This one was definitely tricky and difficult to find. I stared at this puzzle for about 5 minutes before I identified the main idea, the vunerability of the white king. The black bishop is attacked and has no safe squares on the important diagonal however I considered the outrageous move 1…Be3 which apparently loses the bishop for nothing however
if 2.Bxe3 h3 threatening mate on g2 by taking advantage of the fact that the white bishop is now blocking the queen from protecting the h3 square 3.g3 Qf3 and white can not prevent mate
if 2.Qxe3 Rxe3 3.fxe3 h3(3.Bxe3 h3 mating with line from previous variation) 4.Rf2 Qd1+ 5.Rf1 Qc2 (threatening mate on g2) 6.gxh3 Qxc3 and the b pawn will fall too. And black is definitely at a significant advantage and should win this.
if 2.Qxe2 Qxe2 3.Bxe3 and black has a queen and a pawn for a rook and bishop however in this variation the white pawns arent fragmented and the bishop is far more active and can look forward to parking on d4. The queen on e2 is not really attacking anything and the a pawn is weak and if it falls then white’s a pawn could prove decisive. Black’s advantage is far less than in the previous line and is very unclear and difficult to convert to a win(for a human).
Alternatively, white could decline the sacrifice with 2.Kh2 and what is black’s plan now?
So now although I seem to have spotted some nice tactical tricks in this position, it did not seem sufficient to be easily winning or forceful enough to make white accept the sacrifice. This is when I saw the improvement to the idea with the more forceful 1…Re3 which has the extra advantage of attacking the white queen and not leaving it to be captured on e2.
if 2.Bxe3 h3 (same line as above) 3.g3 Qf3 mating on g2
if 2.f3 Rxd3+ winning easily
if 2.Qxe3 Bxe3 3.fxe3 h3(3.Bxe3 h3 mating) 4.Rf2 Qd1+ 5.Rf1 Qc2 (threatening mate on g2) 6.gxh3 Qxc3 and the b pawn will fall too.
Black should be easily winning by just marching his c and d pawns down the board.
I did not intend this post to be this long but just trying to write down my thoughts and method as I explored the variations trying to search for a win and hopefully this was helpful to beginners. This puzzle position seems harmless enough and I wonder how many of these forced wins I missed over the board.
Ok I just checked out the variations with an engine and the previous post was very instructive in how wrong I was. Obviously 1…Re3 loses to 2.fxe3. I had seen that if 1…Be3 then white couldnt play 2.fxe3 because now the queen and rook coordinate on g2 to deliver mate. However I failed to realise that by moving the rook 2.fxe3 was now not only a possibility but completely winning for white. Chess blindness can strike at anytime!
I also evaluated incorrectly specifically the sacrifice declining line 1…Be3 2.Kh2 which I thought was an even position Now 2…h3 is a mate in 10
In the other line 1…Be3 2.Qxe2 Qxe2 3.Bxe3 the engine evaluates it at +2.5 however I still think it is difficult to play for a win for black.
Chess always teaches humility or forces you to learn it if you are overconfident.
To combine attack and defense, Black has to solve two problems: 1. The bishop is being kicked and must move. 2. The white queen prevents Black from playing h3 with a deadly attack on g2. So: 1. … Be3! solves both problems by blocking the third rank for the queen. 2. Qxe3 I see no other move to prevent mate. 2. fxe3 Qxg2#;
2. Bxe3 h3! 3. g3 Qf3 4. Qe4 dxe4 and 5. … Qg2#
2. … Rxe3 3. fxe3 h3 and Black should win easily (e.g. 4.Rf2 Qd1+ 5.Rf1 h2+!)
Here i first tried Bxf2+ and Rxf2 and then Qg3 and h3 as 4 alternative first moves, without success.
My fifth idea was
1. … Be3!!
The unexpected threat here is h3! g3 (enforced) Qf3! and Qg2# next. This would happen both after Bxe3? and other more passive white moves. White Q’s access in 3rd rank is cut off, white has no opportunity to reinforce g2.
Also g3 hxg3 followed by gxf2++ is to little help. Or fxe3?? Qxg2.
2. Qxe3 (seems enforced) Rxe3 3. fxe3
Black is up with Q+p vs. R+B, white e pawn looks foolish, black wins easily.
h3 is deadly as long as black can block the queen’s line to h3, so….
1. …..Be3! 2. Be3? h3! 3. g3 Qf3 and mate is unavoidable.
Or, on move 2:
2. Qe3 Re3 3. fe3 h3 4. Rf2 Qd1 5. Rf1 h2! and white must lose the rook and bishop, too, or give black another queen.
Best for white is probably to take the rook. In that line I don’t see an immediately crushing line for black, though the advantage is still clearly decisive:
1. …..Be3 2. Qe2 Qe2 3. Be3 a6 4. Bd4
And black has a queen for a bishop and rook. Black will have to advance the king side pawns to bust up white’s king position, but there is surely no defense here that can hold with proper play.
