There is no way for white to launch a succesful attack. So just grab the piece and win the endgame 🙂 1. Qxf6+ Kxf6 2. Rxe6+ Qxe6 3. Rxe6+ Kxe6 4. Bf5+, 5. Bxc8 etc.
QxR also works and could be considered more forcing since Black dare not ignore a Rook sac but could try to ignore losing a biship given that Black has more pawns. Either way, hardly a lost game for white?
sac the queen on f6, than take the bishop, take the queen and give check on f5 to collect the last remaining roock. white ends up with an extra bishop and should win easily gnom
1. Qxf6+ Kxf6 2. Rxe6+ Qxe6 (if 2…Kf7 3. Qxc6 Rxc6 wins the endgame due to the extra Bishop) 3. Rxe6+ Kxe6 4. Bf5+ Ke7 5. Bxc8 cleans up the queenside pawns with an extra piece!
yes white wins a piece. then what? white king cannot make progress, white bishop has nothing to grab, since black king can protect both vulnerable pawns. how does white win from there?
The answer given by many (1. Qxf6+ Kxf6 2. Rxe6+ Qxe6 3. Rxe6+ Kxe6 4. Bf5+ Kd6 5. Bxc8) reminds me of Geraldo Rivera and Al Capone’s safe. White plays a nice combination to open the vault, only to find that it’s empty.
White’s only hope for a win is penetration on the a- and b-files, exchanging off all a- and b-pawns, then targetting the d5 pawn while the bishop keeps watch against any exchange and race by Black with the g- and h-pawns.
Can White force a win here, or is the vault indeed empty?
Even if black defends the pawns (with an eventual Kd6, Kc7), white can just take his time to set up a simple win. Black can’t do anything to stop it. White can just take his time: move the K to the right square (e3), sacrifice the B for the d5 pawn, and have a won K+P endgame. Down one line, the Black K ends up on d8, white pawn on d7, K on d6 and white checkmates by queening on h8 (one move ahead of black).
I don’t think I missed anything… did I?
1. Qxf6+ Kxf6 2. Rxe6+ Qxe6 3. Rxe6+ Kxe6 4. Bf5+ Kd6 5. Bxc8 Kc7 6. Be6 Kd6 7. Bg8 Kc6 8. Kf3 Kd6 9. Ke3 Kc6 10. Bxd5 Kxd5 11. Kd3 and black cant stop the march of the pawn until it reaches d7. Then black will eventually be forced to move the h pawn and the game is over.
Black can try advancing the pawns on the Q side(b6, a5, axb4), and moving his K to c4, and but I think white queens in time to win.
the position after Bxc8 is won I think. Bishop attacks pawn on d5 from f7. White king goes to b3 and then white pushes a3-a4.
First line: black plays b5xa4, then Kxa4 and white king enters or if black plays b6 to prevent this, white’s bishop goes to c8 to attack a6. Second line: black does not take on a4, then white plays a4xb5. Black must play a6xb5. Then the simple Be8 wins. Black’s king was on c6 or d6 (because of d5), if he was on d6 the pawn b5 is already lost (which gives us another winning idea just waiting until black plays Kc6-d6 which must happen because black gets in zugzwang simply), if the black king was on c6 he can go to b6 now (d5 isn’t attacked at the moment) but now a simple move with the white king gives zugzwang again: black must play Ka6 (to keep in touch with b5) but then d5 falls because the king is too far away after Bf7 (coming home!).
I had posted earlier about what White should do after Bxc8. Playing it out, I could not find any way for Black to force a draw. There are a couple of ways for White to blow it, but keeping a couple of principles in mind (too many variations to be exhaustive here), White is able to force a win. Nothing too difficult, and even some inaccuracies can be repaired along the way.
Anyway, I learned a lot about pawn vs. bishop + pawn endgames.
if Kf7 white can play Re3 and black mustn’t play Rc3. White plays Bf5 and goes with the king to d2 to be able to play Rc3 himself to infliltrate over the c-line or exchange rooks ending in a similar variation as above.
After Kg7 white should simply play Kf3 Rc3 Ke3. Black gets a pawn but will lose others therefore – white has the choice of winning b7, d5 or h6 (and g5 soon later). One variation (after Ke3) could be: – Rxa3 Rd6 Rb3 Rxd5 Rxb4 Re5 and how shell black stop the pawn?
I think black is lost in that case, too, but it is an interesting idea.
White is lost 🙁
The motive is the f5-c8 fork of the Bishop.
