«He suffers more than necessary, who suffers before it is necessary.» — Lucius Annaeus Seneca
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Puzzle #42: Sacrifice

Rating ≈ 1450 · 2 moves to find

Black to move and win material.

Puzzle position: Black to move and win material.♚︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♝︎♞︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♟︎♚︎♟︎♟︎♜︎♜︎h1g2f3e4d5c6b7a8
Show a hint

Sometimes you have to give material first.

Show the solution
  1. 30… Bf4+ — the bishop goes to f4 with check.
  2. 31. Kxf4+ is forced: it is the best way out of check.
  3. 31… Rxg2 — the rook takes the rook on g2.

Why it works. The initial sacrifice pays off: the material comes back with interest. At the end of the line Black is about 2 points of material better off.

Themes: Sacrifice, 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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