Puzzle #45: Mate in 3: sacrifice
Rating ≈ 1750 · 3 moves to find
Black to move and mate in 3.
Show a hint
Sometimes you have to give material first.
Show the solution
- 27… Rh1+ — the rook goes to h1 with check.
- 28. Kxh1 is the only legal move.
- 28… Qh5+ — the queen goes to h5 with check.
- 29. Kg1 is the only legal move.
- 29… Qh2# — the queen goes to h2 — checkmate.
Why it works. Every move in the line is forcing, so the defender never gets time to organise a defence.
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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.