Winning blow: bishop to c4 (d3·12)
sf-t-0043naming 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 g1, queen h2, rook d1 e1, bishop d3 h6, knight f3, pawn a2 f2 g2 c3.
Black: king g8, queen g6, rook a8 h8, bishop b7, pawn c6 e6 f6 a7 h7.
11 white and 10 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 21.
Solution & explanation
Main line
21. Bc4 Qg4 22. Bxe6+ Qxe6 23. Qg3+
Why it works
- Sensible development: bishop to c4.
- Spot on — bishop to e6 (#3).
- Precise: queen to g3 is the top choice (#2).
- You win decisive material (+15.0).
- If instead Qg4, then Bxe6+ and you stay on top.
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
Similar puzzles
Free, no ads · Android 8.0+ · coming soon to Google Play