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Trapped piece Puzzles from the Sicilian Defence

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1630 · solved 15,057,582 times

Opening: Sicilian Defence

These trapped piece puzzles were set in games that began as the Sicilian Defence: 4,543 puzzles, median rating 1630, solved 15,057,582 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 trapped piece puzzles Print a worksheet About the Sicilian Defence

By the numbers

trapped piece puzzles from Sicilian Defence games: the numbers

There are 4,543 trapped piece puzzles from Sicilian Defence games, solved 15,057,582 times in total. The median rating is 1630.

How hard are they?

Foundation
277 · 6.1%
Developing
1,803 · 39.7%
Challenging
1,694 · 37.3%
Advanced
769 · 16.9%

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 3,390Opening tactics · 1,115Quiet move · 195Pin · 146Defensive move · 144Fork · 135Sacrifice · 111Clearance · 106

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 4,543

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical trapped piece solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 trapped piece puzzles from Sicilian Defence games (44% of all 4,543).

67.8% need 2 solver moves, 27.4% need 3 solver moves, 4.2% need 4 solver moves, 0.5% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 1560 for the shortest solutions, 2219 for the longest.

35.4% open with a bishop move. The first move captures in 17.2% and gives check in 5.8%; 0% end in checkmate, 30.1% involve a sacrifice, 60.6% have White to move.

17.2%first move captures
5.8%first move gives check
0%end in checkmate
30.1%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

2 solver moves
67.8% · median rating 1560
3 solver moves
27.4% · median rating 1800
4 solver moves
4.2% · median rating 2118
5+ solver moves
0.5% · median rating 2219

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a bishop
35.4%
Key move by a knight
20%
Key move by a rook
17%
Key move by a pawn
15.7%
Key move by a queen
10.4%
Key move by the king
1.6%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
77.1%
Most valuable capture: rook
11.6%
Most valuable capture: bishop
7%
Most valuable capture: knight
4.4%

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)
0.6%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
7.2%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
35.6%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
47.1%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
9.5%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
34.9%
21–27 pieces
63.2%
13–20 pieces
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: g5 (8.6%), a4 (6.2%), f3 (4.4%), b1 (4.1%), h5 (3.6%).

8
1.21.11.87
3.41.416
1.41.42.82.11.48.63.65
6.22.32.632.82.92.31.64
1.32.13.51.82.14.42.13
1.412.71.61.42
2.24.11.41.11.42.11
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

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

♜♚♜
♟♝♟♟
♟♝♟
♟♙
♙♟♛♙♟
♙♘♙
♙♗♙
♖♕♖♔
White to move · rating 1092 · solved 413 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxd4+

Solution: Be3 → Qxe3+ → Qxe3

♜♜♚
♕♗♝♟
♛♙♞♟
♖
♝
♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♔
Black to move · rating 1156 · solved 395 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxf7+

Solution: Rxf7 → Qxe8+ → Nxe8

♜♝♚♜
♟♛♞♟♕
♟♟♟♝♗
♙
♙♘
♗♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1182 · solved 206 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxh7

Solution: Rh8 → Qxh8+ → Bxh8

♜♜♚
♖♝♛♞♝♟
♟♟♟♟
♟
♙♘♙
♙♙
♗♙♘♙♙
♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 1281 · solved 2,214 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxa7

Solution: Rxa7 → Qxa7 → Ra8 → Qxa8+ → Bxa8

♛♚♝♜
♕♟♟♟♟
♜♟
♞
♘
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♔♖
Black to move · rating 1454 · solved 4,519 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd4

Solution: Ra6 → Qxa6 → bxa6

♜♞♜♚
♟♝♟♟
♟♟
♞♙
♙
♙♕♗
♙♙
♛♘♗♖♔
White to move · rating 1465 · solved 1,581 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxa1

Solution: Bb2 → Qxb2 → Qxb2

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♝
♞♝♟♟
♟
♘♙
♙♙♗
♙♛♘♕♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1555 · solved 2,263 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxb2

Solution: Rfb1 → Qxb1+ → Rxb1

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♟♝♟
♟
♙♞
♘♟
♛♙♗♙
♙♕♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1638 · solved 678 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: fxe4

Solution: Bc5 → Qxa4 → Qxa4

♜♞♚♜
♕♝♟
♟♝♟♛♟♟
♟♟
♙
♙♙♘♙♘
♙♙♙♙
♖♗♔♖
Black to move · rating 1643 · solved 1,209 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qb7

Solution: Ra7 → Qxa7 → Nxa7

♜♝♛♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♞♟♝♗
♘
♗♘♙
♟♕
♙♙♙♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1939 · solved 704 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh8

Solution: Nxf6 → Qxf6 → Bg5 → Qf5 → Bd3 → Nxe5 → Bxf5

♜♜♚
♟♝♟♟♟
♟♟♞
♟♛
♞♘♗
♙♗
♙♙♕♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 2072 · solved 328 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nc4

Solution: Qc1 → Qxf4 → Qxf4

♜♜♚
♟♟♟
♟♝♝♞♟
♟
♘♙♛♙
♗♗
♙♕♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 2084 · solved 415 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rfd8

Solution: Bf2 → Bg4 → Qc2 → Qxa1 → Rxa1

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 Sicilian Defence

Middlegame tacticsCheckmateMate in 1Opening tacticsKingside attackForkDiscovered attackPinMate in 2SacrificeHanging pieceAttraction

Same theme, other levels

Trapped piece puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping level