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Middlegame tactics Puzzles from the Queen's Pawn Game

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1299 · solved 107,069,467 times

Opening: Queen's Pawn Game

These middlegame tactics puzzles were set in games that began as the Queen's Pawn Game: 57,730 puzzles, median rating 1299, solved 107,069,467 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 middlegame tactics puzzles Print a worksheet About the Queen's Pawn Game

By the numbers

middlegame tactics puzzles from Queen's Pawn Game games: the numbers

There are 57,730 middlegame tactics puzzles from Queen's Pawn Game games, solved 107,069,467 times in total. The median rating is 1299.

How hard are they?

Foundation
25,533 · 44.2%
Developing
13,872 · 24%
Challenging
10,924 · 18.9%
Advanced
7,401 · 12.8%

Often combined with

Checkmate · 22,443Mate in 1 · 16,702Kingside attack · 12,167Fork · 6,950Mate in 2 · 4,645Discovered attack · 4,027Sacrifice · 3,450Pin · 3,044

Which openings produce them?

Queen's Pawn Game · 57,730

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical middlegame tactics solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 middlegame tactics puzzles from Queen's Pawn Game games (3.5% of all 57,730).

28.4% need 1 solver move, 49.8% need 2 solver moves, 17.8% need 3 solver moves, 3.1% need 4 solver moves, 0.8% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 840 for the shortest solutions, 2436 for the longest.

46.4% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 52.1% and gives check in 61%; 39.2% end in checkmate, 19.4% involve a sacrifice, 56.6% have White to move.

52.1%first move captures
61%first move gives check
39.2%end in checkmate
19.4%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
28.4% · median rating 840
2 solver moves
49.8% · median rating 1357
3 solver moves
17.8% · median rating 1741
4 solver moves
3.1% · median rating 2086
5+ solver moves
0.8% · median rating 2436

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
46.4%
Key move by a knight
19%
Key move by a bishop
15.8%
Key move by a rook
9.7%
Key move by a pawn
7.4%
Key move by the king
1.6%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
28.3%
Most valuable capture: pawn
21.4%
Captures nothing along the line
17.7%
Most valuable capture: knight
11.6%
Most valuable capture: rook
11.1%
Most valuable capture: bishop
9.9%

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)
25%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
23.4%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
25.8%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
17.8%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
8%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
20%
21–27 pieces
78.4%
13–20 pieces
1.6%
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 (15.5%), f7 (5.1%), g7 (4.8%), f6 (4.7%), g6 (3.8%).

1.12.11.51.68
1.41.62.125.14.815.57
32.52.74.73.81.56
3.422.81.92.43.55
1.81.21.31.52.71.11.34
1.11.23
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

The most-solved middlegame tactics 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 976 · solved 2,717 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qb4

Solution: Qxd7#

♜♚
♟♟♘♟♟
♟♞
♟♟
♙
♕♙♖
♛♜♘♙♙
♔
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 1361 · solved 4,266 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: c6

Solution: Bb4 → Qxb4 → Nc2+ → Ke2 → Nxb4

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♟♟
♛
♙♕♘♝
♙♙
♙♙♗♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1404 · solved 4,172 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd5

Solution: Nf6+ → gxf6 → Bxd5

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

Opponent's last move: Bxe3

Solution: Qf6+ → Kg8 → Qg7#

♜♚♝♜
♟♛♟♟
♟♝♟
♟
♘
♙♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♕♔♗♖
Black to move · rating 1494 · solved 6,006 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd4

Solution: Bb4+ → c3 → Bxc3+ → bxc3 → Qxc3+ → Qd2 → Qxa1+

♜♝♛♜
♟♟♟♟♚
♞♟
♝
♙♙
♟
♙♙♙
♖♗♕♔♖
White to move · rating 1608 · solved 1,397 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxg5

Solution: hxg5+ → Kg8 → Qh5

♜♛♕
♟♝♟♞♝♚♟
♟♟
♟♙♙
♜
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
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 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

CheckmateOpening tacticsKingside attackFork

Same theme, other levels

Middlegame tactics puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelFoundation levelChallenging levelDeveloping level