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Puzzle #84: Hanging piece

Rating ≈ 1300 · 2 moves to find

Black to move and win material.

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

Check every enemy piece: is one of them simply undefended?

Show the solution
  1. 36… Kxg7 — the king takes the bishop on g7.
  2. 37. Rxf7+ is the best defence.
  3. 37… Qxf7 — the queen takes the rook on f7.

Why it works. The piece simply wasn't defended — always check what your opponent left unprotected. At the end of the line Black is about 3 points of material better off.

Themes: Hanging piece, 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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