| Sharpen up your mental reflexes
with these basic yet juicy tactical tests.
1) It doesn’t look like much
is going on. Is Black doing as well as he thinks
he is?
WHITE TO MOVE
No, Black is actually losing!
In fact, White has two ways to gut his poor
opponent: 5.Nxe5!
Be6 (and not 5...Bxd1
6.Bxf7 mate!) 6.Bxe6
fxe6 7.Nf3 and White
is a pawn up for nothing. The other solution
is: 5.Bxf7+!
Kxf7 6.Ng5+ Kg8 7.Qxg4 with
an extra pawn and an attack.
Both these solutions are based on two key points:
Black’s Bishop on g4 is undefended (undefended pieces are the
cause of the vast majority of tactical ills!) and the f7-square is
vulnerable to a double attack by White’s c4-Bishop and f3-Knight..
2) It looks like Black can safely
win White’s d-pawn by 1…Bxf3 2.Bxf3
Qxd4. Is this true?
BLACK TO MOVE
The d-pawn is poison: 1…Bxf3?
2.Bxf3 Qxd4?? 3.Bxc6+ destroying
the Black Queen’s protection with check!
After 3…bxc6
4.Qxd4 Black must
resign.
Guess what? Like problem one, we see a case of one side dying due to an undefended
piece (after 3.Bxc6+).
3) A well-known position in the
Queen’s Gambit Declined. Though good moves
like 5.Nf3 and 5.e3 suggest themselves, is 5.cxd5
an even better option?
WHITE TO MOVE
This old trap occurs after 1.d4
d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Nbd7.
Here, 5.cxd5
exd5 6.Nxd5 (winning
a pawn thanks to the fact that the f6-Knight
is pinned) is VERY tempting! Unfortunately,
Black wins by force after 6…Nxd5!
7.Bxd8 Bb4+ 8.Qd2 (agony,
but White’s has no choice!) 8…Bxd2+
9.Kxd2 Kxd8 and Black
is up a piece. This trick has claimed many
victims over the years, and it will claim many
more in the years to come.
4) Black just offered his opponent
a draw. Should White take it?
WHITE TO MOVE
No, White can force a win
by taking advantage of Black’s weakened
back rank and overworked Queen: 1.Qxb5!
Qc8 (Taking White’s
Queen on b5 allows 2.Rd8+ with mate to follow.) 2.Qxc5!,
1-0. Black’s
world comes crashing down since 2…Qxc5
3.Rd8+ once again forces mate.
5) You are White and your opponent
is looking pretty confident. What can you do
to change his grin into a frown?
WHITE TO MOVE
The position undergoes a
drastic transformation after 1.Qxd5! (Lame
is 1.Qa4? Nc6 when the b5-Knight must retreat
back to a3.) 1…Qxd5 (and
not 1…axb5 2.Qxe5+ followed by 3.Qxh8) 2.Nc7+
Kf8 3.Nxd5 with an
extra pawn for White.
6) This looks VERY bad for Black.
White’s about to promote his h-pawn and
there doesn’t seem to be any way for Black
to stop this without accepting a catastrophic
loss of material. Should Black resign?
BLACK TO MOVE
Black can force a draw by 1...Rxh7+!! (1...Rg8??
2.Ne6+ is lights out, though even 2.hxg8=Q+
Kxg8 3.Kg4 Kg7 4.Kf5 is an easy win) 2.gxh7 (Also
drawn is 2.Nxh7+ Kg7 3.Nf8 [the only way to
stop Black from eating the final pawn] 3…Kxf8
4.Kg4 Kg7 5.Kg5 Kg8 6.Kf6 Kf8 7.g7+ Kg8 8.Kg6
stalemate) 2...Kg7
3.Kh4 Kh8 4.Kh5 Kg7 and
White can’t make any progress since Black
will just shuffle his King back and forth between
h8 and g7. White’s problem: if he ever
defends his h7-pawn with his King a stalemate
will result, while any Knight move allows …Kxh7.
7) White is up a pawn but his f3-Knight
is under attack. How can White deal with this
threat, and does Black have enough compensation
for the sacrificed material?
WHITE TO MOVE
White is in serious trouble
and must give up his Knight by 1.e4 gxf3 2.Qxf3,
though Black would possess a clear advantage.
Why should the first player give away a piece
in this manner? Because 1.Ng1?? (1.Nd4
runs into the same problem) allows Black to
force mate by 1…Qh4+
2.g3 Qxg3+! (Okay,
2…Bxg3+ is also good, but why not finish
in a flashy manner?) 3.hxg3
Bxg3 mate.
8) Is 1.Be3 a good move for White
in this position?
WHITE TO MOVE
It certainly looks good. White develops a piece and attacks c5 all at the same
time. However, looks don’t count for much in chess, and this “attractive” developing
move actually loses the game to a nasty pawn fork: 1.Be3??
d5 2.exd5 exd5 3.Bb3 d4 and the prom queen suddenly
turns out to be an ugly duckling!
9) White is down a zillion pieces
and he only has two attacking units left. Since
there is no mate, does this also mean that there
is no hope?
WHITE TO MOVE
White’s Rook turns
into Pac-man via the use of a windmill, which
is one of the most desirable motifs in chess: 1.Rxg7+
Kh8 2.Rxf7+ Kg8 (Black’s
moves are easy to find!) 3.Rg7+
Kh8 4.Rxd7+ Kg8 5.Rg7+ Kh8 6.Rxc7+ Kg8 7.Rg7+
Kh8 8.Rxb7+ Kg8 9.Rg7+ Kh8 10.Rxa7+ Kg8 11.Rxa8 and
the massacre has been completed.
10) Black is hopelessly behind
in material and his own King isn’t safe.
Does he have a much-needed knockout, or will
White’s extra wood and attacking chances
win the day?
BLACK TO MOVE
Black has a forced mate: 1...Qh3 (The
only way. The apparently strong 1...Rh6 fails
to 2.b6! [threatening both 3.Qe8 mate and 3.bxa7
followed by a8=Q] 2…Qh5 3.h4 when Black
loses. One line: 3…a6 4.bxc7 Qg4 5.Qe8+
Kxc7 6.Qe7+ Kb8 7.Kh2) 2.Rg1
Qxh2+! (Just in time,
or White would consolidate with Nf1) 3.Kxh2
Rh6 mate. This mixed
attack against g2 and h2 is an important pattern!
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