This one was definitely tricky and difficult to find. I stared at this puzzle for about 5 minutes before I identified the main idea, the vunerability of the white king. The black bishop is attacked and has no safe squares on the important diagonal however I considered the outrageous move
1…Be3 which apparently loses the bishop for nothing however
if 2.Bxe3 h3 threatening mate on g2 by taking advantage of the fact that the white bishop is now blocking the queen from protecting the h3 square
3.g3 Qf3 and white can not prevent mate
if 2.Qxe3 Rxe3
3.fxe3 h3(3.Bxe3 h3 mating with line from previous variation)
4.Rf2 Qd1+
5.Rf1 Qc2 (threatening mate on g2)
6.gxh3 Qxc3 and the b pawn will fall too.
And black is definitely at a significant advantage and should win this.
if 2.Qxe2 Qxe2
3.Bxe3 and black has a queen and a pawn for a rook and bishop however in this variation the white pawns arent fragmented and the bishop is far more active and can look forward to parking on d4. The queen on e2 is not really attacking anything and the a pawn is weak and if it falls then white’s a pawn could prove decisive. Black’s advantage is far less than in the previous line and is very unclear and difficult to convert to a win(for a human).
Alternatively, white could decline the sacrifice with 2.Kh2 and what is black’s plan now?
So now although I seem to have spotted some nice tactical tricks in this position, it did not seem sufficient to be easily winning or forceful enough to make white accept the sacrifice. This is when I saw the improvement to the idea with the more forceful
1…Re3 which has the extra advantage of attacking the white queen and not leaving it to be captured on e2.
if 2.Bxe3 h3 (same line as above)
3.g3 Qf3 mating on g2
if 2.f3 Rxd3+ winning easily
if 2.Qxe3 Bxe3
3.fxe3 h3(3.Bxe3 h3 mating)
4.Rf2 Qd1+
5.Rf1 Qc2 (threatening mate on g2)
6.gxh3 Qxc3 and the b pawn will fall too.
Black should be easily winning by just marching his c and d pawns down the board.
I did not intend this post to be this long but just trying to write down my thoughts and method as I explored the variations trying to search for a win and hopefully this was helpful to beginners. This puzzle position seems harmless enough and I wonder how many of these forced wins I missed over the board.
Ok I just checked out the variations with an engine and the previous post was very instructive in how wrong I was.
Obviously 1…Re3 loses to 2.fxe3.
I had seen that if 1…Be3 then white couldnt play 2.fxe3 because now the queen and rook coordinate on g2 to deliver mate. However I failed to realise that by moving the rook 2.fxe3 was now not only a possibility but completely winning for white. Chess blindness can strike at anytime!
I also evaluated incorrectly specifically the sacrifice declining line
1…Be3
2.Kh2 which I thought was an even position
Now 2…h3 is a mate in 10
In the other line
1…Be3
2.Qxe2 Qxe2
3.Bxe3 the engine evaluates it at +2.5 however I still think it is difficult to play for a win for black.
Chess always teaches humility or forces you to learn it if you are overconfident.
Qg3….Qxe2,h3……..resulting mate at Qg2
Qg3….Qxe2,h3……..resulting mate at Qg2
1..Rxf2 followed by Qg3 wins
1..Rxf2 followed by 2..Qg3 wins
To combine attack and defense, Black has to solve two problems: 1. The bishop is being kicked and must move. 2. The white queen prevents Black from playing h3 with a deadly attack on g2. So:
1. … Be3! solves both problems by blocking the third rank for the queen.
2. Qxe3 I see no other move to prevent mate.
2. fxe3 Qxg2#;
2. Bxe3 h3!
3. g3 Qf3
4. Qe4 dxe4
and 5. … Qg2#
2. … Rxe3
3. fxe3 h3 and Black should win easily (e.g. 4.Rf2 Qd1+ 5.Rf1 h2+!)
Here i first tried Bxf2+ and Rxf2 and then Qg3 and h3 as 4 alternative first moves, without success.
My fifth idea was
1. … Be3!!
The unexpected threat here is h3! g3 (enforced) Qf3! and Qg2# next. This would happen both after Bxe3? and other more passive white moves.
White Q’s access in 3rd rank is cut off, white has no opportunity to reinforce g2.
Also g3 hxg3 followed by gxf2++ is to little help.
Or fxe3?? Qxg2.
2. Qxe3 (seems enforced) Rxe3
3. fxe3
Black is up with Q+p vs. R+B, white e pawn looks foolish, black wins easily.
Be3
h3 is deadly as long as black can block the queen’s line to h3, so….
1. …..Be3!
2. Be3? h3!
3. g3 Qf3 and mate is unavoidable.
Or, on move 2:
2. Qe3 Re3
3. fe3 h3
4. Rf2 Qd1
5. Rf1 h2! and white must lose the rook and bishop, too, or give black another queen.
Best for white is probably to take the rook. In that line I don’t see an immediately crushing line for black, though the advantage is still clearly decisive:
1. …..Be3
2. Qe2 Qe2
3. Be3 a6
4. Bd4
And black has a queen for a bishop and rook. Black will have to advance the king side pawns to bust up white’s king position, but there is surely no defense here that can hold with proper play.
Yancey, I think you need to prove that white can’t set up a fortress in your last line!
Davey,
A fortress here isn’t really possible given that black has as many pawns as white and can safely bring the king to bear on white, too.