So 1.Qf6:+ Kf6: 2.Re6:+ Qe6: 3.Re6: Ke6: 4.Bf5+ and 5.Bc8: +-
Note that 1.Qe6:? would be a blunder because after 1..Re6: 2. Re6: the black Queen doesn’t have to take the rook!
Bf5
actually this one takes X-ray vision rather than eagle eyes:
Qxf6+ Kxf6
Rxe6+ Qxe6
Rxe6 Kxe6
Bf5+ K moves
Bxc8
1. Qxf6 Kxf6
2. Rxe6 Qxe6
3. Rxe6 Kxe6
4. Bf5+ +-
1.Qxf6+ Kxf6 2.Rxe6+ Qxe6 3.Rxe6+ Kxe6 4.Bf5+
1.Qxf6+ Kxf6 2.Rxe6+ Qxe6 3.Rxe6+ Kxe6 4.Bf5+
1. Qxf6… then forced till 4. Bf5…
Qxf6+ KXf6
Rxe6+ Qxe6
Rxe6+ Kxe6
Bf5+ K anything
BxR
Qxf6+ Kxf6
Rxe6+ Qxe6
Rxe6+ Kxe6
Bf5+
Followed by Bxc8 and then some pawns fall and black loses
White is a bishop up after
1. Qf6 Kf6
2. Re6 Qe6
3. Re6 Ke6
4. Bf5
Ub
Perhaps take-take-take on e6 and, when black’s king takes the last rook on e6, skewer the rook with Bf5. White is a bishop up and has won the game.
Brad Hoehne
There is no way for white to launch a succesful attack. So just grab the piece and win the endgame 🙂
1. Qxf6+ Kxf6 2. Rxe6+ Qxe6 3. Rxe6+ Kxe6 4. Bf5+, 5. Bxc8 etc.
1. Qxf6+ Kxf6 2. Rxe6+ Qxe6 3. Rxe6+ Kxe6 4. Bf5+ [any move] 5. Bxc8 with the extra bishop.
QxB RxQ
RxR QxR
RxQ KxR
bf5+ and white is lost?
pls explain how this is a loss for white? I see White up a bishop and mopping up the pawns on a6 and b5
QxR also works and could be considered more forcing since Black dare not ignore a Rook sac but could try to ignore losing a biship given that Black has more pawns. Either way, hardly a lost game for white?
sac the queen on f6, than take the bishop, take the queen and give check on f5 to collect the last remaining roock. white ends up with an extra bishop and should win easily
gnom
1. Qf6+; Kf6
2. Re6+, Qe6;
3. Re6+, Ke6;
4. Bf5 + and win
hugoleo
QxRf6+ KxQ
RxB+ QxB
RxQ+ KxR
Bf5+
1. QxR+ KxR
2. RxB+ QxB
3. RxQ+ KxR
4. Bf5+ …and viola! White wins a piece
White can trade everything and finish with a skewer to win the rook on c8.
Qxf6+ Kxf6
Rxe6+ Qxe6
Rxe6+ Kxe6
Bf5+
Bxc8
Qxf6+ Kxf6 Rxe6+ Qxe6 Rxe6+ Kxe6 Bxf5+ Ke7 Bxc8 with easy ending.
Finally I got it 😉
1. Qxf6+! Kxf6
2. Rxe6+ Qxe6
3. Rxe6+ Kxe6
4. Bf5+ 1-0
Bf5
Qxf6+ Kxf6
Rxe6+ Qxe6
Rxe6+ Kxe6
Bf5+ K any
Bxc8!
qxf6+ kxf6
rxe6+ qxe6
rxe6+ kxe6
bf5+ k any
bxc8!
qxf6+ kxf6
rxe6+ qxe6
rxe6+ kxe6
bf5+ k any
bxc8!
1 Qxf6+ wins a piece!
1 … Kxf6
2 Rxe6+ Qxf6 (forced by the fork)
3 Rxe6+ Kxe6
4 Bf5+
skewering the R on c8 and winning
1. Qxf6+ Kxf6
2. Rxe6+ Qxe6
3. Rxe6+ Kxe6
4. Bf5+
I believe 1. Qxf6+! wins.
1. Qxf6+ Kxf6 2. Rxe6+ Qxe6 (if 2…Kf7 3. Qxc6 Rxc6 wins the endgame due to the extra Bishop) 3. Rxe6+ Kxe6 4. Bf5+ Ke7 5. Bxc8 cleans up the queenside pawns with an extra piece!
