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Discovered attack Puzzles from the French Defence

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1361 · solved 17,172,960 times

Opening: French Defence

These discovered attack puzzles were set in games that began as the French Defence: 6,708 puzzles, median rating 1361, solved 17,172,960 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 the solutions are built.

All discovered attack puzzles Print a worksheet About the French Defence

By the numbers

discovered attack puzzles from French Defence games: the numbers

There are 6,708 discovered attack puzzles from French Defence games, solved 17,172,960 times in total. The median rating is 1361.

How hard are they?

Foundation
2,385 · 35.6%
Developing
2,053 · 30.6%
Challenging
1,380 · 20.6%
Advanced
890 · 13.3%

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 5,265Kingside attack · 2,032Opening tactics · 1,407Discovered check · 1,010Sacrifice · 546Checkmate · 470Mate in 2 · 316Fork · 292

Which openings produce them?

French Defence · 6,708

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical discovered attack solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 discovered attack puzzles from French Defence games (29.8% of all 6,708).

0.7% need 1 solver move, 70.6% need 2 solver moves, 22.6% need 3 solver moves, 4.2% need 4 solver moves, 1.9% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 1692 for the shortest solutions, 2385 for the longest.

43.8% open with a bishop move. The first move captures in 59% and gives check in 71.6%; 8.1% end in checkmate, 52.5% involve a sacrifice, 64% have White to move.

59%first move captures
71.6%first move gives check
8.1%end in checkmate
52.5%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
0.7% · median rating 1692
2 solver moves
70.6% · median rating 1233
3 solver moves
22.6% · median rating 1738
4 solver moves
4.2% · median rating 2060
5+ solver moves
1.9% · median rating 2385

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a bishop
43.8%
Key move by a knight
37.7%
Key move by a pawn
8.5%
Key move by a rook
4.8%
Key move by a queen
4.7%
Key move by the king
0.6%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
57.1%
Most valuable capture: knight
12.8%
Most valuable capture: bishop
11%
Most valuable capture: rook
10.9%
Most valuable capture: pawn
7%
Captures nothing along the line
1.2%

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)
8.4%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
11%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
26%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
43.2%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
11.4%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
17.2%
21–27 pieces
80%
13–20 pieces
2.8%
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: h7 (25.7%), f6 (12.3%), c6 (4.9%), e6 (4.7%), b5 (4%).

1.18
1.51.33.91.325.77
4.93.74.712.33.71.66
43.92.61.13.65
12.62.21.14
3
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♞♟♟
♟♟♟
♟♙
♙
♙♘♙♙
♙♛♗♕♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1006 · solved 1,907 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxb2

Solution: Bh7+ → Kxh7 → Qxb2

♜♚
♟♟♛♟♟
♗♜♞♟
♟♕
♟♙
♙
♙♙♘♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1068 · solved 1,729 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxd6

Solution: Rxe1+ → Rxe1 → Qxf5

♜♞♝♛♚
♟♟♟♟♜♟
♟
♙♟♘
♙♕
♙♗
♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1153 · solved 1,664 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rg7

Solution: Nxf7+ → Rxf7 → Qxd8+

♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♞♟
♟
♙
♙♗♛♙
♙♙♘♜♙
♖♗♕♔
Black to move · rating 1284 · solved 1,125 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qe1

Solution: Rxg2+ → Bxg2 → Qxe1+

♜♝♚♜
♟♟♟♟
♞♟
♛♟♙♞
♙♙♟
♙♘
♙♕♗♙♙
♖♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1291 · solved 2,605 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd2

Solution: Ng3+ → hxg3 → hxg3+ → Nh2 → Rxh2#

♜♝♛♚♝♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♟♗
♞
♘
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♔♖
White to move · rating 1295 · solved 2,307 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nb4

Solution: Bxf7+ → Kxf7 → Qxd8

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♟♞♝♟♞
♟
♘♙
♙♙♛♗♕
♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
White to move · rating 1336 · solved 1,860 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxc3

Solution: Bxh7+ → Kxh7 → Qxc3

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♟♟♛♝
♖
♙♝
♙♕♘
♙♗♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1653 · solved 560 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd3

Solution: Qxc5 → dxc5 → Rxd3

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♛♟♟♟
♝
♗♕♞
♘
♙♗♙
♙♙♙
♖♔♖
Black to move · rating 1677 · solved 517 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bb5

Solution: Bb4+ → axb4 → Qxd5

♜♛♜
♟♟♞♟♟♚
♟♞
♟♗
♙♝
♙♙♘
♙♙♙♙
♖♕♖♔
White to move · rating 1746 · solved 1,047 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kxh7

Solution: Bxe7 → Nxe7 → Ng5+ → Kh8 → Qxg4

♜♞♛♜
♟♟♟♝♝♟♚
♟
♟♙♙
♗
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♔♖
White to move · rating 2257 · solved 363 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kg7

Solution: Bh6+ → Kxh6 → hxg6+ → Bh4 → g3

♜♞♜
♟♛♟
♝♟♘♟♟♚
♞♙♘
♟♙
♙♙♕♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 2261 · solved 401 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: f6

Solution: Nxe6+ → Kh7 → Nxf8+

Positions and move sequences come from real rated games (CC0 data). Engine evaluations, where shown, are stored evaluations of the position (CC0).

Same opening, other tactics

More puzzles from the French Defence

Middlegame tacticsCheckmateOpening tacticsKingside attackForkSacrifice

Same theme, other levels

Discovered attack puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelFoundation levelChallenging levelDeveloping level