Day 521: Uncastled king
Target rating: 1272
Lesson of the day
Punishing the uncastled king: your opponent delayed castling, and now his king is stuck on its starting square under fire. In Chess960 this is deadlier than in classical chess — the king may start in the center or near the edge, and the familiar defensive setups simply do not apply. The signs: the victim still holds castling rights, and the files toward his king are half-open. Open lines before the king manages to hide.
Warm-up
1. Winning blow: queen to h6 (c1)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
2. Winning blow: rook to g1 (g3·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
3. Winning blow: bishop to c3 (d4)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
4. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to a6 (b7·8)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
5. Winning blow: queen to h3 (b3)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
6. Winning blow: pawn to f3 (f2·8)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
7. Winning blow: queen to g8 (h7·4)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
8. Winning blow: bishop to d6 (e5·5)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
9. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to d4 (g1·4)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
10. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to d4 (c4·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
Core set
11. Attack on the uncastled king: bishop to a5 (b4·3)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
12. Attack on the uncastled king: knight to d7 (b6)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
13. Attack on the uncastled king: rook to d8 (d1·24)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
14. Attack on the uncastled king: bishop to d8 (b6·4)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
15. Attack on the uncastled king: pawn to g3 (f2·21)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
16. Winning blow: bishop to e3 (d2·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
17. Winning blow: knight to b5 (d6·7)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
18. Winning blow: queen to c7 (c6·5)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
19. Mate in 2: knight to b6 (d7)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
20. Winning blow: bishop to e2 (f1·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
21. Mate in 2: queen to e8 (h5·5)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
22. Winning blow: king to d3 (c2·3)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
23. Mate in 2: rook to h4 (g4)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
24. Mate in 2: queen to f7 (g6·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
25. Mate in 2: queen to f8 (f7·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
Challenge
Review
Day complete — every puzzle solved. See you tomorrow!
Day 522 →