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Very difficult 1.Qh8+ Bg8 2.Ne4!!
I think we have seen this one fairly recently. In any case, after 1. Qh8+ Bg8, Black is going to get mated, starting with 2. Ne4!
(If 2. .. dxe4?? 3. Ng6#)
After 2. Ne4, which was pretty easy to spot, White is threatening mate beginning with 3. Bh6
[3. Bh6 Rd8 (3. .. gxh6 4. Qxh6#) (3. .. Bf6 4. Ng6+ Kf7 5. Nd6#) 4. Bxg7+ Ke8 5. Qxg8+ Bf8 6. Qxf8#]
Black can try to defend g7 with 2. .. Bf6, but that leaves d6 unprotected:
2. .. Bf6 3. Ng6+ Kf7 4. Nd6#
Black can cover d6-square and provide escape square e8 for his king by playing 2. .. Rd8, probably his best defensive try:
2. .. Rd8 3. Ng6+ Kf7
(3. .. Ke8 4. Qxg8+ Kd7 (4. .. Bf8 5. Qxf8+ Kd7 6. Qe7#) 5. Qe6+ Ke8 6. Qxe7#)
4. Nxe7 Kxe7
(4. .. Qd7 5. Ng5+ Kf6 6. Qxg8 Qxe7 (6. .. Rxg8 7. Nxg8#) 7. Nh7#)
5. Qxg7+ Bf7
(5. .. Ke8 6. Nf6#)
6. Bg5+ Ke8
(6. .. Kd7 7. Qxf7#)
7. Nf6+ Ke7 8. Nh7+ Ke8
(8. .. Kd7 9. Qxf7+ Kd6 10. Qe7#) (8. .. Kd6 9. Qe5+ Kd7 10. Qe7#)
9. Qf8+ Kd7 10. Qe7#
The biggest problem with Black’s try 2. .. Bf6 is that it eliminated the escape square f6 for Black’s king. That suggests that Black can instead play the
odd-looking 2. .. Bc5 instead. Being up 2 rooks in material, Black can afford to make such an extravagant try.
2. .. Bc5 3. Ng6+ Kf7 4. Ng5+ Kf6 5. Qh4!! (the most difficult move to spot in all these variations) Bh7
(5. .. Bf7 6. Nh7#) (5. .. Ra7 6. Nh7+ Kf7 7. Nh8#)
6. Nxh7+ Kf7 7. Ng5+ Kf6 8. Be5+ Rxe5 9. Nf3+ Kf7 10. Nfxe5+ Ke8 11. Qh8+ Bf8 12. Qxf8#
Since this is claimed to be difficult, it has to be a win for white.
The only try I found for a win was:
1. Ng6+ Bxg6 (enforced)
2. Qh8+ Kf7
3. fxg6+
But now I guess black plays Ke6 and I can’t see a mate, since I don’t find any move preventing black from playing Kd7 or Bf6 next.
However, white should in an actual game be very happy with a draw in this bad looking position:
1. Qh8+ Bg8
2. Ng6+ Kf7
3. Ne5+ Kf8 (Kf6?? Qh4#)
4. Ng6+
Draw by repetition.
But I know this isn’t the solution….
1. Ne4!!.Nc4
(appears best closing the diagonal for the white bishop;
If 1…dxe4,2. Qh8+..Bg8, 3.Qxg8#)
2. Qh8+..Bg8 (forced)
3. Bh6!..Bf6
(If 3…..gxh6, 4. Qxh6#!!
If 3…..other moves 4. Qxg7#)
4. Nxf6. winning easily
eg.1 – If 4….Nxe5. 5. Qxg7#
eg.2 – If 4….Ke7…5. Qxg7+.Bf7. 6. Qxf7+. Kd8 7. Bg5+. Re7 8. Qxe7#
Harry
Solution:
1. Ng6+ Bxg6 2. Pxg6! Bf6 3. Bd6+ Be7 (or Re7) 4. Qh8 checkmate
This cost me quite some time:
1. Qh8+ Bg8
2. Bh6 Bf6 what else? If
2. … Rd8
3. Qxg7+ Ke8
4. Qg6+ Bf7
5. Qxf7#
or
2. … gxh6
3. Qxh6#
3. Ng6+ Kf7
4. Ne4! threatening Nd6
4. … Rd8
4. … Qd8
5. Ng5+ Bxg5
6. Qxg7#
or
4. … Qc7
5. Ng5+ Bxg5
6. Qxg7#
5. Ng5+ Bxg5
5. … Ke8
6. Qxg8+ Kd7
7. Qf7+ Kd6
8. Ne4+ dxe4
9. Bf4+ Be5
10. Bxe5#
6. Qxg7+ Ke8
7. Bxg5 Ra7 Qe7# had to be prevented
8. Qg8+ Kd7
9. Qf7+ Kd6
10. Bf4#
The awesome beauty of 5. Qh4 was suggested to me by the fact that this allows Black to check with both his bishop and his rook!?!
I just couldn’t resist this move. I wanted to give the problem composer (whoever that is) his due. (Who did compose this, by the way?)
Despite, or perhaps because, of the chutzpah of this move, the mating net is very nicely preserved whatever Black does.
For example, after:
1. Qh8+ Bg8 2. Ne4 Bc5 3. Ng6+ Kf7 4. Ng5+ Kf6 5. Qh4 Bxd4+
the game could continue:
6. Kh1 [must lure the rook to e1; Kh2 would be a mistake] Re1+ 7. Qxe1
Now White threatens:
8. Ne4+ [going back to this brilliant square] Kf7 (8. .. dxe4? [this capture again leads to instant destruction!!!] 9. Qh4#) 9. Nd6+ Kf6 10. Qh4#)
Black can try 7. .. Be6:
7. ..Be6 8. Nxe6 threatens 9. Bg5+ Kf7 10. Nd8+ Kg8 11. Qe8+ Kh7 12. Qh8#
[The queen making a tour from h2 to h8 to h4 to e1 to e8 and back to h8!]
So after 8. Nxe6, Black could try 8. .. Qd7 9. Nd8 Qxd8 [else 10. Qh4#] 10. Qe6#
Black can also try the desperation sacrifice of his queen:
7. .. Qxf5 8. gxf5 Kxf5 9. Bb1+ Kf6 10. Qe7# Enough!
I had not considered the 2. .. Bc5 defense the first time we looked at this position, so I’m really glad that we had a second look at this.
1.Qh8+ Bg8 2.Ne4 after this move Black has no defence
2. … any 3. Ng6+ ;
if the ‘e7’ bishop is still on ‘e7’ then 4.Bh6 and 5.Ng5+ ;
if the ‘e7’ bishop is on d8-h4 then
White has 4.Nd6+ and eventually 5.Bg5+ and/or 6.Qh4#.
Finally if the ‘e7’ bishop is on f8-a3 White goes 4.Ng5+ Kf6 5.Be5+ Rxe5 6.dxe5+ Kxg5 7.Qh4#
Dear Anon,
1. Ng6+.Bxg6 2. fxg6.. does not work because of 2. …Qxg4+ and 3….Qxg6 (or exchange of queens) and white’s attack peters out.
Harry