Winning blow: rook to e8 (e1)
sf-t-0194naming tag (square·N)The tactical motive
Winning tactic: there is a move that gains a decisive advantage — find it.
Chess960 twist: use the unusual starting setup of the pieces.
Difficulty 780 ShuffleRating — for beginners taking their first steps in Chess960 tactics.
White to move — find the best continuation
Position on the board
White: king b1, rook d1 e1, knight h3, pawn a2 c2 d2 b3 f4 d6.
Black: king c8, queen g3, rook e8, bishop f1, pawn a5 b5 h6 c7 d7.
10 white and 9 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 21.
Solution & explanation
Main line
21. Rxe8+ Kb7 22. dxc7 Kxc7 23. Re3
Why it works
- Great move! rook to e8 keeps the pressure (+3.9).
- Spot on — pawn to c7 (+3.9).
- Strong! rook to e3 is the sharp choice (+4.4).
- You win a piece — the rook.
- If instead Kb7, then dxc7 and you win the rook.
Types in this puzzle
Hanging piece
A piece is left without protection — just take it.
A hanging piece is simply an unprotected piece you can take for free. It sounds primitive, yet most amateur games are decided exactly this way. Build the habit: before every move, sweep the board and note every undefended piece, yours and theirs. The classic mistake is hunting for a brilliant combination when all you need to do is bend down and pick up the gift.
Only move
Everything else loses — find the only move that holds.
An only move is a position where everything loses except one single continuation. You cannot play "by hand" here: run through fundamentally different defenses — run away, block, trade, counterattack — and discard the ones that fail. The hallmark of these puzzles is that the obvious moves lose quickly while the solution often looks strange. First understand exactly what the threat is — then the one saving move reveals itself.
Provenance
Mined from the project's engine self-play games.
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 003
Similar puzzles
Free, no ads · Android 8.0+ · coming soon to Google Play