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Capture the defender Puzzles: Developing Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1415 · solved 66,608,067 times

Difficulty 1200–1599

These are capture the defender puzzles rated 1200–1599, the Developing level on this site. They come from real rated games: 15,224 puzzles, median rating 1415, solved 66,608,067 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.

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By the numbers

capture the defender puzzles at developing level: the numbers

There are 15,224 capture the defender puzzles at developing level, solved 66,608,067 times in total. The median rating is 1415.

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 10,294Endgame tactics · 3,156Fork · 2,012Opening tactics · 1,774Intermezzo (in-between move) · 1,600Attraction · 1,364Discovered attack · 1,252Pin · 1,246Kingside attack · 710

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 1,115French Defence · 442Scandinavian Defense · 412Caro–Kann Defence · 380Queen's Pawn Game · 374Italian Game · 299English Opening · 265Queen's Gambit Declined · 263

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical capture the defender solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 capture the defender puzzles at developing level (13.1% of all 15,224).

71.3% need 2 solver moves, 26.9% need 3 solver moves, 1.6% need 4 solver moves. Median rating: 1392 for the shortest solutions, 1469 for the longest.

27.8% open with a rook move. The first move captures in 92.4% and gives check in 5.8%; 0.1% end in checkmate, 23.9% involve a sacrifice, 48.2% have White to move.

92.4%first move captures
5.8%first move gives check
0.1%end in checkmate
23.9%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

2 solver moves
71.3% · median rating 1392
3 solver moves
26.9% · median rating 1454
4 solver moves
1.6% · median rating 1469

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a rook
27.8%
Key move by a bishop
27.2%
Key move by a queen
25.6%
Key move by a knight
15.5%
Key move by a pawn
3.7%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: knight
33.4%
Most valuable capture: queen
31.8%
Most valuable capture: rook
25.6%
Most valuable capture: bishop
8.2%
Most valuable capture: pawn
1.2%

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)
2.4%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
17%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
64.6%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
14.7%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
1.4%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
17.4%
21–27 pieces
53.2%
13–20 pieces
27.8%
12 pieces or fewer
1.6%

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: f6 (16.3%), c6 (9.1%), d5 (8.7%), e5 (5.7%), d7 (5.3%).

1.31.58
1.21.35.33.51.77
1.32.39.12.95.216.32.16
2.78.75.72.51.65
2.43.141.84
13
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♜♚
♝♟♟
♟♟♟
♟♘♟♙♞
♙♙♛
♙♕♙
♗♙♔
♖
White to move · rating 1278 · solved 2,489 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ng5

Solution: Bxg5 → Qxg5 → Nxe6 → Qxe5 → Nxf8

♜♚
♜♟♟
♟
♟♛
♙♙♖♙
♙♙♙
♔♖♕
Black to move · rating 1290 · solved 3,389 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qe1

Solution: Rxc2 → Rxc2 → Qxd3

♜♚
♟♝♛♗♟
♟♞♟♝
♟♘
♕
♙♙♘
♙♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1290 · solved 2,379 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qf4

Solution: Bxg5 → Qxg5 → Qxf7

♟♟
♟♟
♙♚♟
♙♙♝♙♙
♔♘
♙
Black to move · rating 1355 · solved 3,190 times · 5 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: g4

Solution: Bxe3 → fxe3 → hxg4 → h5 → g3 → h6 → g2 → h7 → g1=Q

♜♜♚
♟♟♞♟♟
♟
♝
♗♙
♘♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1362 · solved 2,318 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd3

Solution: Rxc4 → Rxc4 → Bxd3

♚♜♜
♟♟♞♟♟♟
♟♝
♗♝♛♙
♘♙
♙♙♙♗♕♙♙
♔♖♖
Black to move · rating 1363 · solved 2,264 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ba4

Solution: Bxc3 → Bxc3 → Qxa4

♜♚
♟♛♝♟♟
♟♟♞♟
♟♝
♙♗
♘♕
♙♙♙♗♙♙
♔♖
White to move · rating 1386 · solved 4,676 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxh5

Solution: Bxf6 → Bxf6 → Bxh5

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♝♟♟♟
♞
♞
♙♙♘
♗♙♙♗♙♙♙
♖♔♖
Black to move · rating 1392 · solved 2,439 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: a3

Solution: Nxe3 → fxe3 → Nxc2+

♜♜♚♟♟♟
♖♝
♟♟
♙♟♙♙
♗♙
♔♙♙
♖
White to move · rating 1419 · solved 2,252 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ke7

Solution: Rxb6 → Rxb6 → Rxa7+

♜♚♜
♟♟
♟♖
♞♟
♙♙♟
♙♙♙♛♙
♖♕♔
White to move · rating 1476 · solved 3,272 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxe2

Solution: Qxe2 → Nxe2 → Rxe6+ → Kd7 → Rxe2

♟♟
♞♜♚♙
♟♙
♟♙
♘♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1499 · solved 2,430 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: b3

Solution: Rxa5 → Rxa5 → Nxb3+ → Kb4 → Nxa5

♜♝♛♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♞
♝
♗
♙♙♗♙♙♙
♖♘♕♖♔
White to move · rating 1568 · solved 2,942 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Re8

Solution: Bxc6 → bxc6 → Bxb4

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

Capture the defender puzzles by difficulty

Challenging level