Chess Puzzle #14149

CHESS PUZZLE, FEN 8/8/8/8/1B6/1r6/p1p1N3/k1K5 w - -

Added by:	justmejoe
Added on:	29-Aug-09
Description:
Difficulty:	chess puzzle 8/8/8/8/1B6/1r6/p1p1N3/k1K5 w - -
Attempts:	967
Solved:	715 (73%)


White to move, mate in 3

Comments: (10) » Last

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kingdawar
28-Apr-11, 10:13

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Author

W. von Holzhausen, 1904

kicorse
01-May-16, 02:29

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Perfect timing after yesterday's Easy puzzle

puzzle #13537 featured a zugwang on Move 2 built on a rook's ability to capture a knight wherever it moved. Now we see a zugzwang on Move 2 built on a rook's inability to move anywhere that it can prevent the knight delivering mate.

wardh
01-May-16, 02:38

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Beautiful

It's all about the beautiful second move, which causes the zugzwang kicorse describes.

paviland
01-May-16, 04:54

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Be Logical

The problem of the nuisance checks, ..Rb1/..Rd1, more or less dictates the key-move (at least it did for me) because 1.Bc3 is the only move that does that. Then the quandary the black rook has on c3 of defending both b3 & c2 gives the second move.
A very logical puzzle but still nicely composed & worth 2 stars.

fajter
01-May-16, 04:58

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Really nice one

And for me the solve ratio is surprisingly high (72% at this moment). I wonder how many people solved it in mind without touching any pieces, and of course without hints.

kenderfender
01-May-16, 09:00

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not that easy one

and I failed to solve it. Good job on those that could!

iberville
01-May-16, 09:39

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Very nice; in 60 years of chess I never saw this idea.

nikirandom
01-May-16, 11:42

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Tricky for me. I used analysis but no hints.

sorenjensen
01-May-16, 12:52

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One star.

I think Paviland is right. The only way to meet the terrible threat 1.- Rb1+ is 1. Bc3+, and after the forced 1- Rxc3 2. Nd4 has to be played, and this leaves Black in zugzwang. Very easy, but still pretty, I think. But for me this was a one-star puzzle.
I have only solved or tried to solve rather few puzzles here on Gameknot, but really many has been based on zugzwang-ideas.

archduke_piccolo
01-May-16, 14:24

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Not very difficult...

... but a very cute puzzle. I gave it 3 stars for difficulty, but maybe should have given it two. To give some idea of how I assign stars, I would give one star difficulty to beginner level mates With K+Q vs K, K+R vs K, and mating patterns with Q+R, 2R, Q+B, Q+N, R+N; and short range mates with 2B (up to four or five moves, say).

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