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Kingside attack Puzzles: Foundation Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 898 · solved 176,533,112 times

Difficulty 600–1199

These are kingside attack puzzles rated 600–1199, the Foundation level on this site. They come from real rated games: 271,173 puzzles, median rating 898, solved 176,533,112 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 foundation level: the numbers

There are 271,173 kingside attack puzzles at foundation level, solved 176,533,112 times in total. The median rating is 898.

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 229,864Checkmate · 225,988Mate in 1 · 137,398Mate in 2 · 80,715Opening tactics · 22,535Discovered attack · 20,661Endgame tactics · 18,774Sacrifice · 16,337

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 19,840French Defence · 9,458Queen's Pawn Game · 9,453Italian Game · 7,557Caro–Kann Defence · 7,266Scandinavian Defense · 6,551Queen's Gambit Declined · 5,958English Opening · 4,691

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 foundation level (0.7% of all 271,173).

51.2% need 1 solver move, 43.3% need 2 solver moves, 5.2% need 3 solver moves. Median rating: 760 for the shortest solutions, 1071 for the longest.

66.5% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 76.8% and gives check in 98.8%; 84.5% end in checkmate, 18.6% involve a sacrifice, 52.7% have White to move.

76.8%first move captures
98.8%first move gives check
84.5%end in checkmate
18.6%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
51.2% · median rating 760
2 solver moves
43.3% · median rating 974
3 solver moves
5.2% · median rating 1071

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
66.5%
Key move by a rook
15.8%
Key move by a knight
10.4%
Key move by a bishop
6.8%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: pawn
49.6%
Most valuable capture: rook
21.2%
Most valuable capture: queen
11.5%
Captures nothing along the line
7.4%
Most valuable capture: knight
5.2%
Most valuable capture: bishop
5.1%

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)
16.2%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
50.1%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
10.8%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
17.4%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
5.4%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
10.2%
21–27 pieces
75.8%
13–20 pieces
14%
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 (29.3%), g7 (20.1%), e8 (11.9%), f6 (7.7%), f8 (5.3%).

3.711.95.38
1.35.220.129.37
17.73.24.26
11.25
4
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 755 · solved 15,492 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qe1

Solution: Qxh2#

♜♝♛♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♞♟♟♕
♟
♙♙♗
♙♔♘♙♙
♖♖
White to move · rating 920 · solved 8,046 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: fxg6

Solution: Qxh7#

♜♚
♟♟
♟♝♝
♘♟
♗♛
♙♕♙
♙♜♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 934 · solved 10,895 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: g3

Solution: Qxh2#

♜♞♝♜♚
♟♟♟
♟♟♟
♟♙♟
♝♙♙♘♛
♕♙
♙♙♔♗
♖♗
White to move · rating 961 · solved 15,589 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: O-O

Solution: Nf6+ → Qxf6 → exf6

♝♜♚
♟♟
♟♟♟
♙♘
♙♙♞
♙♕
♛♙♘
♖♔
Black to move · rating 973 · solved 8,941 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qe3

Solution: Qxg2#

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♞♛
♘
♙♙♕♗
♔♙♙♙
♝♗♖
White to move · rating 982 · solved 4,375 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nc6

Solution: Qxh7#

♚
♟♟♛♟
♟♞♟
♟
♙♗♗
♙♝♙♕♙
♜♙♙♔
♖
White to move · rating 986 · solved 4,385 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bd3

Solution: Bd5+ → Qxd5 → Qxd5+

♜♛♜♚
♟♟♟♝
♟♟♟
♞♘♘
♙
♙♕
♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1072 · solved 10,014 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nf5

Solution: Nf6+ → Bxf6 → Qh7#

♜♝♚
♙♟♟
♞♟
♟♘
♙
♙♕♗
♙♖♛♙♙
♔
Black to move · rating 1082 · solved 4,681 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rc2

Solution: Qe1+ → Qf1 → Qxf1#

♜♛♚♞♜
♕♟♟♟
♘
♟
♙
♝♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1101 · solved 5,086 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxc7

Solution: Qg5+ → Kh1 → Be4+ → f3 → Bxf3#

♜♜
♟♟♚
♟♟♟
♙♟
♙♟
♛
♙♙♕♘
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1121 · solved 13,071 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rg1

Solution: Qh4+ → Nh3 → Qxh3+

♞♜♚
♟♝♟
♟♟
♟♙♝♘
♟♟♛
♕♗
♜♗♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1128 · solved 10,303 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh8

Solution: Nf7+ → Rxf7 → Qxf7

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

Advanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping level