Chess hobby eBooks: 21 checkmate puzzles

Oliver James Dyar

Copyright 2012 Oliver James Dyar. All rights reserved.

Published by Chess hobby eBooks, Torquay, United Kingdom

Chess ebook Kickstarter UK campaign: http://bit.ly/chessebook

Puzzle 1

Black to move
Solution 1

1 …Bxf2+ 2. Ke2 Qxf3+ 3. Kxf3 Nd4++ (3. gxf3 Nd4++)

Here black traps the white king on e2, and then needs a single check to win the game. Black is able to
create this check with the knight on d4 by getting rid of the only defender of d4, the white knight on f3.
Puzzle 2

Black to move
Solution 2

1 …Qxf4+ 2. gxf4 Be3++

White’s king is in a bad position with only one escape square, d2. White has two pieces capable of
checking the king whilst also attacking d2, so preventing the king’s escape. Black gets rid of the
bishop defending d2, and then is free to mate.
Hello!
Thank you for downloading this eBook, I hope you enjoyed the first two puzzles! A few points:

1. The puzzles are in no particular order

2. This book is for hobby chess players with a rough ELO rating of 900-1700

3. If I use the word ‘his’ it is purely for consistency, no gender connotations implied

4. The puzzles in this book are all original compositions, therefore…

5. I take full responsibility (and apologise) for any mistakes present in this book!

6. Let's crack on with some puzzles!

A quick note on notation

This book uses algebraic notation, which is pretty easy to pick up if you haven’t encountered it
before. A good guide is available here:

http://bit.ly/chessnotation
Puzzle 3

Black to move
Solution 3

1 …Bxf2+ 2. Kf1 Ne3+ 3. Bxe3 Bxh3++

Black first traps the white king on f1 and then finds ways to attack it and force mate.
Puzzle 4

Black to move
Solution 4

1 …Re1+ 2. Kh2 hxg3+ 3. Kh3 Rh1++ (or 3. fxg3 Rh8++)

White’s queen is helpless on a7 as black forces the white king into one of two nice file mates with the
two black rooks.
Puzzle 5

White to move
Solution 5

1. Ra3 d1=Q 2. Re1++

Black’s king cannot move anywhere at the start, but by moving his rook on e3 to create a check, white
would allow the black king to either move on to the ‘e’ file or the ‘3’ rank. So instead white moves
his rook to a3 to guard the ‘3’ file, so he can then move the rook on e3 to create a discovered
checkmate with the bishop on g1. If black promotes a pawn to a rook or queen, as above, then white
must move the rook from e3 to e1 to block the attack on hi bishop.
Puzzle 6

White to move
Solution 6

1. g6 hxg6 2. f6 gxf6 3. h6 g5 4. h7 g4 5. h8=Q++

The black king is trapped in the corner and all white needs to do is to create a check along the back
rank to win. The pawns on the right side of the board form a nice pattern where no matter what black
does in response to 1. g6, white is guaranteed to be able to promote a pawn. This tactic is useful even
when the black king is not on the back rank, as a way of making sure that you can get a passed pawn.
Puzzle 7

White to move
Solution 7

1. Nd7 e6 2. Rb3 Ka4 3. Ra3++

By placing his knight on d7, white prevents the black king from escaping from the ‘a’ file. All that he
needs to do next is to find a way to check the black king along the ‘a’ file, which he is able to do on
a3 with the support of the white king. He must move the white knight first, because it is under attack
from the black e7 pawn.
Puzzle 8

White to move
Solution 8

1. gxh7+ Kxh7 2. Rh5+ Kg8 3. Rh8+ Kxh8 4. Qxf8++ (3. Bh7+ Kh8 4. Qxf8++)

Black’s king is trapped behind his pawns, and can be forced into a back rank mate, if only white can
get rid of the rook on f8. By teasing the black king to the h8 square with a rook sacrifice or with his
bishop to h7, he removes the black king’s defence of the rook on f8, and can checkmate with his
queen. If 1 …Kh8 then white is able to checkmate sooner with 2. Qxf8+ Kxh7 3. Rh5++
Puzzle 9

