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Kingside attack Puzzles from the Scandinavian Defense

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1037 · solved 12,292,018 times

Opening: Scandinavian Defense

These kingside attack puzzles were set in games that began as the Scandinavian Defense: 10,021 puzzles, median rating 1037, solved 12,292,018 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 kingside attack puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

kingside attack puzzles from Scandinavian Defense games: the numbers

There are 10,021 kingside attack puzzles from Scandinavian Defense games, solved 12,292,018 times in total. The median rating is 1037.

How hard are they?

Foundation
6,551 · 65.4%
Developing
1,749 · 17.5%
Challenging
993 · 9.9%
Advanced
728 · 7.3%

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 8,019Checkmate · 7,240Mate in 1 · 4,788Mate in 2 · 2,106Opening tactics · 1,936Discovered attack · 1,023Sacrifice · 1,012Attraction · 475Pin · 446

Which openings produce them?

Scandinavian Defense · 10,021

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical kingside attack solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 kingside attack puzzles from Scandinavian Defense games (20% of all 10,021).

47.8% need 1 solver move, 35.7% need 2 solver moves, 13.3% need 3 solver moves, 2.4% need 4 solver moves, 0.8% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 771 for the shortest solutions, 2306 for the longest.

61.6% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 79.8% and gives check in 92.7%; 72% end in checkmate, 23.5% involve a sacrifice, 31% have White to move.

79.8%first move captures
92.7%first move gives check
72%end in checkmate
23.5%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
47.8% · median rating 771
2 solver moves
35.7% · median rating 1153
3 solver moves
13.3% · median rating 1718
4 solver moves
2.4% · median rating 2114
5+ solver moves
0.8% · median rating 2306

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
61.6%
Key move by a knight
16.8%
Key move by a bishop
14.6%
Key move by a rook
6%
Key move by a pawn
0.9%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: pawn
52.4%
Most valuable capture: queen
14.6%
Most valuable capture: knight
12.9%
Most valuable capture: rook
10.2%
Captures nothing along the line
5.8%
Most valuable capture: bishop
4.2%

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)
17.4%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
53.2%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
11.4%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
14.6%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
3.3%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
18.2%
21–27 pieces
80%
13–20 pieces
1.8%
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 (42.7%), g7 (14.7%), f6 (11.3%), f7 (5.8%), e8 (4.6%).

1.64.61.68
1.75.814.742.77
1.411.33.53.36
1.51.55
4
3
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♜♝♛♜♚
♟♟♝♟♟♟
♟
♟♕
♗
♙
♙♗♙♙♙♙♙
♔♖♖
White to move · rating 654 · solved 1,382 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: cxd5

Solution: Qxg7#

♜♝♛♜♚
♟♟♟♞♟
♝♟♞♟
♘
♙
♘♗♕♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 926 · solved 1,736 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh8

Solution: Nxf7#

♝♜
♟♟♚♟♟♟♟
♙♕
♙♙♘♛♙♙♙
♖♗♜♖♔
Black to move · rating 1124 · solved 2,883 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxe4

Solution: Rxf1+ → Nxf1 → Qxe4

♚♜♝♜
♟♛♟♟♟
♗♗♟
♞♞
♙♘♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 1200 · solved 1,887 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxf3

Solution: Nxf3+ → gxf3 → Qh2#

♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♝
♟♘
♘♛
♙♗♗♞
♙♙♙
♖♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 1222 · solved 1,883 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxd5

Solution: Ne2+ → Nxe2 → Qxh2#

♜♚♞♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♞♝♟♛
♘♕
♙♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♖♘♔
Black to move · rating 1331 · solved 1,480 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ne4

Solution: Rxh2#

♜♚♜
♘♛♟♟
♟♟
♟♟
♞♞
♙♘♙
♙♙♕♗♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1368 · solved 1,565 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxb7

Solution: Nxf3+ → gxf3 → Qh2#

♚♜♜
♟♟♛♟♟
♟♞♟♟
♝♘♙
♙♙
♙♙♗♙♙
♖♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 1620 · solved 815 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: c3

Solution: Rxh2+ → Kxh2 → Qh4#

♜♜♚
♞♛♟♟
♟♝♟
♟♟♗♙♕
♟♟
♙♙♖
♙♙♙♙
♖♗♔
White to move · rating 1727 · solved 1,618 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: exf4

Solution: Qxh7+ → Kxh7 → Rh3#

♚♜♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♞♝♟
♙♟
♙♛
♘♗♙
♙♙♕♗
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1731 · solved 852 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: hxg3

Solution: Qxg3#

♜♜♚
♟♗♟♟♟♟
♛
♞
♙♙♕
♙♝
♗♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 2005 · solved 381 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxb7

Solution: Bxg2 → Bxg2 → Nf3+ → Kh1 → Nxd4

♜♜♞♚
♟♝♟♟
♛♟♟♝
♟♞♘♗♕
♙♙
♙♗
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 2159 · solved 674 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxf6

Solution: Bxh7+ → Nxh7 → Qf7+ → Kh8 → Ng6#

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 Scandinavian Defense

Middlegame tacticsCheckmateOpening tacticsForkMate in 2Discovered attackPinSacrifice

Same theme, other levels

Kingside attack puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelChallenging levelFoundation levelDeveloping level