ChessPuzzlePrint Free chess puzzles, tools and printables

Real positions. Quiet practice.

Queenside attack Puzzles: Challenging Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1782 · solved 42,647,567 times

Difficulty 1600–1999

These are queenside attack puzzles rated 1600–1999, the Challenging level on this site. They come from real rated games: 15,667 puzzles, median rating 1782, solved 42,647,567 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 queenside attack puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

queenside attack puzzles at challenging level: the numbers

There are 15,667 queenside attack puzzles at challenging level, solved 42,647,567 times in total. The median rating is 1782.

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 13,294Checkmate · 5,557Sacrifice · 4,050Mate in 2 · 3,340Endgame tactics · 2,074Pin · 2,051Attraction · 2,010Discovered attack · 1,819Deflection · 1,699

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 550Scandinavian Defense · 412Caro–Kann Defence · 203Queen's Pawn Game · 197French Defence · 175Scotch Game · 138Italian Game · 103Queen's Gambit Declined · 103

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical queenside attack solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 queenside attack puzzles at challenging level (12.8% of all 15,667).

1.6% need 1 solver move, 46.8% need 2 solver moves, 41.2% need 3 solver moves, 8.8% need 4 solver moves, 1.6% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 1683 for the shortest solutions, 1849 for the longest.

36.8% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 50.4% and gives check in 82%; 36.6% end in checkmate, 45.4% involve a sacrifice, 47.2% have White to move.

50.4%first move captures
82%first move gives check
36.6%end in checkmate
45.4%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
1.6% · median rating 1683
2 solver moves
46.8% · median rating 1766
3 solver moves
41.2% · median rating 1804
4 solver moves
8.8% · median rating 1817
5+ solver moves
1.6% · median rating 1849

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
36.8%
Key move by a rook
28.4%
Key move by a knight
17.2%
Key move by a bishop
12.5%
Key move by a pawn
4.8%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
26.8%
Most valuable capture: pawn
24.8%
Most valuable capture: rook
20.1%
Captures nothing along the line
10.4%
Most valuable capture: bishop
9.8%
Most valuable capture: knight
8.2%

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)
37.6%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
20.6%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
16.4%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
18.4%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
7%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
3.2%
21–27 pieces
57.7%
13–20 pieces
39%
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: c6 (11.4%), b7 (8.9%), a8 (8.7%), a6 (8.5%), c7 (7.9%).

8.72.72.84.53.98
6.18.97.941.87
8.56.711.44.42.26
1.11.31.81.12.35
4
3
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♝♚♜
♟♟♟
♙♞
♘♘♟
♟
♜♛
♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1618 · solved 1,386 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxe3

Solution: Rxg8+ → Nd8 → axb7#

♚♜
♟♟♞♕♟♟
♖
♘
♙♛
♙♙♜♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1626 · solved 2,472 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kc8

Solution: Qe8+ → Rxe8 → Rxe8#

♗♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♟
♛♙♝♙
♗♙
♙♙
♔♖♕♖
Black to move · rating 1655 · solved 1,420 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bd3

Solution: Qa3+ → Kd2 → Qxd3+

♚♜♜
♟♟♞♟♟♟
♟♗♟
♙
♙♛
♞♗♕
♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1725 · solved 1,365 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd4

Solution: Qxc6+ → bxc6 → Ba6#

♚♝♜♝♜
♟♛
♟♞♟
♟♙♟
♙
♘♗♙
♘♕♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1768 · solved 1,452 times · Mate in 5.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ng6

Solution: Qxa6+ → bxa6 → Rb8+ → Ka7 → Nb5+ → axb5 → axb5+ → Ba6 → Rxa6#

♚♜♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♝♟
♗♛♕♙
♙
♝♖♙♙
♗♔
White to move · rating 1768 · solved 1,307 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd4

Solution: Rxc6+ → bxc6 → Ba6+ → Kd7 → Qxf7#

♚♜♜
♟♟♞♝♟♟
♟♝♟♟
♙
♙♙♗
♛♗♕
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1786 · solved 1,575 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxc3

Solution: Qxc6+ → bxc6 → Ba6#

♚♜♞
♟♟♞♟
♝♟♗♝♛
♙
♕♟
♘
♙♙♙♙
♔♖♗
White to move · rating 1789 · solved 1,339 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: O-O-O

Solution: Qxc6+ → bxc6 → Ba6#

♚♜♜
♟♟♞♟♟
♟♟♟
♗♕♗
♙♛♙♙
♙♙♙
♖♝♔
White to move · rating 1853 · solved 1,717 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qc3

Solution: Qxc6+ → bxc6 → Ba6#

♜♜♚
♛♞♝♟♟
♟♝
♟♟♟♘♙
♙
♙♗
♙♙♘♙
♔♕♖♖
Black to move · rating 1865 · solved 1,903 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: h5

Solution: Qxc3+ → bxc3 → Ba3#

♚♜♜
♟♟♞♟♟
♟♟
♝♞
♕♗♗♛♙
♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♔♖♖
White to move · rating 1960 · solved 1,556 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qg4

Solution: Qxc6+ → bxc6 → Ba6#

♚♜♝♜
♟♟♟
♛♞♟
♝♟
♘
♙♗♙
♙♙♘♕♙
♔♖♖
Black to move · rating 1965 · solved 1,832 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd4

Solution: Qxc3+ → bxc3 → Ba3#

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

Queenside attack puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelFoundation levelDeveloping level