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Pin Puzzles from the Scandinavian Defense

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1563 · solved 8,591,917 times

Opening: Scandinavian Defense

These pin puzzles were set in games that began as the Scandinavian Defense: 3,527 puzzles, median rating 1563, solved 8,591,917 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.

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By the numbers

pin puzzles from Scandinavian Defense games: the numbers

There are 3,527 pin puzzles from Scandinavian Defense games, solved 8,591,917 times in total. The median rating is 1563.

How hard are they?

Foundation
825 · 23.4%
Developing
1,040 · 29.5%
Challenging
894 · 25.3%
Advanced
768 · 21.8%

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 2,650Opening tactics · 838Checkmate · 686Kingside attack · 446Mate in 1 · 382Sacrifice · 381Mate in 2 · 245

Which openings produce them?

Scandinavian Defense · 3,527

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical pin solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 pin puzzles from Scandinavian Defense games (56.7% of all 3,527).

11.2% need 1 solver move, 54.3% need 2 solver moves, 26.4% need 3 solver moves, 5.7% need 4 solver moves, 2.3% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 1234 for the shortest solutions, 2490 for the longest.

31.6% open with a bishop move. The first move captures in 39.4% and gives check in 44.7%; 20.4% end in checkmate, 29.6% involve a sacrifice, 53.2% have White to move.

39.4%first move captures
44.7%first move gives check
20.4%end in checkmate
29.6%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
11.2% · median rating 1234
2 solver moves
54.3% · median rating 1417
3 solver moves
26.4% · median rating 1868
4 solver moves
5.7% · median rating 2217
5+ solver moves
2.3% · median rating 2490

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a bishop
31.6%
Key move by a knight
25.9%
Key move by a queen
22.1%
Key move by a rook
15.9%
Key move by a pawn
3.8%
Key move by the king
0.6%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
45.4%
Captures nothing along the line
13.3%
Most valuable capture: pawn
13.1%
Most valuable capture: knight
10.6%
Most valuable capture: rook
9.4%
Most valuable capture: bishop
8.2%

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)
24.2%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
14.8%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
20.1%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
22.8%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
18.2%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
21.2%
21–27 pieces
73.6%
13–20 pieces
5.2%
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: b5 (9.2%), f6 (8.7%), d6 (6.2%), g4 (5.7%), e6 (4.6%).

22.48
1.21.24.417
1.43.26.24.68.73.94.16
9.214.23.43.72.31.75
12.41.12.11.15.74
1.42.13
2
2.31
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♚♜♜
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♛
♝
♙♙♗
♙♘♙
♖♕♔♖
Black to move · rating 1003 · solved 1,064 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: bxc3

Solution: Bxc3+ → Kf1 → Bxa1

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♟♟♞
♟♟
♝♙♕♙
♘♖
♙♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 1150 · solved 1,042 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rg3

Solution: Bc5 → Rxg7+ → Kh8 → Qxc5 → bxc5

♜♞♝♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♛
♝♟
♙♗
♙♙♙♙
♖♕♔♗♘♖
White to move · rating 1160 · solved 1,265 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxc5

Solution: Bb5 → Bd7 → Bxc6

♚♝♜
♖♜♛♟♟♟♟
♟♞
♙
♕
♙
♙♙♙
♗♔♖
White to move · rating 1222 · solved 2,077 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxc7

Solution: Rb8+ → Rc8 → Rxc8#

♚♝♞♜
♟♟♛♟♟♟♟
♗
♘
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1297 · solved 1,437 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxc7

Solution: Rd8#

♚♜
♝♛♟♟
♟♟
♟
♙♝♗
♘♙♙♙
♙♙♙
♖♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 1488 · solved 1,218 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxg4

Solution: Qxg3#

♚♝♜
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♞
♛
♗
♙♜♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1568 · solved 1,240 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd4

Solution: Bc6+ → Nd7 → Rb8#

♜♞♚♝♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♟♞
♖♘♛
♘♟
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♔
White to move · rating 1604 · solved 1,537 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: gxh3

Solution: Nd6+ → Kd7 → Rxg5

♜♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♟♞
♛
♞♙♝
♙♙♘
♙♕♗♙♙♙
♖♘♔♖
Black to move · rating 1604 · solved 1,519 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd2

Solution: Nc2+ → Kd1 → Qxd2+

♜♚
♟♟♝♟♟♟
♛
♟
♞♙♕
♙
♙♗♔♙♙♙
♖♗♘♖
Black to move · rating 1688 · solved 1,312 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kxd2

Solution: Qxf2+ → Ne2 → Rd8+ → Bd4 → Rxd4+ → Qxd4 → exd4

♜♜♚
♟♗♟♟♟♟
♛
♞
♙♙♕
♙♝
♗♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
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

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♞
♝♖
♗♗♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♔
Black to move · rating 2080 · solved 374 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxd4

Solution: Rxd4+ → Bxd4 → Rd8 → Ke2 → Rxd4

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 tacticsKingside attackForkMate in 2Discovered attackSacrifice

Same theme, other levels

Pin puzzles by difficulty

Foundation levelAdvanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping level