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Trapped piece Puzzles: Developing Level

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1443 · solved 82,599,038 times

Difficulty 1200–1599

These are trapped piece puzzles rated 1200–1599, the Developing level on this site. They come from real rated games: 23,119 puzzles, median rating 1443, solved 82,599,038 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

trapped piece puzzles at developing level: the numbers

There are 23,119 trapped piece puzzles at developing level, solved 82,599,038 times in total. The median rating is 1443.

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 14,214Endgame tactics · 4,795Opening tactics · 4,110Pin · 767Fork · 700Defensive move · 655Rook endgame tactics · 606Clearance · 464Advanced pawn · 399

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 1,803Queen's Pawn Game · 1,077French Defence · 980Caro–Kann Defence · 755Italian Game · 538Queen's Gambit Declined · 465English Opening · 414Ruy Lopez · 409

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 developing level (8.7% of all 23,119).

79.5% need 2 solver moves, 18.9% need 3 solver moves, 1.5% need 4 solver moves. Median rating: 1443 for the shortest solutions, 1491 for the longest.

27.8% open with a bishop move. The first move captures in 13.2% and gives check in 5.6%; 0% end in checkmate, 33% involve a sacrifice, 53.3% have White to move.

13.2%first move captures
5.6%first move gives check
0%end in checkmate
33%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

2 solver moves
79.5% · median rating 1443
3 solver moves
18.9% · median rating 1446
4 solver moves
1.5% · median rating 1491

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a bishop
27.8%
Key move by a rook
26%
Key move by a pawn
16%
Key move by a knight
15.4%
Key move by the king
7.7%
Key move by a queen
7.2%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
71.6%
Most valuable capture: rook
18.4%
Most valuable capture: bishop
6.7%
Most valuable capture: knight
3.2%

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)
0%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
7.4%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
43.8%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
40.2%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
8.5%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
25.4%
21–27 pieces
53%
13–20 pieces
18%
12 pieces or fewer
3.8%

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: g5 (9.4%), a4 (7.2%), a1 (4.8%), h5 (4.5%), f3 (3.8%).

8
1.51.97
1.66
11.21.41.529.44.55
7.21.921.41.92.63.22.94
1.62.22.41.51.53.83.11.53
1.311.82.41.21.52
4.83.11.11.313.41
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 1289 · solved 2,299 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: gxh5

Solution: Qh4+ → Bg3 → Nxg3 → hxg3 → Qxh1

♚♝♕
♟♟♟♟
♟
♟♙
♞♙
♙♙♘♔
Black to move · rating 1363 · solved 3,225 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kf3

Solution: Ng5+ → Ke2 → Nf7 → Qxg8+ → Kxg8

♜♜♚
♟♞♟♟♟
♟♞
♟♙♖
♙♙♛
♙♕♙
♙♘
♖♔
White to move · rating 1375 · solved 4,762 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nge7

Solution: Rh5 → Qxh5 → gxh5

♜♝♘♜
♚♕♟
♟♟♟♞♟
♟
♙♙
♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1380 · solved 2,322 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxd8+

Solution: Rxg7 → Nxc6 → Kxc6

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♟♟♟♞
♙♛
♙
♙
♙♕♙♙♗♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1396 · solved 2,292 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qb5

Solution: Rc5 → Qb3 → Ra3 → Qxa3 → bxa3

♟♟♟
♚♟
♛♟♟♕
♜♙
♙♙
♙♙♙
♔♖
Black to move · rating 1404 · solved 2,319 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qh5

Solution: Rxh4 → Qxh4 → gxh4

♚♜♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♞♝♟
♖
♙♗♛
♙♙♙♗♙
♖♕♔
White to move · rating 1436 · solved 2,529 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kb8

Solution: Rh5 → Qxh5 → Bxh5

♛♚♝♜
♕♟♟♟♟
♜♟
♞
♘
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♔♖
Black to move · rating 1454 · solved 4,519 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd4

Solution: Ra6 → Qxa6 → bxa6

♜♚♞♜
♟♝♝♟♟
♟♟
♛
♕
♘♗
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1475 · solved 3,370 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxe5

Solution: Bd4 → Qf5 → Qxf5 → gxf5 → Bxh8

♚♜♝♕
♟♟♛♟♟♟
♞♟
♟
♙
♙♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1541 · solved 2,468 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: c4

Solution: Bg7 → Qxh7 → Rh8 → Qxh8+ → Bxh8

♜♞♝
♟♟♟♟♚
♛♞
♟
♗♙♟
♘♙
♙♙♙♕♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1547 · solved 3,921 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qf6

Solution: Qxf6+ → Kxf6 → Nd5+ → Kg5 → Nxc7 → Nc6 → Nxa8

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♝
♞♝♟♟
♟
♘♙
♙♙♗
♙♛♘♕♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1555 · solved 2,263 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxb2

Solution: Rfb1 → Qxb1+ → Rxb1

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

Advanced levelChallenging level