A Chess Puzzle You Won’t Believe

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The puzzle details:
FEN: 8/1K1R4/pp3p2/8/1p3Np1/4Q3/2pppn1r/2qbkrb1 w – – 0 1
Author:
Stefan Schneider, 1st Place
Austria-Switzerland Match 1977

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120 Comments

  1. I'd say puzzles don't always present exact positions that you'll reach in a game but rather teach you an idea that could be used in a game

  2. I'm not that impressed by this. I think it's only interesting because the dark pawns are moving down. If this was a standard position, d3 ruins light's whole plan. Puzzles shouldn't have to be in a "99.99999999999999% unlikely to happen in real life" position in order to be interesting.

  3. You left out the main variation of this problem composed by Stefan Schneider in 1977. After 1.Ka8! Rh8+ 2.Qe8!, if Black declines the sacrifice and plays 2…Rh2, White's threat of 3.Rh7? is now too slow because of 3…Qa3! 4.Rxh2 Qf3+! Instead White must continue with 3.Re7!, doubling on the e-file and Black has no defence against 4.Rxe2+ Bxe2 5.Qxe2. This variation also explains why after 1…Rh8+, 2.Rd8? doesn't work, because of 2…Rh2! and the doubling attempt 3.Re8 fails as the queen needs to be behind the rook.

  4. Why isnt the white king in check from the beginning?

  5. In the beginning why you taking pawn with queen, instead of taking it with knight and then mate in less moves

  6. Im just learning how to play chess but, when the rook moves up for the check, how does the king move down into the two black pawns doesnt the that signify a checkmate move?

  7. White King moves fist anyway because of check, no? No any option for the white to move another figure first

  8. Hi, Nelson… How do I send you a chess puzzle? Btw, I´m brazilian…

    Well, here it goes:

    white: Bishop at a4,
    black: King at d1; Rook at b5; Bishop at d5.

    Notice that the black King is in check.

    Question: Where is the White King?

    Good luck!

  9. this puzzle was infinitely easier once i figured out why blacks pawns didn't just take white's queen.
    a more amazing puzzle, is how this position might occur in a real game. but the puzzle is neat, and illustrates a very important point about chess.

  10. I was so confused because of the pawns, then I realised they’re meant to be going towards down 😅

  11. So I, like many people, wondered what happens if the black rook doesn't take the queen and just retreats back to H2.

    If Rh2 then white just goes Re7, setting up the battery he mentioned at 2:34. The Ka8 that baited the rook to h8 actually helped us get the queen to where we wanted her for the battery. So, as is of course the point of the puzzle, black well and truly has no good moves after white does the semi-waiting move that is Ka8. All of the pieces that can move shouldn't move. So they can stall with pawn moves until a pawn gets to a3 or b3. Once a pawn gets there, white's queen goes to G3, pinning the knight to set up for the Nd3++.

  12. Damn and i thought surrrounding ur king with all ur pieces while blocking ur pawn promotion was a very strong strategy.

  13. the pawns being backwards while still in the good facing way blows my mind

  14. I had a similar idea, but i thought the move would be Kg6.
    The idea is – the king can't be immediately checked and all the threats still stay there.
    Sadly this wasn't even considered a move in the video so I will never know where was I wrong

  15. After Qg6 pinning the Knitgh, what does black do?

  16. This is either draw or black wins. Don't fork the white queen. Return black rh8 to rh2, option 1 if the white rd7 move to rh7, don't fork the white rh7 just move qc1 to qa3. If the white rh7 fork the black rh2 then move black qa3 to qf3 to check the white ka8 then fork the black kf4(black wins) Option 2. If the white qe8 returns to qe3 then return the rh2 to rh8 and if the white qe8 covers again then return to black rh2(draw).

  17. Just Some Alligator With Internet Access says:

    5:35 is that not illegal???? The pawn is guarding that square, im confused
    Edit: just realized that black is going down, not up

  18. How are you supposed to know what way the pawns move before you start?

  19. Looked at the puzzle and thought, "the solution is probably 1 Ka8 because it's a puzzle hence the least likely move is often the solution".

  20. What about
    white rook h7
    black rook kills in h7
    and knight in g2

  21. Nice puzzle!
    Though black is in zugzwang, so if white plays just Ka7, Kb7 back and forth, black only can move pawns, and if black plays a3 or b3, then white can play Qg3, after black can not stop Nd3 checkmate. And after some pawn push, black has to play a3 or b3.
    The reason, why white can not play it immidetaly is, that black can play Qa3. But after black plays a3 or b3, then with Qa3 can’t stop Nd3#.
    Only this simple solution is not checkmate in 5, but only in 9: Ka7 g3 Kb7 g2 Ka7 f5 Kb7 b5 Ka7 a5 Kb7 a4 Ka7 a3 (or b3) Qg3 and doesn’t matter what black plays, the next is Nd3 checkmate.

  22. LOL….took me a moment. I didn't realize all blacks pieces were on the first the opposite side of the board going down.

  23. Almost got the 1st move: I’d found Rh7 idea, but forgot my king would be in check😅

  24. After 2. Qe8 Stockfish did find what would happen if black played Rh2, the rook would line up under the queen 3. Re7 ready to capture on e2, get captured by the bishop, 5. Qe2 would be mate, still mate in 5.

  25. Amazing how the black army totally stormed the white's "capital city" and still lost 😀

  26. I figured out the first move fr YES ACTUALLY FR

  27. Hi
    I was wondering why not Qg3?
    Because we pin the knight
    & deliver mate with our knight on d3?
    Please answer.

  28. HOW it will be checkmate if after Dd1 black ignores queen and plays Dh6 and later Dc6 …??

  29. 6:05 white doesn’t win, black can take the knight with the pawn

  30. 0:52 One of my major pet peeves is software with names like Notion, because you can't google it.

    7:42 Presumably, the Black pawns on a6 is to stop … Qa1+ and similar checks along the a-file.

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