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Kingside attack Puzzles: Challenging Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1775 · solved 223,645,514 times

Difficulty 1600–1999

These are kingside attack puzzles rated 1600–1999, the Challenging level on this site. They come from real rated games: 81,315 puzzles, median rating 1775, solved 223,645,514 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 kingside attack puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

kingside attack puzzles at challenging level: the numbers

There are 81,315 kingside attack puzzles at challenging level, solved 223,645,514 times in total. The median rating is 1775.

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 72,330Checkmate · 26,914Sacrifice · 26,460Mate in 2 · 14,305Attraction · 14,304Pin · 12,203Discovered attack · 10,402Mate in 3 · 8,705

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 3,823French Defence · 2,212Italian Game · 2,179Queen's Pawn Game · 1,464Ruy Lopez · 1,084Caro–Kann Defence · 1,015Scandinavian Defense · 993Indian Defence · 880

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical kingside attack solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 kingside attack puzzles at challenging level (2.5% of all 81,315).

1.4% need 1 solver move, 45.6% need 2 solver moves, 42.1% need 3 solver moves, 9.6% need 4 solver moves, 1.4% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 1668 for the shortest solutions, 1806 for the longest.

34.2% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 58.4% and gives check in 76.2%; 33.6% end in checkmate, 53.9% involve a sacrifice, 56.2% have White to move.

58.4%first move captures
76.2%first move gives check
33.6%end in checkmate
53.9%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
1.4% · median rating 1668
2 solver moves
45.6% · median rating 1751
3 solver moves
42.1% · median rating 1801
4 solver moves
9.6% · median rating 1792
5+ solver moves
1.4% · median rating 1806

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
34.2%
Key move by a knight
23.6%
Key move by a rook
22.8%
Key move by a bishop
15.2%
Key move by a pawn
4.1%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
29.4%
Most valuable capture: pawn
26.4%
Most valuable capture: rook
19.2%
Most valuable capture: bishop
10.1%
Most valuable capture: knight
7.5%
Captures nothing along the line
7.4%

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)
35.5%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
21%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
19.7%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
17.7%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
6.1%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
7.8%
21–27 pieces
76%
13–20 pieces
16.2%
12 pieces or fewer
0%

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: h7 (13%), f6 (12.2%), f7 (9.7%), g6 (9.2%), h6 (7%).

1.34.73.71.34.58
3.89.76.7137
3.812.29.276
3.31.61.72.21.95
11.54
3
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♚♜
♖♝♛♞♜
♝♟
♟♟♙♖♟
♙
♙♙
♘♗♗
♕♔
Black to move · rating 1600 · solved 3,003 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: e5

Solution: Rh1+ → Bxh1 → Rxh1#

♕♞♚
♝♝♗♟♟♟
♟♟
♖
♙
♙♘
♛♙♙♙
♖♘♔
Black to move · rating 1604 · solved 2,316 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Be7

Solution: Qxf2+ → Kh1 → Qf1+ → Ng1 → Qxg1#

♛♜♚
♟♟♞♟♟♟
♟
♜♘
♕
♖
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1625 · solved 2,984 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd7

Solution: Qxh7+ → Kxh7 → Rh3#

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♝♟
♘♞
♙
♗♖
♙♙♙♛♙♙
♖♕♔
White to move · rating 1628 · solved 2,443 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ne5

Solution: Ne7+ → Kh8 → Rxh7+ → Kxh7 → Qh5#

♜♜♚
♟♛♟♟
♟♞♙♟♕
♟♝
♟♖
♙♘♟♙
♙♙
♖♗♔
White to move · rating 1638 · solved 2,389 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ne6

Solution: Qxh7+ → Kxh7 → Rh4#

♜♚♜
♟♟♟♟
♙♟
♕♝♛♞
♙
♙♘♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1667 · solved 2,314 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: a3

Solution: Ne2+ → Kh1 → Rxh2+ → Kxh2 → Qh4#

♜♞♝♜♚
♛♟♟♟
♟♟
♟♟♕
♝♙
♘♗♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1671 · solved 2,154 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qe7

Solution: Bxh7+ → Kxh7 → Qh5+ → Kg8 → Ng5 → Qxg5 → Qxg5

♜♚
♛♟♟♟
♟
♟♝♘
♙♞♕
♙♙
♗♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1674 · solved 2,479 times · Mate in 4.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qg4

Solution: Bh2+ → Kh1 → Nxf2+ → Rxf2 → Re1+ → Rf1 → Rxf1#

♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♘♙♟
♙
♙♛
♙♙♙♔
♖♖
White to move · rating 1797 · solved 2,175 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qf3

Solution: Nf6+ → Kh8 → Rxh7#

♜♞♚
♟♟♜♟♟
♝
♟
♙♕
♙♗♔♙♙♙
♛♘♖
White to move · rating 1823 · solved 4,651 times · Mate in 5.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxa1

Solution: Qc8+ → Be8 → Qxe8+ → Rf8 → Bb3+ → c4 → Bxc4+ → Kh8 → Qxf8#

♜♜♚
♞♟♟♟
♝♘♟
♟♙♕
♟♛
♖
♙♗♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1841 · solved 2,800 times · Mate in 4.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: a4

Solution: Ne7+ → Kh8 → Qxh7+ → Kxh7 → Rh3+ → Qh4 → Rxh4#

♜♜
♟♟♚♟
♝
♕
♘♙♛
♙♙♞♙♙
♗♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1893 · solved 2,746 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rce1

Solution: Qxh2+ → Kxh2 → Rh8+ → Qh5 → Rxh5#

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

Kingside attack puzzles by difficulty

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