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Advanced pawn Puzzles: Foundation Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 992 · solved 77,461,907 times

Difficulty 600–1199

These are advanced pawn puzzles rated 600–1199, the Foundation level on this site. They come from real rated games: 89,998 puzzles, median rating 992, solved 77,461,907 times. The twelve below are among the most-solved of them; try each on the board, then read the numbers further down to see how solutions at this level are built.

All advanced pawn puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

advanced pawn puzzles at foundation level: the numbers

There are 89,998 advanced pawn puzzles at foundation level, solved 77,461,907 times in total. The median rating is 992.

Often combined with

Endgame tactics · 82,344Promotion · 47,339Pawn endgame tactics · 18,295Checkmate · 17,573Rook endgame tactics · 12,833Quiet move · 10,690Mate in 2 · 10,382Middlegame tactics · 7,127

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 354Italian Game · 106Queen's Pawn Game · 100French Defence · 91Caro–Kann Defence · 79Scotch Game · 77Scandinavian Defense · 67Queen's Gambit Declined · 63

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical advanced pawn solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 advanced pawn puzzles at foundation level (2.2% of all 89,998).

6.9% need 1 solver move, 49% need 2 solver moves, 29.6% need 3 solver moves, 9.8% need 4 solver moves, 4.6% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 899 for the shortest solutions, 1005 for the longest.

64% open with a pawn move. The first move captures in 24.4% and gives check in 39.8%; 19.9% end in checkmate, 15.4% involve a sacrifice, 52.1% have White to move.

24.4%first move captures
39.8%first move gives check
19.9%end in checkmate
15.4%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
6.9% · median rating 899
2 solver moves
49% · median rating 1009
3 solver moves
29.6% · median rating 992
4 solver moves
9.8% · median rating 918
5+ solver moves
4.6% · median rating 1005

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a pawn
64%
Key move by a rook
17.5%
Key move by a queen
7.8%
Key move by the king
7.2%
Key move by a bishop
1.9%
Key move by a knight
1.6%

What does the solver win?

Captures nothing along the line
47%
Most valuable capture: rook
25%
Most valuable capture: queen
11.6%
Most valuable capture: pawn
7.5%
Most valuable capture: bishop
5.8%
Most valuable capture: knight
3.2%

Material balance along the whole line, counting every capture by both sides (pawn 1, minor piece 3, rook 5, queen 9):

No material gained (mating or positional)
71.6%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
7.6%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
8.1%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
9.2%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
3.5%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
0.8%
21–27 pieces
4.6%
13–20 pieces
30.4%
12 pieces or fewer
64.2%

How it is counted: every puzzle in the sample is replayed move by move with a chess rules engine. A sacrifice means a piece that is captured on the very next ply and was worth more than what it captured itself (pawn 1, minor piece 3, rook 5, queen 9). Sample of 2,000 puzzles. Percentages are shares of the sample.

Where it happens

Where the key move lands

Where the solver’s first move ends, drawn from their own side (rank 1 is their back rank). Busiest squares: f7 (5.5%), g7 (4.4%), e8 (4.4%), c6 (4.3%), b7 (4.1%).

1.92.444.43.12.28
3.24.13.73.94.15.54.43.37
2.33.64.343.23.842.86
2.21.31.61.31.82.55
4
3
2
1
abcdefgh

Counted from the same 2,000-puzzle sample. Squares under 1% are left blank.

Study positions

The most-solved advanced pawn puzzles, from each difficulty level. Play each one on the board, then open the answer for the full line.

♙
♚
♔♟
♟
♙
White to move · rating 624 · solved 15,788 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: f3

Solution: b7 → f2 → b8=Q+

♟
♘♚
♔♝♟♟
♟
♙♙
♙♙
Black to move · rating 867 · solved 9,219 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nb6

Solution: a3 → Nxd5 → a2

♚
♟♘
♟♔♙
♙
♜
White to move · rating 915 · solved 16,098 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rf2

Solution: Nh6+ → Kf8 → g7+

♟
♚♙
♟♜♟♙
♖♔♙
Black to move · rating 1061 · solved 15,860 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kd2

Solution: Rc2+ → Rxc2 → bxc2

♙
♟
♟
♙
♚♔
Black to move · rating 1068 · solved 3,487 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh2

Solution: h4 → gxh4 → g3+ → Kh3 → g2

♚
♔
♞♙
♙
White to move · rating 1069 · solved 3,392 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ke7

Solution: g6 → Nc3 → g7 → Kf7 → Kh7 → Ne4 → g8=Q+

♜♚
♟♟♟
♟♕♙♝♟
♟♗♙
♙♙♙♙
♔
Black to move · rating 1099 · solved 4,421 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxc6

Solution: Re1+ → Kh2 → d2 → d7 → d1=Q

♚
♖♖
♟♙
♛
♙♙♙♟
♔♘
Black to move · rating 1110 · solved 3,724 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rbd5+

Solution: Qxd5 → Rxd5+ → Kxd5 → c3 → d1=Q

♗
♟
♟
♟
♔♙♚
Black to move · rating 1127 · solved 15,687 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ke2

Solution: Kg2 → Ke3 → h2

♜
♔
♙
♟
♚♟
White to move · rating 1167 · solved 15,950 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxg8

Solution: Kxg8 → g3 → f7 → g2 → f8=Q+

♜
♖♙
♟♚♙
♜♟
♔
♙
White to move · rating 1167 · solved 13,494 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ra5

Solution: g7 → Rxf7+ → Rxf7

♔♚
♟
♖
♟
Black to move · rating 1183 · solved 3,734 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kd6

Solution: h2 → Rb1 → g4 → Rh1 → g3

Positions and move sequences come from real rated games (CC0 data). Engine evaluations, where shown, are stored evaluations of the position (CC0).

Same theme, other levels

Advanced pawn puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping level