Fork: rook to e1 (e8·3)
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The tactical motive
Fork: one piece attacks two targets at once — they can't both be saved.
Difficulty 2076 ShuffleRating — expert level — few solve it at first try.
Black 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 f1, queen c3, rook d7, bishop e1, pawn f2 g2 h2.
Black: king g8, queen b1, rook e8, pawn c5 a7 b7 f7 g7 h7.
7 white and 9 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 25.
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 f1, the black king on g8.
It is Black to move on move 25, with 40 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): d, e — natural highways for the rooks and queen.
The Black king has 2 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
25... Rxe1+ 26. Qxe1 Qb5+ 27. Qe2 Qxd7
Why it works
- Great move! rook to e1 keeps the pressure (+5.1).
- Well found: queen to b5 (+5.0).
- Strong! queen to d7 is the sharp choice (+5.1).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Qxe1, then Qb5+ and you stay on top.
Move by move
- 25… Rxe1+ — rook to e1 (capture) with check
- 26. Qxe1 — queen to e1 (capture)
- Qb5+ — queen to b5 with check
- 27. Qe2 — queen to e2
- Qxd7 — queen to d7 (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.
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.
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.
Provenance
Derived from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0).
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 015
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