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Opening tactics Puzzles from the French Defence

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1372 · solved 42,411,977 times

Opening: French Defence

These opening tactics puzzles were set in games that began as the French Defence: 17,971 puzzles, median rating 1372, solved 42,411,977 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 opening tactics puzzles Print a worksheet About the French Defence

By the numbers

opening tactics puzzles from French Defence games: the numbers

There are 17,971 opening tactics puzzles from French Defence games, solved 42,411,977 times in total. The median rating is 1372.

How hard are they?

Foundation
6,653 · 37%
Developing
5,374 · 29.9%
Challenging
3,826 · 21.3%
Advanced
2,118 · 11.8%

Often combined with

Checkmate · 5,069Mate in 1 · 3,855Kingside attack · 2,691Fork · 2,619Discovered attack · 1,407Sacrifice · 1,039Mate in 2 · 991Pin · 945

Which openings produce them?

French Defence · 17,971

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical opening tactics solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 opening tactics puzzles from French Defence games (11.1% of all 17,971).

22.2% need 1 solver move, 54.6% need 2 solver moves, 20.1% need 3 solver moves, 2.2% need 4 solver moves, 1% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 894 for the shortest solutions, 2182 for the longest.

38% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 52.3% and gives check in 58.8%; 28.6% end in checkmate, 19.6% involve a sacrifice, 60.2% have White to move.

52.3%first move captures
58.8%first move gives check
28.6%end in checkmate
19.6%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
22.2% · median rating 894
2 solver moves
54.6% · median rating 1361
3 solver moves
20.1% · median rating 1715
4 solver moves
2.2% · median rating 2141
5+ solver moves
1% · median rating 2182

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
38%
Key move by a bishop
25.6%
Key move by a knight
23.6%
Key move by a pawn
7.2%
Key move by a rook
4.2%
Key move by the king
1.4%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
26%
Most valuable capture: knight
17.9%
Most valuable capture: bishop
17.2%
Captures nothing along the line
16.1%
Most valuable capture: pawn
15.8%
Most valuable capture: rook
7%

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)
23.2%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
18.8%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
37%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
15.9%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
5%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
51.5%
21–27 pieces
48.5%
13–20 pieces
0%
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 (11.1%), f7 (9.5%), a4 (7.5%), f6 (5.9%), b5 (4.3%).

1.71.28
1.5129.52.811.17
3.93.11.95.92.46
4.31.13.13.71.61.93.95
7.51.81.33.31.311.74
1.11.13
12
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♜♝♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♛♞♟
♟♙
♘♙
♘
♙♙♙♔♝♙♙
♖♕♗♖
Black to move · rating 1012 · solved 2,056 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kd2

Solution: Qe3#

♜♞♝♛♜
♟♟♝♞♟♟
♟♟♚
♟♙♘
♙
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♖♔
White to move · rating 1085 · solved 1,620 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kg6

Solution: Qg4+ → Kh7 → Qxg7#

♜♚♝♞♜
♟♝♟♟♛♟♟♟
♟
♙♞♗
♘♘
♙♙♙♗♙♙♙
♖♕♔♖
Black to move · rating 1197 · solved 2,155 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bg5

Solution: Nxf3+ → gxf3 → Qxg5

♜♝♚♜
♟♟♟♟
♞♟
♛♟♙♞
♙♙♟
♙♘
♙♕♗♙♙
♖♗♖♔
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 1322 · solved 2,828 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: dxe4

Solution: Qa4+ → Bd7 → Qxb4

♜♝♛♜
♟♟♝♚
♟♞
♟♙♕
♙
♞
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
White to move · rating 1348 · solved 3,357 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ng6

Solution: Qh7+ → Kf8 → Bh6#

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♛♟♟
♞♟♗♟
♟♙♘♕
♙
♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1572 · solved 2,473 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxg6

Solution: fxg6 → Qxg6 → hxg5

♜♞♝♛♚♞♜
♝♟♘
♟♟♟♟
♟♙♟
♙♙
♗♙♙♘♙♙
♖♗♕♖♔
White to move · rating 1628 · solved 890 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kf8

Solution: Rxf7#

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♞♟
♞♟♙
♟♙
♛
♙
♙♙
♖♗♕♔♘♖
White to move · rating 1643 · solved 1,055 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxd4

Solution: Rh8+ → Kxh8 → Qh5+ → Kg8 → Qh7#

♜♞♝♛♜
♟♟♚♟♟
♟
♝
♟♘
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♕♔♗♖
White to move · rating 1679 · solved 1,652 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Be5

Solution: Qh5+ → Kg8 → Qxe5

♜♛♜♚
♟♟♟♟♗
♞♝
♟
♙♝
♙♘
♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 2005 · solved 401 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxh7+

Solution: Kxh7 → Ng5+ → Qxg5

♜♞♝♛♜♚
♟♟♟
♟
♟♙
♙♞♝
♘♕
♙♙♙♙♙
♔♖♗♖
White to move · rating 2127 · solved 366 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kf8

Solution: Qh6+ → Ke7 → Nxe4 → dxe4 → Qf6+

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 tacticsCheckmateKingside attackForkDiscovered attackSacrifice

Same theme, other levels

Opening tactics puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelFoundation levelChallenging levelDeveloping level