Day 544: Castling to safety
Target rating: 1304
Lesson of the day
Castling to safety: the only escape from the attack is to castle — one move whisks the king to g1 or c1 and brings the rook into play as a bonus. In Chess960 this leap can cross half the board, which is exactly why it slips out of sight. Whenever your king is under pressure, ask first: can I still castle? The typical blunder is throwing that right away with a careless king or rook move.
Warm-up
1. Winning blow: king to g6Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
2. Winning blow: king to g1 (h1·5)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
3. Winning blow: king to d1 (e1·15)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
4. Winning blow: king to e1 (e2·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
5. Winning blow: king to g1 (h1·6)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
6. Winning blow: king to g1 (f1·22)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
7. Winning blow: king to c3 (b4·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
8. Winning blow: king to b3 (a2·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
9. Attack on the uncastled king: pawn to b3 (b2·6)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
10. Winning blow: king to b1 (a2·6)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
Core set
11. Castling-960 to the rescue on f1 (e1·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
12. Castling-960 to the rescue on a8 (b8·2)Analysis
Black to move — find the best continuation
13. Castling-960 to the rescue on c8 (d8·3)Analysis
Black to move — find the best continuation
14. Castling-960 to the rescue on h8 (d8)Analysis
Black to move — find the best continuation
15. Castling-960 to the rescue on h8 (e8)Analysis
Black to move — find the best continuation
16. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to c7 (b8)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
17. Winning blow: bishop to d4 (f6·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
18. Mate in 2: queen to f7 (h7·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
19. Winning blow: queen to g4 (h5)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
20. Attack on the uncastled king: queen to b6 (e3·2)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
21. Attack on the uncastled king: knight to d5 (e3·18)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
22. Mate in 2: queen to h7 (f5)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
23. Mate in 2: rook to b8 (b7·3)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
24. Attack on the uncastled king: knight to e6 (d4·31)Analysis
White to move — find the best continuation
25. Mate in 2: queen to f3 (h3)Analysis
Black to move — find the best continuation
Challenge
Review
Day complete — every puzzle solved. See you tomorrow!
Day 545 →