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Middlegame tactics Puzzles: Foundation Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 958 · solved 674,715,444 times

Difficulty 600–1199

These are middlegame tactics puzzles rated 600–1199, the Foundation level on this site. They come from real rated games: 897,919 puzzles, median rating 958, solved 674,715,444 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 middlegame tactics puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

middlegame tactics puzzles at foundation level: the numbers

There are 897,919 middlegame tactics puzzles at foundation level, solved 674,715,444 times in total. The median rating is 958.

Often combined with

Checkmate · 598,082Mate in 1 · 382,840Kingside attack · 229,864Mate in 2 · 186,087Fork · 110,457Discovered attack · 49,111Back-rank mate · 48,709Hanging piece · 42,751

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 54,344Queen's Pawn Game · 25,533French Defence · 23,892Caro–Kann Defence · 22,274Italian Game · 21,195Scandinavian Defense · 17,310Queen's Gambit Declined · 15,070English Opening · 11,580

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical middlegame tactics solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 middlegame tactics puzzles at foundation level (0.2% of all 897,919).

42.8% need 1 solver move, 49.7% need 2 solver moves, 7.3% need 3 solver moves. Median rating: 857 for the shortest solutions, 1071 for the longest.

52.6% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 52% and gives check in 88.2%; 68.2% end in checkmate, 16.9% involve a sacrifice, 53.1% have White to move.

52%first move captures
88.2%first move gives check
68.2%end in checkmate
16.9%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
42.8% · median rating 857
2 solver moves
49.7% · median rating 1011
3 solver moves
7.3% · median rating 1071

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
52.6%
Key move by a rook
19%
Key move by a knight
17.1%
Key move by a bishop
9.6%
Key move by a pawn
1.4%

What does the solver win?

Captures nothing along the line
24.3%
Most valuable capture: rook
22.4%
Most valuable capture: pawn
21.6%
Most valuable capture: queen
21%
Most valuable capture: knight
5.4%
Most valuable capture: bishop
5.3%

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)
31.2%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
23.2%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
14%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
21.2%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
10.4%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
6.6%
21–27 pieces
64.2%
13–20 pieces
29.2%
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%), f7 (9.7%), g7 (8.9%), e8 (8.4%), f6 (5.2%).

1.31.85.18.44.312.28
1.41.61.449.78.9137
1.21.61.95.23.72.56
1.41.41.21.51.55
1.14
3
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♜♜♚
♟♛♟
♝♞♘♖♟
♙♕
♙
♙
♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 882 · solved 15,899 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd6

Solution: Qxf2+ → Kh1 → Qf1+ → Rxf1 → Rxf1#

♜♝♛♜♞♚
♟♟♟♞
♟♟♙♕
♝♟
♗♙
♘♙♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 891 · solved 15,756 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ng8

Solution: Qg7#

♜♞♝♜♚
♟♟♟
♟♟♟
♟♙♟
♝♙♙♘♛
♕♙
♙♙♔♗
♖♗
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

♜♜
♟♟♛♟♚♞
♟
♟♙♟♟
♙
♙♖
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♕♔
White to move · rating 966 · solved 15,731 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: gxf5

Solution: Qh6+ → Kh8 → Qxh7#

♜♚
♟
♟♟♘♙
♙♙
♟♕♙
♙♞♛
♙♗
♔♖
Black to move · rating 1020 · solved 15,509 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxc4

Solution: Nd2+ → Ka2 → Nxc4

♜♞♛♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♟♟
♘♝
♕♙♙
♞♙
♙♙♗♙♙
♖♘♔♗♖
Black to move · rating 1022 · solved 15,901 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxb4

Solution: Nc2+ → Ke2 → Nxb4

♜♞♛♜
♟♝♝♞♟♟♚
♟♘
♙♟♙
♕
♙♘
♗♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1026 · solved 16,148 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh7

Solution: Qxg7#

♜♚
♟♖♜♛♟♟
♟♕♟♞
♙♟
♙
♗♙
♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1033 · solved 16,200 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd6

Solution: Rxb7 → Rxb7 → Qxb7

♖♟♚
♝
♟♙♟
♙♙
♙♝
♙♗
♛♘♔♕
Black to move · rating 1071 · solved 15,777 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxg1

Solution: Qd2#

♚♟♝
♛♜♗♟♟
♟♙♙♙
♟♙♜♙
♙♖♕♔
♖
Black to move · rating 1100 · solved 15,652 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxe6+

Solution: Rxe6 → Rxe6 → Qxe6

♜♜♚
♟♟
♝♟♟♙
♛
♙♞♘
♘
♕♙♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1132 · solved 18,090 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxd5

Solution: Nf6+ → Kf7 → Nfxd5

♜♞♝♛♜
♚♗♟
♟♝♞♟
♟♟
♟
♕
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♘♔♗♖
White to move · rating 1178 · solved 17,356 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxd6

Solution: Qe3+ → Bc5 → Qxc5+ → Kb7 → Qb6#

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

Middlegame tactics puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping level