 (+4.9).
- Strong! king to e7 is the sharp choice (+5.3).
- You win a piece — the queen.
- If instead Nf5+, then Kf8 and you win the queen.
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.
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.
Provenance
Derived from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0).
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 015
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