Yippee it’s Christmas and just before I settle down to my Christmas Dinner.
(this year we are having D-U-C-K) I’ll go along with what everyone else does
at Christmas. A Christmas Quiz. No. Don’t go, it’s only three chess puzzles.
Usual fare. I’ll show a puzzle and then an RHP game very similar to the puzzle.
This first one is by J. Moravec composed in 1924
All the Russian School children knows two pawns on the 6th beats a Rook.
Infact even some RHP players know this (they must have Russian blood in them)
NoFriendsPete - lord kev RHP.2014
White to play cannot prevent a pawn from Queening and resigned a few moves later.
But here in the Moravec puzzle we have two pawns not on the 6th rank but on the 7th.
Yet White to play can draw this….How?
So how does White draw this.
FEN
8/k7/2K5/8/8/8/6pp/1R6 w - - 0 1
[FEN "8/k7/2K5/8/8/8/6pp/1R6 w - - 0 1"] 1. Ra1+ Kb8 2. Rb1+ Kc8 3. Ra1 {Threatens mate and Black cannot promote with a check.} 3... Kd8 4. Kd6 Ke8 5. Ke6 Kd8 {It's no good going back the way because the White King just keeps facing up the Black King.} 6. Kd6 Ke8 7. Ke6 Kf8 8. Kf6 Kg8 {Now if 9.Kg6 g1=Q+ and Black wins. So...} 9. Ra8+ Kh7 10. Ra7+ Kh6 11. Ra8 {Again White stops Black from promoting with a mate threats.} 11... Kh5 12. Kf5 Kh4 13. Kf4 {Black cannot play 13...Kh3 14,Rh8 mate.} 13... Kh5 14. Kf5 Kh6 15. Kf6 Kh7 16. Ra7+ Kh8 17. Ra8+ Kh7 18. Ra7+ Kh6 19. Ra8 {That is a draw.} *
Some pretty nifty play there and you never know when such knowledge will come in handy.
hari1974 - michael RHP 2014
White missed a chance to use this technique to draw this game.
FEN
8/6k1/1R6/5K2/1p6/8/p7/8 w - - 0 1
[FEN "8/6k1/1R6/5K2/1p6/8/p7/8 w - - 0 1"]
1. Ra6 b3 {Looks like the pawns will beat the Rook. In the game White lost. This is the drawing line.} 2. Ra7+ Kh6 {We will have a look at what happens if the Black King goes to the 8th rank later on in this game.} 3. Kf6 {If Black now plays the obvious move. 3....b2 they get mated. 3...b2 4.Rxa2 b1=Q 5.Rh2 mate.} 3... Kh5 4. Kf5 {Now 4...b2 gets mated with 5.Rh7 mate.} 4... Kh4 5. Kf4 Kh3 6. Kf3 Kh2 7. Kf2 {Black now tries to squeeze out a win by going to the 8th rank.} 7... Kh3 8. Kf3 Kh4 9. Kf4 Kh5 10. Kf5 Kh6 11. Ra6+ Kg7 12. Ra7+ Kf8 13. Kf6 Ke8 14. Ke6 Kd8 15. Kd6 Kc8 16. Kc6 Kb8 17. Ra4 b2 {Again White keeps the mate threats on the board.} 18. Rb4+ Ka8 19. Ra4+ Kb8 20. Rb4+ Kc8 21. Rh4 Kd8 22. Kd6 Ke8 23. Ke6 Kf8 24. Kf6 Kg8 25. Rg4+ Kh8 26. Rh4+ Kg8 27. Rg4+ Kf8 28. Rh4 Ke8 29. Ke6 {This is drawn. hari1974 missed the idea and lost!}
Sometimes a little bit of knowledge can be a very dangerous thing.
Stop opening your Christmas presents, look at this piece of festive merriment.
loki and harley - wilbot RHP 2012
Black knows all about pawns on the 6th beating Rooks. He even gets pawns on the 7th.
FEN
8/8/7B/8/p7/5K1k/pP5r/7R w - - 0 1
[FEN "8/8/7B/8/p7/5K1k/pP5r/7R w - - 0 1"] 1. Ra1 Rxb2 2. Bg7 {2...Rc2 draws but the idea of having two pawns on the 7th v a Rook is irresistible.} 2... a3 3. Bxb2 axb2 {OK White, get out of that.} 4. Rh1 {Checkmate.} *
Problem No.2 is composed by Eugene B. Cook. White to play and mate in 3.
Show this one to your Christmas chums after dinner.
FEN
6k1/6b1/6KR/5R2/8/8/8/8 w - - 0 1
[FEN "6k1/6b1/6KR/5R2/8/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"] 1. Rf6 {Putting the other Rook en prise makes this problem just perfect for this site.} 1... Bxf6 {1...Bxh6 2.Kxh6 Kh8 3. Rf8 mate.} 2. Kxf6 Kf8 {Only move.} 3. Rh8# {A splendid piece of chess fun.}
Of course now the challenge is can I find something on RHP that matches this.
