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Puzzle #11: Winning material

Rating ≈ 1300 · 2 moves to find

White to move and win material.

Puzzle position: White to move and win material.♜︎♛︎♜︎♚︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♞︎♟︎♞︎♝︎♝︎♞︎♟︎♝︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♜︎♛︎♜︎♚︎a8b7c6d5e4f3g2h1
Show a hint

Go through every check and capture, then every threat.

Show the solution
  1. 10. Nxc6 — the knight takes the knight on c6.
  2. 10… Bxd1 is the best defence.
  3. 11. Nxd8 — the knight takes the queen on d8.

Why it works. Forcing moves leave the opponent no time to defend everything. At the end of the line White is about 3 points of material better off.

Themes: Winning material

Want to recognise this pattern faster? Read the guide.

This position comes from a training game and was checked with a chess engine: every move you need to find is the only one that works.

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