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Trapped piece Puzzles: Advanced Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 2198 · solved 24,119,409 times

Difficulty 2000+

These are trapped piece puzzles rated 2000+, the Advanced level on this site. They come from real rated games: 13,888 puzzles, median rating 2198, solved 24,119,409 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 trapped piece puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

trapped piece puzzles at advanced level: the numbers

There are 13,888 trapped piece puzzles at advanced level, solved 24,119,409 times in total. The median rating is 2198.

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 9,340Endgame tactics · 3,453Quiet move · 1,731Opening tactics · 1,095Defensive move · 996Sacrifice · 800Clearance · 581Pin · 553

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 769French Defence · 333Queen's Pawn Game · 307Caro–Kann Defence · 267Italian Game · 263Scandinavian Defense · 207English Opening · 162Ruy Lopez · 161

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical trapped piece solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 trapped piece puzzles at advanced level (14.4% of all 13,888).

30.4% need 2 solver moves, 49.8% need 3 solver moves, 14.7% need 4 solver moves, 5% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 2117 for the shortest solutions, 2486 for the longest.

24.2% open with a rook move. The first move captures in 21% and gives check in 11.4%; 0% end in checkmate, 26.4% involve a sacrifice, 49.9% have White to move.

21%first move captures
11.4%first move gives check
0%end in checkmate
26.4%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

2 solver moves
30.4% · median rating 2117
3 solver moves
49.8% · median rating 2212
4 solver moves
14.7% · median rating 2296
5+ solver moves
5% · median rating 2486

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a rook
24.2%
Key move by a bishop
20%
Key move by a pawn
16%
Key move by a knight
15.7%
Key move by a queen
15%
Key move by the king
9.1%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
63.2%
Most valuable capture: rook
19.8%
Most valuable capture: bishop
8.8%
Most valuable capture: knight
8%

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)
1.6%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
14.1%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
41.2%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
33.6%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
9.6%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
9.2%
21–27 pieces
57.2%
13–20 pieces
27%
12 pieces or fewer
6.6%

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: f3 (4.3%), g4 (3.6%), g5 (3.6%), e4 (3.4%), g3 (3.1%).

8
1.81.21.11.57
1.71.41.921.16
1.112.62.41.73.615
22.32.92.53.42.53.61.74
1.51.731.41.94.33.11.43
1.11.32.82.72.11.11.12
1.81.921.61.62.31.61.21
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♜♚♜
♕
♟♟♗
♟♞
♙♛
♙♙♙♖♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 2000 · solved 336 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxh7

Solution: Rd7 → Qxg8+ → Qxg8

♜♚♜
♟♟♝
♟
♛♟♗♗
♝♙♟♙
♕♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 2018 · solved 390 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bg5+

Solution: Rxg5 → hxg5 → Ba4 → Qxa4 → Qxa4

♚♜♜
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♞♟♝
♘♘
♙♙
♙♛
♙♙♙♕
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 2030 · solved 337 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bh6

Solution: Rh3 → Qxh3+ → Nxh3

♚♜
♟♟♟♛♝♟♕
♟♝
♙♞
♘♙♗♙
♙♙♙
♔♖♖
Black to move · rating 2042 · solved 528 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qh7

Solution: Bg5+ → Kb1 → Nf6 → Qxg8+ → Nxg8

♞♚♜♝♞♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♙♟♘
♙
♙♛
♕♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
White to move · rating 2047 · solved 342 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxd3

Solution: Qxd3 → Rxd3 → Nxf7 → Nf6 → Nxh8

♚♜♜
♟♟♟♞♛
♝♝♟
♟
♗
♙♗♘
♙♙♕♖♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 2049 · solved 555 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rae1

Solution: Bf4 → Qc2 → g5 → Bxg5 → Bxg5

♟♟♟♚♟
♖♟♟
♙
♟
♙♙♛♙
♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 2057 · solved 483 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: d5

Solution: Qc7 → Ra6 → bxa6

♚♜♜
♟♟♛♟♕
♟♟
♝♙
♘♙
♙♙♙♙♔
♖♖
Black to move · rating 2062 · solved 491 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rad1

Solution: Be5 → Rxd8+ → Kxd8 → Rd1+ → Kc8 → Qxh8+ → Bxh8

♜♜♚
♟♟♟
♟♝♝♞♟
♟
♘♙♛♙
♗♗
♙♕♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 2084 · solved 415 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rfd8

Solution: Bf2 → Bg4 → Qc2 → Qxa1 → Rxa1

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♟♛
♘♞♝
♙♝
♙♘♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 2085 · solved 351 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nf3

Solution: Bc2 → Qe2 → Rxe2

♜♚
♝♟♕♟
♟♞♟
♛♙♟
♗
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 2102 · solved 459 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxd7

Solution: Bc6 → Qxc6 → Qxc6

♚
♔♟♟♘
♙
Black to move · rating 2227 · solved 338 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kxa5

Solution: f4 → Ka4 → Kg6 → Nf6 → Kxf6

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

Trapped piece puzzles by difficulty

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