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Opening tactics Puzzles: Foundation Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 947 · solved 100,236,487 times

Difficulty 600–1199

These are opening tactics puzzles rated 600–1199, the Foundation level on this site. They come from real rated games: 120,764 puzzles, median rating 947, solved 100,236,487 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

opening tactics puzzles at foundation level: the numbers

There are 120,764 opening tactics puzzles at foundation level, solved 100,236,487 times in total. The median rating is 947.

Often combined with

Checkmate · 79,289Mate in 1 · 69,860Kingside attack · 22,535Fork · 15,994Attacks on f2 / f7 · 15,111Mate in 2 · 8,774Discovered attack · 6,355Hanging piece · 4,799Pin · 4,211

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 16,596Caro–Kann Defence · 7,147French Defence · 6,653Queen's Pawn Game · 6,420Italian Game · 6,386Scandinavian Defense · 5,527Queen's Gambit Declined · 3,809English Opening · 3,628

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical opening tactics solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 opening tactics puzzles at foundation level (1.7% of all 120,764).

59.3% need 1 solver move, 38% need 2 solver moves, 2.6% need 3 solver moves. Median rating: 854 for the shortest solutions, 1060 for the longest.

60.4% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 52.9% and gives check in 88.8%; 66.9% end in checkmate, 8% involve a sacrifice, 54.9% have White to move.

52.9%first move captures
88.8%first move gives check
66.9%end in checkmate
8%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
59.3% · median rating 854
2 solver moves
38% · median rating 1044
3 solver moves
2.6% · median rating 1060

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
60.4%
Key move by a knight
19.3%
Key move by a bishop
16.3%
Key move by a rook
2%
Key move by a pawn
1.2%
Key move by the king
0.6%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: pawn
30.6%
Captures nothing along the line
29.6%
Most valuable capture: queen
15.5%
Most valuable capture: knight
10%
Most valuable capture: bishop
9.6%
Most valuable capture: rook
4.7%

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)
31.4%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
31.8%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
20.6%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
8.6%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
7.6%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
56.2%
21–27 pieces
43.8%
13–20 pieces
0%
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: f7 (23%), h7 (14%), f6 (6.3%), h5 (4.8%), a4 (4%).

1.141.518
2.511.7234147
2.73.636.33.616
32.61.61.24.85
41.214
3
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♚♜♝♞♜
♟♟♛♟♟
♝♟
♙♟♟
♞♙
♘♙♗
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♕♔♘♖
White to move · rating 804 · solved 2,937 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nb4

Solution: Ra8#

♞♛♜♚
♜♝♞♝♟♟
♙
♟♟♕
♟♙
♗♙
♙♙♙♘
♖♘♔♗
White to move · rating 978 · solved 2,822 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kxh8

Solution: Qh5+ → Kg8 → Qh7#

♜♞♛♜♚
♟♟♝♟
♟♝♟
♗♟♘
♙
♙
♙♙♕♙♙
♖♗♖♔
White to move · rating 1012 · solved 2,385 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh8

Solution: Qh7#

♜♝♕♝♜
♟♟♞♚♟
♟♞♟
♟
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♘♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1083 · solved 2,869 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: f4

Solution: Bc5+ → Kh1 → Rxd8

♜♛♜♚
♟♟♟♟♗♟
♟♞♟
♞
♙
♘♙♙
♙♙♙♕♙
♖♔♗♖
Black to move · rating 1086 · solved 2,712 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxg7

Solution: Nxf3+ → Ke2 → Nxd2

♜♝♝♞♜
♟♟♘♚♟♟
♞♟
♟
♗
♗
♙♙♙♙♙
♔♖♘♖
White to move · rating 1097 · solved 2,617 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rb8

Solution: Bc5#

♜♝♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♝♙
♛♟♗♕
♞
♙♙♙♙
♖♘♖♔
White to move · rating 1111 · solved 2,682 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Be6

Solution: f7+ → Bxf7 → Qxf7#

♜♛♜♚
♟♝♝♟♟
♟♟♟
♘
♙♘♞
♙♕
♙♙♙♙
♗♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1140 · solved 2,551 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxf4

Solution: Nf6+ → gxf6 → Qh7#

♜♞♛♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♝♟
♘♝
♙♞
♙♙
♙♙♗♙♙
♖♘♗♕♔♖
Black to move · rating 1167 · solved 3,763 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: f3

Solution: Qh4+ → g3 → Nxg3

♜♚♝♞♜
♟♟♟♝♛♟♟
♟
♙♞
♟
♕♙♗♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♘♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1174 · solved 3,434 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qb3

Solution: Nxf3+ → gxf3 → Qxe1+

♜♚♞♜
♟♝♟♟♟
♟♞♙♛♟
♟♕♘
♗
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
White to move · rating 1175 · solved 2,978 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Re8

Solution: Nxd7#

♜♞♛♜
♟♟♟♝♚♟
♝♞♟
♟
♙
♕♙♙♘
♙♙♙♙
♖♘♗♔♖
White to move · rating 1177 · solved 2,871 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Be6

Solution: Nxe5+ → Kg8 → Qxe6+

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

Opening tactics puzzles by difficulty

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