Daily Chess Puzzle #23: Pillsbury's mate, Discovered attack, Hanging piece and Skewer

Four puzzles, four patterns: the pillsbury’s mate, the discovered attack, the hanging piece and the skewer. Each position below comes from a real game in the open Lichess database and is engine-verified. Set the position up, give yourself the same few seconds the video does, and only then read the solution. Best for players rated about 700 to 2600.

Puzzle 1: Pillsbury’s mate (beginner, rated 718)

White to play. Black has just played rook to d8. It looks safe. It is not. The king is running out of squares. Can you find the winning check?

Play it on Lichess before reading on: lichess.org/training/02dPT. It was rated 718 in the Lichess database we took it from; ratings there shift a little as people solve it.

Solution

1. Qxd8+ — White: Queen takes on d8, check.
2. Bxd8 — Black: Bishop takes on d8.
3. Rxd8# — White: Rook takes on d8, checkmate.

Queen takes on d8, check. We give up the queen for a rook. So Black has just one move: bishop takes on d8. And now, rook takes on d8, checkmate.

The pattern. Pillsbury’s mate: a rook on the open g-file and a bishop on the long diagonal aim at the castled king together. Open the file, and the bishop does the rest.

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Puzzle 2: Discovered attack (intermediate, rated 1374)

Black to play. White has just played bishop to e7. And the white bishop on e7 has nothing defending it. Notice the white king on g1 and the white queen on d3, close together. Can you find the move that creates a threat your opponent cannot meet?

Play it on Lichess before reading on: lichess.org/training/02BpP. It was rated 1374 in the Lichess database we took it from; ratings there shift a little as people solve it.

Solution

1. Nc5 — Black: Knight to c5.
2. Qb1 — White: Queen to b1.
3. Qxe7 — Black: Queen takes on e7.

Knight to c5. The knight steps aside, and our queen on b7 now looks straight at the white bishop on e7. White defends with queen to b1. And now, queen takes on e7. That wins the bishop.

The pattern. A discovered attack. One move creates two threats: the piece that moves attacks something, and the piece it uncovers attacks something else.

Puzzle 3: Hanging piece (advanced, rated 2051)

White to play. Black has just played queen takes on f1. It wins a rook, or so it seems. And the black rook on h5 has nothing defending it. Which capture wins material?

Play it on Lichess before reading on: lichess.org/training/03WmP. It was rated 2051 in the Lichess database we took it from; ratings there shift a little as people solve it.

Solution

1. Rxh5 — White: Rook takes on h5.
2. Qh1+ — Black: Queen to h1, check.
3. Qh2 — White: Queen to h2.
4. Qxh2+ — Black: Queen takes on h2, check.
5. Kxh2 — White: King takes on h2.

Rook takes on h5. That wins the rook. Black tries queen to h1, check. Now, queen to h2. Black takes. Queen takes on h2, check. King takes on h2. That wins the queen.

The pattern. A hanging piece: undefended, and free to take. If you were tempted by rook takes on d5, Black answers rook takes on d5 and the chance is gone.

Puzzle 4: Skewer (master, rated 2533)

Black to play. White has just played king to e1. Notice the white king on e1 and the white queen on f1, close together. Can you find the skewer?

Play it on Lichess before reading on: lichess.org/training/08aqk. It was rated 2533 in the Lichess database we took it from; ratings there shift a little as people solve it.

Solution

1. Rh1 — Black: Rook to h1.
2. Qxh1 — White: Queen takes on h1.
3. Qb1+ — Black: Queen to b1, check.
4. Kd2 — White: King to d2.
5. Qxh1 — Black: Queen takes on h1.

Rook to h1. We offer the rook. White accepts. Queen takes on h1. Now, queen to b1, check. The king cannot go to d1, because our queen on b1 controls that square. The king must move. King to d2. Queen takes on h1. That wins the queen.

The pattern. A skewer. If you were tempted by queen to b1, check, White answers king to d2 and the chance is gone.

One puzzle at a time

Each puzzle is also a one-minute Short if you want to try one on the phone:

• Mate in 2. You have 3 seconds.
• A real 10-minute game: the discovered attack
• Rated 2051: the hanging piece
• Skewer that 2500s miss

Sources and disclosure

Puzzles 02dPT, 02BpP, 03WmP, 08aqk from the Lichess open puzzle database (CC0). New puzzles every day on the RankUp Chess channel and on our videos page.