Red to play, mate in 2
Mate in 2, proven against every defence.
Red to move. There is exactly one winning first move here, and it mates in 2 against anything Black tries. Black's remaining force: 2 elephants, 2 cannons and a soldier.
The position
Red attacks with 2 soldiers, 2 cannons and a chariot, and Black's General stands on e9. Black's defenders: 2 elephants, 2 cannons and a soldier.
- Mate in 2
- Chariot finish
- Rating 1772
Red moves first. Find the move that forces mate whatever Black replies, then open the solution below.
Show the solution
It starts with 炮 a8–a9. Look at what it does: and leaves Black 2 legal replies, none of which help.
The line
- Red炮 a8–a9Check. Black must answer.
- Black將 e9–e8Black's most stubborn defence.
- Red俥 f6–f8Checkmate.
Every one of Black's 2 answers was played out to the end. The line below follows the most stubborn of them, the one that lasts longest and costs Red the most.
Why it is mate
The chariot arrives on a line the defence cannot close. Chariots are the strongest pieces on the board and most finished attacks end with one, which is why a defender will trade almost anything to swap them off first.
Read about this patternHow this puzzle was checked
Nothing here is an engine opinion. The position was solved by trying every legal defence to the full mate distance, so the claim that Red mates in 2 is a proof rather than an evaluation, and the first move shown is the only one that works. The defence in the line above is Black’s most stubborn try, not a convenient one.
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