Mate in 2: queen to e8 (e2·4)
li-0JW5znaming tag (square·N)Opens in the app if installed, otherwise downloads the APK.
The tactical motive
Mate in 2: the first move creates an unstoppable threat, the second delivers mate.
Difficulty 1839 ShuffleRating — for advanced tacticians.
White to move — find the best continuation
How to recognize this tactic
Mate in two usually opens with a forcing move — a check, a capture or an unstoppable threat — that strips the king of squares or defenders, so the follow-up mate becomes unavoidable. Look for the first move that leaves the opponent only losing replies.
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, queen e2, bishop b2, pawn a2 h2 b3 d5.
Black: king g8, queen g5, bishop b4, pawn c6 g6 a7 h7.
7 white and 7 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 33.
The position in numbers
Material is level — 16 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 g8.
It is White to move on move 33, with 35 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 4 pawns, Black 4. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): e, f — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for White: c, g.
The White king has 1 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
33. Qe8+ Bf8 34. Qe6#
Why it works
- Great move! queen to e8 keeps the pressure (#1).
- Well found: queen to e6 (#).
- The line ends in a forced mate in 2.
- If instead Bf8, then Qe6# and it is mate.
Move by move
- 33. Qe8+ — queen to e8 with check
- Bf8 — bishop to f8
- 34. Qe6# — queen to e6 and it is checkmate
Types in this puzzle
Mate in 2
A forced checkmate in two moves.
Mate in two: your move, any reply, then the mating blow. Start with the most forcing first moves — checks and sacrifices that shrink the opponent's options to almost nothing. Against every single reply you must have a mate ready, so check them all without exception. The common failure is analyzing the pretty defense and forgetting the boring one.
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 013
Similar puzzles
In your browser or in the Android app. Nothing to install · Free, no ads