Misleading title !
not so easy
yes white wins a piece. then what?
white king cannot make progress, white bishop has nothing to grab, since black king can protect both vulnerable pawns. how does white win from there?
I prefer ‘Hawkeye’ for accuracy.
hikayeler – hikaye – fx15
After white wins a piece then the Bishop cleans up the queenside pawns
The answer given by many (1. Qxf6+ Kxf6 2. Rxe6+ Qxe6 3. Rxe6+ Kxe6 4. Bf5+ Kd6 5. Bxc8) reminds me of Geraldo Rivera and Al Capone’s safe. White plays a nice combination to open the vault, only to find that it’s empty.
White’s only hope for a win is penetration on the a- and b-files, exchanging off all a- and b-pawns, then targetting the d5 pawn while the bishop keeps watch against any exchange and race by Black with the g- and h-pawns.
Can White force a win here, or is the vault indeed empty?
jcheyne
within a second I found Qxf6 with Rxe6 and later Bf5+ over without comp 🙂
Even if black defends the pawns (with an eventual Kd6, Kc7), white can just take his time to set up a simple win. Black can’t do anything to stop it. White can just take his time: move the K to the right square (e3), sacrifice the B for the d5 pawn, and have a won K+P endgame. Down one line, the Black K ends up on d8, white pawn on d7, K on d6 and white checkmates by queening on h8 (one move ahead of black).
I don’t think I missed anything… did I?
1. Qxf6+ Kxf6
2. Rxe6+ Qxe6
3. Rxe6+ Kxe6
4. Bf5+ Kd6
5. Bxc8 Kc7
6. Be6 Kd6
7. Bg8 Kc6
8. Kf3 Kd6
9. Ke3 Kc6
10. Bxd5 Kxd5
11. Kd3 and black cant stop the march of the pawn until it reaches d7. Then black will eventually be forced to move the h pawn and the game is over.
Black can try advancing the pawns on the Q side(b6, a5, axb4), and moving his K to c4, and but I think white queens in time to win.
Hello anonymous and jcheyne,
the position after Bxc8 is won I think.
Bishop attacks pawn on d5 from f7.
White king goes to b3 and then white pushes a3-a4.
First line: black plays b5xa4, then Kxa4 and white king enters or if black plays b6 to prevent this, white’s bishop goes to c8 to attack a6.
Second line: black does not take on a4, then white plays a4xb5. Black must play a6xb5.
Then the simple Be8 wins. Black’s king was on c6 or d6 (because of d5), if he was on d6 the pawn b5 is already lost (which gives us another winning idea just waiting until black plays Kc6-d6 which must happen because black gets in zugzwang simply), if the black king was on c6 he can go to b6 now (d5 isn’t attacked at the moment) but now a simple move with the white king gives zugzwang again: black must play Ka6 (to keep in touch with b5) but then d5 falls because the king is too far away after Bf7 (coming home!).
My 2 Cents.
Jochen
so yada yada yada…
BxRc8 Kc7
Be6 Kd6
Bg8 b5
a4 bxa4
Bh7 and white seems to be winning anyway
maybe there is a better use of the tempo b7-b6 for black, idk.
I had posted earlier about what White should do after Bxc8. Playing it out, I could not find any way for Black to force a draw. There are a couple of ways for White to blow it, but keeping a couple of principles in mind (too many variations to be exhaustive here), White is able to force a win. Nothing too difficult, and even some inaccuracies can be repaired along the way.
Anyway, I learned a lot about pawn vs. bishop + pawn endgames.
jcheyne
Why is no one analyzing
1. Qxf6+ Kxf6
2. Rxe6+ Qxe6+
3. Rxe6+ Kf7
with the Black rook trying to infiltrate? There’s a threat, for example, to pin the Bishop against the King.
That may still lose for Black eventually, but it’s got to be a better choice than 3. … Kxe6, doesn’t it?
Hello anonymous from 1:51 pm,
if Kf7 white can play Re3 and black mustn’t play Rc3. White plays Bf5 and goes with the king to d2 to be able to play Rc3 himself to infliltrate over the c-line or exchange rooks ending in a similar variation as above.
After Kg7 white should simply play Kf3 Rc3 Ke3.
Black gets a pawn but will lose others therefore – white has the choice of winning b7, d5 or h6 (and g5 soon later).
One variation (after Ke3) could be:
– Rxa3
Rd6 Rb3
Rxd5 Rxb4
Re5 and how shell black stop the pawn?
I think black is lost in that case, too, but it is an interesting idea.
Jochen