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Promotion Puzzles: Advanced Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 2280 · solved 39,992,081 times

Difficulty 2000+

These are promotion puzzles rated 2000+, the Advanced level on this site. They come from real rated games: 33,531 puzzles, median rating 2280, solved 39,992,081 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 promotion puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

promotion puzzles at advanced level: the numbers

There are 33,531 promotion puzzles at advanced level, solved 39,992,081 times in total. The median rating is 2280.

Often combined with

Advanced pawn · 33,525Endgame tactics · 30,718Quiet move · 6,842Rook endgame tactics · 5,321Defensive move · 5,028Pawn endgame tactics · 4,602Sacrifice · 4,040Exposed king · 3,677Deflection · 3,136

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 33Italian Game · 26King's Gambit · 19Scandinavian Defense · 14French Defence · 14Scotch Game · 13Caro–Kann Defence · 12Pirc Defence · 9

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical promotion solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 promotion puzzles at advanced level (6% of all 33,531).

8.2% need 2 solver moves, 29.6% need 3 solver moves, 25.2% need 4 solver moves, 37% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 2171 for the shortest solutions, 2380 for the longest.

49.6% open with a pawn move. The first move captures in 22.3% and gives check in 24%; 1.4% end in checkmate, 24.2% involve a sacrifice, 52.7% have White to move.

22.3%first move captures
24%first move gives check
1.4%end in checkmate
24.2%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

2 solver moves
8.2% · median rating 2171
3 solver moves
29.6% · median rating 2223
4 solver moves
25.2% · median rating 2261
5+ solver moves
37% · median rating 2380

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a pawn
49.6%
Key move by a rook
17.2%
Key move by the king
16.8%
Key move by a queen
6.6%
Key move by a bishop
5.6%
Key move by a knight
4.2%

What does the solver win?

Captures nothing along the line
39.6%
Most valuable capture: rook
21.4%
Most valuable capture: pawn
17%
Most valuable capture: queen
11.7%
Most valuable capture: bishop
6.4%
Most valuable capture: knight
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)
78.7%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
10.5%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
5.4%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
4.2%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
1.2%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
0.2%
21–27 pieces
3.1%
13–20 pieces
34.1%
12 pieces or fewer
62.6%

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: d7 (3.7%), e7 (3.7%), e6 (3.6%), f6 (3.5%), d6 (3.3%).

2.82.22.52.42.62.21.41.68
2.933.13.73.73.232.67
2.32.72.53.33.63.52.92.36
11.722.42.222.11.75
1.21.31.71.114
13
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♟♕
♔
♙
♙
♜♚♟
Black to move · rating 2002 · solved 817 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qh7+

Solution: Kc1 → Qxf7 → Rb2+ → Ka7 → d1=Q

♔♙
♚♖
♟
♜♙
Black to move · rating 2002 · solved 497 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rg4+

Solution: Re4 → h6 → c2 → Rxe4+ → Kxe4 → h7 → c1=Q+

♙
♝♚
♟♖♔
Black to move · rating 2012 · solved 609 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rb3

Solution: Bd6+ → Kg4 → a2 → Rb2 → a1=Q

♟♚
♟♟
♙♔♖♜♙
White to move · rating 2026 · solved 571 times · 8 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rg4

Solution: Rxg4 → hxg4 → h5 → g3 → Ke3 → g2 → Kf2 → a5 → h6 → g1=Q+ → Kxg1 → axb4 → h7 → b3 → h8=Q

♚
♟♟♟♝♟
♙♔♟
♙
♞
♙
♙
White to move · rating 2028 · solved 521 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ne4

Solution: dxc7 → Nxc5+ → Kd5 → Bf8 → c8=Q

♛
♖♙
♔
♚♙
White to move · rating 2032 · solved 491 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kb4

Solution: Rb8 → Qe6+ → Ka7+ → Kc4 → c8=Q+ → Qxc8 → Rxc8+

♟♚♟♟
♟♟♙
♟
♜♔♖
♙♙♙
White to move · rating 2088 · solved 504 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ra3+

Solution: Kb2 → Rxf3 → fxg7 → Rxf2 → g8=Q

♟♙♔
♖
♟
♙♟
♚
♜
White to move · rating 2116 · solved 488 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rd1+

Solution: Rd6 → Rc1 → Rc6 → Rxc6 → Kxc6 → h3 → c8=Q

♟
♟♚
♙♟♜
♙♕♞♙
♗♟♔
Black to move · rating 2136 · solved 618 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh2

Solution: Rf1 → Bxf1 → gxf1=Q → Qxf1 → Nxf1+

♕♚
♜♟
♟
♙
♟♔
Black to move · rating 2151 · solved 674 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qc7+

Solution: Rd7 → Qe5+ → Kf7 → Qh8 → d1=Q

♟
♟♟
♟
♚
♙♟♙♙
♔♙
♖
Black to move · rating 2179 · solved 604 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kf2

Solution: d2 → Rxc5 → d1=Q

♜♝♚
♟♘♜
♗♟♞
♙♙♟♟
♙♙♟♞
♙♛♙
♖♟
♖♕♘♗♔
Black to move · rating 2205 · solved 613 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bf1

Solution: Qh2+ → Kxh2 → g1=Q#

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

Promotion puzzles by difficulty

Foundation levelChallenging levelDeveloping level