Black to move
Solution 9

1 …Rg3 2. Rf1 Kg8++

Black starts by trapping the white king on the ‘h’ file. He is then able to discover checkmate with the
rook on h8 no matter what white does.
Puzzle 10

White to move
Solution 10

1. Bf7+ Kf8 2. Bxe8+ Kg8 3. Bf7++

Black’s king is trapped on the back rank, but white needs to find a way to remove the rook on e8, to
create a checkmate with his rook on a8; at the same time the white rook on a8 is under attack from
both the black queen and bishop. So white has two options: he can either create a double check using
the bishop and rook if the black king moves back to g8 (as above with 3. Bf7++), or if black blocks
the white check with either the queen or bishop on move two, then white can use his bishop to take the
remaining piece attacking his a8 rook: 2 …Qf4 3. Bxc6++, or 2 …Bf3 3. Bxa4++.
Puzzle 11

White to move
Solution 11

1. Ng6+ Kh7 2. Nf8+ Kh8 3. Qg6 Nxf1 4. Qh7++ (3. ...Kg8 4. Qh7++)

Black’s king is in a poor position, but white needs to bring in his knight to be able to checkmate
black. White does this by getting his knight to f8 through two checks. White then moves his queen to
g6, and mate on the next move is inevitable.
Puzzle 12

White to move
Solution 12

1. Bd4+ Kb2 2. Ne2++ (or Nxa2++)

Black’s king doesn’t have many spaces to move to, but white needs to be careful to make sure the king
isn’t able to escape to c1 via b2. So white uses his first move to discover check and to get the bishop
in the right position to attack b2, and then uses his second move to place his knight on e2 to prevent
the king’s escape to c1.
Puzzle 13

White to move
Solution 13

1. Nd2 b2 2. Nb3+ Kb1 3. Bd3++

White starts by trapping the black king on a1, which means black can only move the b3 pawn. White
is then able to use his bishop and knight together to nicely trap the black king. If white had instead
taken the pawn on b3 at the start, then the black king can escape the corner.
Puzzle 14

White to move
Solution 14

1. Bb4 d6 2. Bc3++ (1 …Kd4 Bc3++; 1 …c3 2. Rxd5++)

This is a trickier puzzle where white is able to mate quickly by forcing black to make a move that
reduces his escape possibilities.
Puzzle 15

White to move
Solution 15

1. Rh8 Kf4 2. Rh4++ (1 …f5 2. Rh4++)

White’s king and a5 rook are excellently placed such that they trap the black king. White forces mate
by getting his rook to h4, either with the protection of the white bishop (after 1 …f5) or without the
need for any protection (after 1 …Kf4).
Puzzle 16

White to move
Solution 16

1. b3 c4 2. Ra5++

White paralyses the black king and black pawn on b4 with 1. b3, forcing black to open himself up by
1 …c4 to a checkmate on file ‘5’ with the white rook.
Puzzle 17

White to move
Solution 17

1. g3 d3 2. Bd5+ Kd4 3. e3++

White restricts the movement of the black king, forcing black to open himself up to a mating attack. If
white plays 2. exd3+, the black king can escape to f3, so instead white must first check with the
bishop on d5. If 1 …f4 then 2. Bh7++
Puzzle 18

White to move
Solution 18

1. Bb6+ axb6 2. Rxa8+ Qc8 3. Qc7+ Ke8 4. Rxc8++

The white queen is in an excellent position to threaten checkmate, but white needs more pieces to
finish black off. By sacrificing his bishop on b6, white brings his rook on a1 into the action. If black
does not take the black bishop, but decides to block with 1 …Qc7, then white mates more quickly
with 2. Bxc7+ (or dxc7+) Kc8 3. Qe8++. In the main line above, white can also mate after 2 …Qc8
with 3. Rxc8+ Kxc8 4. Qe8++
Puzzle 19

