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Checkmate Puzzles from the Queen's Pawn Game

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 901 · solved 28,104,163 times

Opening: Queen's Pawn Game

These checkmate puzzles were set in games that began as the Queen's Pawn Game: 27,803 puzzles, median rating 901, solved 28,104,163 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 checkmate puzzles Print a worksheet About the Queen's Pawn Game

By the numbers

checkmate puzzles from Queen's Pawn Game games: the numbers

There are 27,803 checkmate puzzles from Queen's Pawn Game games, solved 28,104,163 times in total. The median rating is 901.

How hard are they?

Foundation
22,283 · 80.1%
Developing
3,929 · 14.1%
Challenging
1,282 · 4.6%
Advanced
309 · 1.1%

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 22,443Mate in 1 · 20,914Kingside attack · 10,304Mate in 2 · 5,608Opening tactics · 4,939Attacks on f2 / f7 · 1,513Queenside attack · 1,488Sacrifice · 1,427Mate in 3 · 1,018Hanging piece · 727

Which openings produce them?

Queen's Pawn Game · 27,803

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical checkmate solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 checkmate puzzles from Queen's Pawn Game games (7.2% of all 27,803).

74.6% need 1 solver move, 20.6% need 2 solver moves, 3.4% need 3 solver moves, 0.9% need 4 solver moves. Median rating: 826 for the shortest solutions, 1730 for the longest.

75.8% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 49.5% and gives check in 100%; 100% end in checkmate, 7.2% involve a sacrifice, 63.6% have White to move.

49.5%first move captures
100%first move gives check
100%end in checkmate
7.2%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
74.6% · median rating 826
2 solver moves
20.6% · median rating 1112
3 solver moves
3.4% · median rating 1457
4 solver moves
0.9% · median rating 1730

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
75.8%
Key move by a knight
10.2%
Key move by a rook
6.7%
Key move by a bishop
6.6%
Key move by a pawn
0.6%

What does the solver win?

Captures nothing along the line
42.4%
Most valuable capture: pawn
42.2%
Most valuable capture: rook
5.8%
Most valuable capture: knight
4.7%
Most valuable capture: bishop
2.8%
Most valuable capture: queen
2.1%

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)
48%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
41.1%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
5.6%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
3.8%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
1.5%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
28%
21–27 pieces
68.8%
13–20 pieces
3.1%
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 (31.9%), f7 (11.9%), g7 (8.9%), g6 (5.6%), h5 (4.5%).

11.44.22.31.33.28
12.41.91.911.98.931.97
11.21.82.22.75.61.76
4.55
4
3
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♜♚♜
♟♟♛♝♟♟
♟♞♟
♟
♙♙♗
♙♙
♘♙♙♙
♖♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 629 · solved 3,531 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: c4

Solution: Qxh2#

♚♜♝♞♜
♟♟♛♟♟
♝♟
♙♟♟
♞♙
♘♙♗
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♕♔♘♖
White to move · rating 804 · solved 2,937 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nb4

Solution: Ra8#

♜♚
♟♟♘♟♟
♟♞
♟♟
♙
♕♙♖
♛♜♘♙♙
♔
White to move · rating 1196 · solved 3,913 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxc2

Solution: Nxf6+ → gxf6 → Qh7#

♚♝♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♜
♕♝
♙♙
♙♘♙♙♙
♔♖♗♖
Black to move · rating 1280 · solved 3,910 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: bxc3

Solution: Ba3#

♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♞♝♜
♟♗
♙
♘♛
♙♙♙
♖♕♖♗♔
Black to move · rating 1321 · solved 3,686 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bg5

Solution: Rxg5+ → Nxg5 → Qh2#

♚♜♝♜
♟♟♝♟♟
♟♟♟
♘
♞♗♙
♙
♙♙♙♗
♖♛♖♔
White to move · rating 1356 · solved 4,018 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxe1

Solution: Nb6#

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♛♞♟
♟♙♘♕
♙♞♗♝
♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1454 · solved 5,116 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxe3

Solution: Qf6+ → Kg8 → Qg7#

♜♛♕
♟♝♟♞♝♚♟
♟♟
♟♙♙
♜
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1718 · solved 2,385 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kf7

Solution: g6+ → Kxg6 → Qh5#

♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♘♙♟
♙
♙♛
♙♙♙♔
♖♖
White to move · rating 1797 · solved 2,175 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qf3

Solution: Nf6+ → Kh8 → Rxh7#

♜♞♚
♟♟♜♟♟
♝
♟
♙♕
♙♗♔♙♙♙
♛♘♖
White to move · rating 1823 · solved 4,651 times · Mate in 5.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxa1

Solution: Qc8+ → Be8 → Qxe8+ → Rf8 → Bb3+ → c4 → Bxc4+ → Kh8 → Qxf8#

♜♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♟
♛
♞
♕♘
♙♙♙♖♙♙♙♙
♔♗♖
Black to move · rating 2090 · solved 466 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rd2

Solution: Nf3+ → exf3 → Qxd2#

♜♞♛♚♜
♝♟♝
♟
♞♟♗♟
♟♟♘
♗♕
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 2237 · solved 504 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: fxe5

Solution: Nd6+ → Bxd6 → Bg6#

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 Queen's Pawn Game

Middlegame tacticsOpening tacticsKingside attackFork

Same theme, other levels

Checkmate puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping levelFoundation level