Well I do have two Rooks v a lone Bishop and the lone Bishop actually winning.
ehenes - KDale RHP 2011
FEN
8/1p6/p6p/5rpk/1P1B4/P5KP/r5P1/8 w - - 0 39
[FEN "8/1p6/p6p/5rpk/1P1B4/P5KP/r5P1/8 w - - 0 39"] 39. Kh2 {We join the game where Black is about to lose one of his Rooks.} 39... Rxa3 {Thank you for unpinning the g2 pawn.} 40. g4+ Kg6 41. gxf5+ Kxf5 42. Bc5 Rb3 43. Bf8 Kg6 44. Kg2 b5 45. Kh2 Kh5 46. Bc5 Kh4 47. Bf8 Rxh3+ 48. Kg2 h5 49. Bg7 {Black now finds the only move that allows White to deliver mate on the next move.} 49... g4 50. Bf6# {Checkmate.}
The last one is from a puzzle book I picked up. It a Charades Book.
You have to guess the title of the 1992 film from the picture below.
(answer at the bottom of this page.)
And the fun continues. This game was sent to me as it has a rather unique wrap up.
Richius - andruike RHP 2014
Not many games end this way. Sit back and enjoy.
FEN
r1bqk2r/ppp2p2/2n2n1p/3p2p1/3PP3/2PQ2B1/P1P2PPP/R3KB1R w KQkq - 0 11
[FEN "r1bqk2r/ppp2p2/2n2n1p/3p2p1/3PP3/2PQ2B1/P1P2PPP/R3KB1R w KQkq - 0 11"] 11. e5 Ne4 12. f3 Nxg3 13. hxg3 {Now 13...Qe7 with f6 ideas looks OK and good for Black.} 13... f6 {OOPS! This opens up the King to attack.} 14. Qg6+ {White gladly jumps in and starts knocking the King about.} 14... Kd7 15. Qg7+ Ne7 {16.exf6 and White wins back his piece. But White wants more.} 16. Qxf6 Rf8 {Wrong! 16...Qf8 to challenge the Queen and give the Black King the d8 square.} 17. e6+ Ke8 18. Qxh6 {Time to untangle with 18...Qd6 instead Black opted for ....} 18... Nf5 {Setting up the unique position we are about to see,} 19. Qg6+ Ke7 20. Rh7+ Kd6 21. e7+ Kd7 {White now played 22.exf8 = N mate.. But the other under promotion also works.} 22. e8=B {That too is checkmate. I told you it was unique.}
We head for Boxing Day with a game of mine which finished just a few days ago.
I’ll be getting socks, aftershave, an electrical thing for nose hair and a tie for Christmas.
But the present from DepecheMode in this game is the one I’ll be remembering this year.
greenpawn34 - DepecheMode RHP December 2014
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d5 {The Elephant. (who names these openings?) I used to play this as Black for a while.} 3. exd5 {In blitz when I meet this as White I often played 3.Nxe5 and Nxf7. Always good for a laugh.} 3... e4 4. Qe2 {This is theory. I think this is an ugly theoretical move, so does my f1 Bishop.} 4... Qxd5 {End of theory. I now develop all my pieces on this hapless Queen.} 5. Nc3 Qc6 {I pondered on 6.Qe3 with Bb5 Queen winning ideas but he has 6...Bc5.} 6. Nxe4 {Threatens a big discovered check.} 6... Be6 7. d4 Be7 {OK let's have a good Knight on e5 with a gain of tempo.} 8. Ne5 Qd5 {Will he really take that pawn on d4. Let us see....} 9. Bd2 Qxd4 {He took it. Now for a wee trap.} 10. Bc3 {If 10...Bb4 the cross pin on c3 the Bishop. I had intended 11.Nxf7 and Ng5+.} 10... Qd5 {This allows more tempo gains on that Queen. She had to get out of the way.} 11. Rd1 Qxa2 {6 moves from the first 11 with a pawn munching Queen. That is her third and last pawn.} 12. Qb5+ Nc6 13. Qxb7 Rc8 14. Qxc6+ Kf8 {I now sent via the 'Deep Conditional Move' facility the following sequence of moves.} 15. Bc4 {To get the e6 Bishop away from holding the d7 square.} 15... Bxc4 {Hopefully most of you can see what is coming.} 16. Nd7+ Ke8 17. Ndf6+ Kf8 18. Qe8+ Rxe8 19. Nd7 {I've had loads of smothered mates. They still please. A lovely Christmas present. Thank You.}
Merry Christmas to Everyone and see you all in 2015.
The answer to film question: ‘The Crying Game.’ Well done if you got that at home.
