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Pillsbury's mate Puzzles: Developing Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1374 · solved 43,835,644 times

Difficulty 1200–1599

These are pillsbury's mate puzzles rated 1200–1599, the Developing level on this site. They come from real rated games: 12,226 puzzles, median rating 1374, solved 43,835,644 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 pillsbury's mate puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

pillsbury's mate puzzles at developing level: the numbers

There are 12,226 pillsbury's mate puzzles at developing level, solved 43,835,644 times in total. The median rating is 1374.

Often combined with

Checkmate · 12,226Middlegame tactics · 6,731Mate in 2 · 6,483Endgame tactics · 5,368Sacrifice · 3,959Mate in 1 · 3,082Kingside attack · 2,634Mate in 3 · 2,489Attraction · 2,117Discovered check · 1,118

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 187Italian Game · 93Scandinavian Defense · 90French Defence · 86Caro–Kann Defence · 72Ruy Lopez · 60Scotch Game · 51Queen's Pawn Game · 49

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical pillsbury's mate solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 pillsbury's mate puzzles at developing level (16.4% of all 12,226).

24.4% need 1 solver move, 53.1% need 2 solver moves, 21.2% need 3 solver moves, 1.3% need 4 solver moves. Median rating: 1365 for the shortest solutions, 1400 for the longest.

45.2% open with a rook move. The first move captures in 39.2% and gives check in 99.6%; 100% end in checkmate, 37.8% involve a sacrifice, 51.6% have White to move.

39.2%first move captures
99.6%first move gives check
100%end in checkmate
37.8%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
24.4% · median rating 1365
2 solver moves
53.1% · median rating 1387
3 solver moves
21.2% · median rating 1386
4 solver moves
1.3% · median rating 1400

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a rook
45.2%
Key move by a queen
27.7%
Key move by a bishop
17.7%
Key move by a knight
6.7%
Key move by a pawn
2.4%

What does the solver win?

Captures nothing along the line
34%
Most valuable capture: rook
25.1%
Most valuable capture: pawn
17.4%
Most valuable capture: queen
9.6%
Most valuable capture: bishop
8%
Most valuable capture: knight
5.9%

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)
62.1%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
13.2%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
9.1%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
12.2%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
3.4%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
1.2%
21–27 pieces
29.4%
13–20 pieces
62.1%
12 pieces or fewer
7.2%

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 (14.9%), h6 (8.9%), e8 (6.6%), f8 (6.6%), d8 (5.2%).

21.43.95.26.66.61.62.38
1.61.31.31.55.11.514.97
1.81.12.32.74.38.96
1.11.91.75
1.11.24
3
2
2.31
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

The most-solved pillsbury's mate puzzles, from each difficulty level. Play each one on the board, then open the answer for the full line.

♖♟♟
♟♚
♟♞♘♝
♔♙
♗♙
♙♙♜
Black to move · rating 1229 · solved 4,691 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ke4

Solution: Rd4#

♜
♟♟♘♚
♟♟
♜
♙
♙♙♙♝♙♔
♖♖
Black to move · rating 1270 · solved 3,111 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxf7

Solution: Rh5#

♚♜
♖
♟♙♝
♗♟
♟
♙♙♝
♙
♔
White to move · rating 1280 · solved 3,563 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxh6

Solution: Rf7#

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟♖
♝♛
♘
♕
♙♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1295 · solved 3,006 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ng5

Solution: Qe2+ → Kg1 → Qe1+ → Rxe1 → Rxe1#

♜
♚♟♕♟
♟♟
♖
♙
♝♙
♛♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1362 · solved 4,105 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qe7

Solution: Qxf1+ → Kxf1 → Ra1+ → Rc1 → Rxc1#

♛
♜♟♚
♗
♟♙♟♙
♙♟♙♞
♙
♖
♔
White to move · rating 1365 · solved 3,721 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxa7

Solution: Rh2+ → Nh3+ → Rxh3+ → Kg6 → Rh6#

♜♚
♟♖♟♟
♕
♛
♙♙♙♝
♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1382 · solved 3,251 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd5

Solution: Qxe3+ → Kh1 → Qe1+ → Rxe1 → Rxe1#

♟♟
♟♝♟
♟
♙♚
♙♗♔
♜♙
♖
White to move · rating 1388 · solved 5,018 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxb2

Solution: Rh1+ → Bh2 → Rxh2#

♜
♟♟
♟♚♟
♟♘
♝♙♙♖
♙♙
♙♙
♔
Black to move · rating 1413 · solved 3,258 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kc1

Solution: Ba3+ → Kb1 → Rd1#

♜♚
♝♖
♙♕
♟♟
♙♜♞♙
♙♙
♙
♔
Black to move · rating 1433 · solved 5,604 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxh6

Solution: Rd1+ → Kf2 → Bc5+ → Kg3 → Rg1#

♚
♟♟♟
♜
♝
♙
♙♗♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1440 · solved 3,116 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kf1

Solution: Bd3+ → Ke1 → Rg1#

♜♚
♟♟
♗♟
♙♟
♕♘
♖♙♝
♙♛♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1469 · solved 3,424 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rae1

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

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

Pillsbury's mate puzzles by difficulty

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