White to move
Solution 19

1. Be7+ Kc8 2. Nd6+ Kb8 3. Na6++

White skilfully uses his minor pieces to trap the black king on the queenside, with the assistance of
the white rook on c4. The final position with the two knights checkmating entirely by themselves is a
nice pattern. Note that the black knight on b2 is attacking the white rook on c4, so white cannot make
any discovered checks with the rook by moving the knight on c7 on his second move after 1 …Kc8.
Puzzle 20

White to move
Solution 20

1. Rg3 Ra8+ 2. Kb3 Ra3+ 3. Kc4 Ra8 4. Bh6+ Ke8 5. Rg8++

White starts by getting his rook into a position where he has a force mate ready (black can do nothing
to stop the combination of Bh6+ followed by Rg8++). However, this allows black to desperately start
checking white in the hope of prolonging the game. To avoid this, white must carefully move his king
to the safety of c4, where he cannot be checked by black. If 2. Kb1 then black is able to create more
checks with 2 …c2+ 3. Kb2 Rb2+ 4. Kxb2 b3+. This won’t change the outcome of the game, it just
makes it longer!
Puzzle 21

White to move (mate in 10, just for fun!)

Solution 21

1. Nc7+ Kb6 2. bxa5+ Kc6 3. Bb5+ Nxb5+ 4. axb5+ Kxd6 5. Bg3+ Ke7 6. Nfd5+ Kd8 7.
e7+ Kc8 8. Nb6+ Kb8 9. Na6+ Ka7 10. Bb8++

In this puzzle white uses his minor pieces to force the black king to go on a run around his pawn on
b7, before the knights and the bishop close in for a mate. Hope you enjoyed it!
The Chess hobby eBooks project
Chess hobby eBooks is a project to make ebooks that:

1. Are targeted at hobby chess players

2. Have a great design

3. Are challenging

4. Are enjoyable

If you think that this book has done this, please let me know, and if not please suggest improvements
at talk@chesshobbyebooks.com

This book is being published to support a Kickstarter UK campaign to create a book on checkmate
patterns. I would like to acknowledge those who have already backed this project, before even seeing
this book!

Here’s a link to the Kickstarter project:

http://bit.ly/chessebook

Oliver James Dyar, November 2012

Acknowledgements
There are a few people who have helped bring this book into existence through various means. The
first are my parents, in particular my father who taught me how to play chess on a summer holiday.
The second is John Place, school chess teacher extraordinaire, whose dedication to the game has
helped many students excel at Magdalen College School. Then there’s Anna, my wife, whose every
day support and love knows no bounds. The front cover image is used with permission from
Microsoft. Finally I would like to thank Steve Eddins, who has developed a wonderful programme
for generating high quality low file size images, quite literally making this eBook possible:

http://www.eddins.net/steve/chess/chessimager
Some further recommendations
I really hope you’ve enjoyed this book, please do let me know at talk@chesshobbyebooks.com

Finally, I’d like to share some of my favourite chess books, two of which are eBooks that are
definitely worth a read if you’ve enjoyed this. I’ve also included the details for a wonderful chess
supplier based in the UK.
Chess books

Secrets of modern chess strategy, by John Watson

The improving chess player, by Dan Heisman

A Guide to Chess Improvement: The Best of Novice Nook, also by Dan Heisman

How to Beat Your Dad at Chess, by Murray Chandler

Practical Chess Exercises: 600 Lessons from Tactics to Strategy, by Ray Cheng (ebook)

100 Chess Problems for the Rest of Us, by T. E. Klemm (ebook)

A great chess supplier

Chess & Bridge, London (http://www.bit.ly/chessbridge, and listed on Amazon)

Thank you for reading, and I hope you check out other Chess hobby eBooks if you enjoyed this
one!