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White to mate in 3 (SERIOUSLY HARD!!!)

White to mate in 3 (SERIOUSLY HARD!!!)

Only Chess

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After some more thought, i think i realy have it his time (perhaps until one of ye shows how i'm wrong again. lol)


1.Kb4 threating Ra1

2.Ne3 threatening the second mate

queen delivers the mate then

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Ne8 Rd7
Rc5
Black can't stop Rc1 and Rh7

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Rd5 then

if Rxd5 -> Bxd5#
if Re8 -> Rd1+, Re1, Rxe1#
if Rf8 -> Rd1+, Rf1, Rxf1#

Nice puzzle!

1 edit
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Originally posted by pinochio
Rd5 then

if Rxd5 -> Bxd5#
if Re8 -> Rd1+, Re1, Rxe1#
if Rf8 -> Rd1+, Rf1, Rxf1#

Nice puzzle!
If Rxd5, there's a pawn between B and R so it can't take

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Originally posted by marinakatomb
AHHHAAAA, we have an engine user!! WELL DONE 😀😀
Ok, Bigdogg took it personally, sorry man, i wasn't seriously accussing you of cheating, relax. 😉

There are two solutions but only one first move!

1.Rb8!!

If ..Rxb8 the 2.Qh3+ ..Kg1 3.Bd4#

This line works for any black move that takes the rook of the d-file, however, black has another defense...


1..Rf8

One would assume that the previous mate still applies, but it no longer works in three as black can block the bishop check with his rook, so..

2.Rf7!!

If Black captures then Rh8#, if he moves the rook the Rf1#

A lovely puzzle, i think you'll all agree. 😀

1 edit
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Originally posted by mrstabby
If Rxd5, there's a pawn between B and R so it can't take
That's right, I solved a different puzzle. Set up the board incorrectly 😕

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Doesn't Ne8 work then as shown above?

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Originally posted by Dragon Fire
Earlier in this thread someone said that the best Fritz can come up with is a mate in 4. No one shouted engine (ab)user then.

Its just the same with this problem. Using a computer to help solve it, provided you do not claim the solution as your own is not cheating so why shout about it. Computers aren't infallable but if there is a mate in 3 then I'm surprised Fritz can only come up with mate in 4. perhaps someone can explain why this is so?
Failing to find a mate-in-3 with Fritz is poor use, not (ab)use. Posting a computer-generated solution to any puzzle completely spoils it for other solvers and guilty parties should be slowly hanged with piano-wire from the nearst tree. 😀

As for Fritz being unable to solve the puzzle, the reason for this has already been posted.

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Originally posted by mrstabby
Doesn't Ne8 work then as shown above?
No, after 1. Ne8 Rd7 2. Rc5 Rxc7 and the rook on c5 can't give mate on the c file because it can be taken and the route to the h-file is blocked by the pawn. Bigdogg's solution (1.Rb8) is the only correct one.

1 edit
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Originally posted by ThudanBlunder
Failing to find a mate-in-3 with Fritz is poor use, not (ab)use. Posting a computer-generated solution to any puzzle completely spoils it for other solvers and guilty parties should be slowly hanged with piano-wire from the nearst tree. 😀

As for Fritz being unable to solve the puzzle, the reason for this has already been posted.
Failing to know how to properly use Fritz to solve a puzzle like this is what I am guilty of. Of course, if I had gotten the solution from the engine, I never would have posted it, that would just ruin the fun for everyone else. My attempts to solve this puzzle (failed as they were) were my attempts, not Fritz. I didn't use Fritz until I was satisfied that I couldn't do it. Further, when I posted responses to other peoples attempts, those were refutations that I saw, as alot of the people in this thread saw the refutations to those moves. One guy got a little flustered because marinakatomb made a joke about engine use. He also tried to equate using an engine to help solve a tactics puzzle to using an engine to play chess. He needs to get over it on both points.

BLR

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Originally posted by DeepThought
No, after 1. Ne8 Rd7 2. Rc5 Rxc7 and the rook on c5 can't give mate on the c file because it can be taken and the route to the h-file is blocked by the pawn. Bigdogg's solution (1.Rb8) is the only correct one.
Ah, I mixed up f and c files

Ne8 Rd7
Rf5

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Originally posted by mrstabby
Ah, I mixed up f and c files

Ne8 Rd7
Rf5
Same problem, 1. Ne8 Rd7 2. Rf5 Rf7 and there is no mate in 1.

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Ah... finally see the light

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Originally posted by ThudanBlunder
Because Fritz plays a move resulting in mate in 4 doesn't mean that there isn't a faster mate. In fact, Fritz plays for the first mate that it sees, without searching for a faster mate.
Surely Fritz will search out all moves at 6 ply (3 moves) before it moves on to 4 move mates and therefore should find the mate in 3?

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Originally posted by Dragon Fire
Surely Fritz will search out all moves at 6 ply (3 moves) before it moves on to 4 move mates and therefore should find the mate in 3?
No, it doesn't. Why begin at 6-ply? One might expect it to look for mates in 1, 2, 3, etc moves in that order, but it uses programming techniques such as selective search and futility pruning. Because of time constraints it is as happy to mate in n moves as it is to mate in n-1 moves.

And don't call me Shirley.