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Middlegame tactics Puzzles from the Vienna Game

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1349 · solved 23,508,850 times

Opening: Vienna Game

These middlegame tactics puzzles were set in games that began as the Vienna Game: 12,783 puzzles, median rating 1349, solved 23,508,850 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 Vienna Game

By the numbers

middlegame tactics puzzles from Vienna Game games: the numbers

There are 12,783 middlegame tactics puzzles from Vienna Game games, solved 23,508,850 times in total. The median rating is 1349.

How hard are they?

Foundation
5,242 · 41%
Developing
2,991 · 23.4%
Challenging
2,494 · 19.5%
Advanced
2,056 · 16.1%

Often combined with

Checkmate · 5,180Mate in 1 · 3,643Kingside attack · 2,125Fork · 1,677Mate in 2 · 1,181Pin · 1,080Sacrifice · 865Discovered attack · 827

Which openings produce them?

Vienna Game · 12,783

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 Vienna Game games (15.6% of all 12,783).

28.9% need 1 solver move, 44% need 2 solver moves, 22% need 3 solver moves, 4% need 4 solver moves, 1.2% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 909 for the shortest solutions, 2369 for the longest.

43.6% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 48% and gives check in 65.4%; 40.4% end in checkmate, 19.2% involve a sacrifice, 53.6% have White to move.

48%first move captures
65.4%first move gives check
40.4%end in checkmate
19.2%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
28.9% · median rating 909
2 solver moves
44% · median rating 1427
3 solver moves
22% · median rating 1857
4 solver moves
4% · median rating 2170
5+ solver moves
1.2% · median rating 2369

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
43.6%
Key move by a knight
18.9%
Key move by a bishop
18.3%
Key move by a rook
11.8%
Key move by a pawn
6%
Key move by the king
1.4%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
27.7%
Captures nothing along the line
20.2%
Most valuable capture: pawn
16.4%
Most valuable capture: rook
13.9%
Most valuable capture: knight
11%
Most valuable capture: bishop
10.8%

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)
28.3%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
20.1%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
24.4%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
18.4%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
8.8%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
15.8%
21–27 pieces
80%
13–20 pieces
4.2%
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: f7 (9.6%), f6 (6.8%), h7 (5.4%), g7 (5%), d5 (4.9%).

2.72.84.518
1.114.19.655.47
1.41.33.36.833.66
1.614.92.41.54.82.85
2.421.21.11.74
1.33
1.12
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.

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♛
♗
♞♞♙
♖♕
♙♙♙♙
♔♘♖
White to move · rating 957 · solved 2,246 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxd4

Solution: Qxf7+ → Kh8 → Qxe8#

♜♞♚
♟♟♜♟♟
♝♞
♘
♛♝
♕♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 987 · solved 2,723 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rxf7

Solution: Qxf7+ → Kh8 → Qf8+ → Ng8 → Nf7#

♜♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♗♕♝
♞
♙
♙♙♙♝♙♙
♖♗♔♘♖
Black to move · rating 1164 · solved 2,165 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxe5

Solution: Bc2#

♜♚♜
♟♟♛♞♘♟
♟♟
♝♘
♗♞♙
♙♙♟♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1264 · solved 2,006 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: gxh6

Solution: Nf6#

♜♚♝♕
♟♟♝♟♟
♟♟
♞♛
♙
♗♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1296 · solved 3,695 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxg5

Solution: Qxf8#

♘♝♚♜
♟♟♞♟
♞♟♟
♝♟♗
♙
♗♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔♘♖
Black to move · rating 1365 · solved 2,038 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bg5

Solution: Rf1+ → Ke2 → Rxa1

♜♛♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♟♟
♟
♙♕
♙♖
♙♙♙
♖♗♔
Black to move · rating 1590 · solved 1,956 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qg4

Solution: Qf6 → Bb2 → Qxb2

♜♞♝♛♜♚
♟♟♘♟♟
♟♟
♕♟♟
♙
♙♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♗♔♖
White to move · rating 1606 · solved 1,099 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kg8

Solution: Nh6+ → Kh8 → Qg8+ → Rxg8 → Nf7#

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♛♞
♟♘♕
♞
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
White to move · rating 1707 · solved 615 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxd4

Solution: Qxf7+ → Kh8 → Qxe8+ → Nxe8 → Nf7+ → Kg8 → Nxd6

♜♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♟♞
♗♙♛
♘♙♙♝
♙♙♙♗♙
♖♕♔
White to move · rating 1828 · solved 588 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: O-O

Solution: Bg5 → Ng3+ → Qxg3 → Qxg3 → hxg3

♜♜♚
♝♟♟♟
♛♞
♟♝♟
♙
♙♗♘
♙♙♕♙♙♙
♖♗♔♖
Black to move · rating 2111 · solved 421 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bd3

Solution: Nb4 → cxb4 → Bxb4+ → Bd2 → Rxc2

♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♟♟
♝
♗♛♘♕
♙
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♔
Black to move · rating 2209 · solved 383 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxg4

Solution: Qxf2+ → Nxf2 → Re1#

Positions and move sequences come from real rated games (CC0 data). Engine evaluations, where shown, are stored evaluations of the position (CC0).

Same theme, other levels

Middlegame tactics puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelFoundation levelChallenging levelDeveloping level