Winning blow: queen to g8 (g6·7)
sf-t-0022naming tag (square·N)The tactical motive
Chess960 twist: use the unusual starting setup of the pieces.
Winning tactic: there is a move that gains a decisive advantage — find it.
Difficulty 2060 ShuffleRating — expert level — few solve it at first try.
White to move — find the best continuation
Position on the board
White: king d2, queen g6, rook b1 h1, bishop e6 h8, knight d1 d3, pawn a2 c2 h2 f3 b4 g5.
Black: king d8, rook b7, bishop a8 f8, knight c8, pawn b5 c5 d5 a6.
14 white and 9 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 22.
Solution & explanation
Main line
22. Qg8 Rd7 23. Qxf8+ Kc7 24. Be5+
Why it works
- Great move! queen to g8 keeps the pressure (#10).
- Spot on — queen to f8 (#5).
- Precise: bishop to e5 is the top choice (#4).
- You win a piece — the bishop.
- If instead Nd6, then Qxf8+ and you win the bishop.
Types in this puzzle
Quiet move
No check, no capture — yet this modest move decides the game.
A quiet move gives no check and takes nothing — yet it decides the game by creating an unstoppable threat or stealing the king's last square. This is the hardest class of moves: the eye hunts for loud blows while a modest shift does the winning. The clue: every forcing try runs into a defense, so seek the move that strengthens the threat or takes squares away. Train yourself to ask: what if I neither capture nor check, but quietly improve?
Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 015
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