Black to move. How should black proceed?
Source: ChessToday.net
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Black to move. How should black proceed?
Source: ChessToday.net
Be2+
..Be2+(skewer), KxB..Nc3+ (fork) wins rook
Forbidden Fruit
I can manage a draw for Black through Be2+. A win seems elusive.
1-… Be2+. and black win.e
This puzzle looks strange, the trick is 1…Be2+; 2 K:e2 Nc3+; 3 Kf3 N:b5
but now 4 Kg4 draws.
Be2+
ok, this is really very simple, i think, it must be
1. Be2+ Kxe2
2. Nc3+ Kany
3. Nxb5
greets, jan
Be2+ followed by the fork
Nc3
should settle things.
the only tactic in this position is 1..Be2, 2.Ke2 Nc3. But this allows 3.Kf3 Nb5, 4.Kg4 threatening h5 and draw. So it would seem that there is no tactic here..
So Black should play 1..Ke5 and play for a win like that.
I have to admit, I am stumped here if the idea is for black to win the game. Black can win the exchange, but he is going to end up in a drawn endgame unless I am just missing something really obvious in the line below:
1. …..Be2
2. Ke2 Nc3
3. Kf3
Planning Kg4 and h5. Continuing:
3. …..Nb5 (what else now?)
4. Kg4
And now black is three knight hops from being able to deliver even a check on the white king, or to guard h5, so black has time to liquidate the last white pawn:
4. …..Nd4
5. h5 and this is surely drawn.
I am going to outline another move in my next comment, but I still don’t see any win for black here.
In my previous comment, I showed that 1. …Be2 is a clear draw after white forces black to exchange off his last pawn. Now, black does have a material advantage already, so he need not necessarily just go for the exchange win. If he could somehow win the two white pawns instead, he might well have a winning position, though it would likely be a N+B vs K ending. With that in mind, there are two possible ideas for accomplishing this- 1. …Nf4+ and 1. …Ke5. Let’s look at the first of these:
1. …..Nf4
The idea here is to go or Ng2-Nxh4. This puts pressure on white since he needs to decide what to do with the king. If he plays Ke3-Ke4, black proceeds with the plan since Ng2 occurs with check in the former, and Ke4 blocks the potential rook protection of h4. So, we are left, I think, with conceding the pawn immediately, or playing a move like Kd2/c3 so that the rook can cover from b4, but both of those move leave white’s king out of the action, and look more dangerous to me-let’s walk through it a bit:
2. Kd2 Ng2
3. Rb4 Kf5
4. Ra4
I don’t see how allowing Kf4 or Kg4 can help white, so a check from b5 seems pointless, but black can still penetrate:
4. …..Bg4!
5. Rb4
On 5.Ra5, black plays Kf4: [5.Ra5 Kf4 6.Ra4 Kg3 and both pawns will fall. Continuing:
5. …..Nh4
6. Ke3
The last white pawn cannot be saved, anyway. Continuing:
6. …..Kg5
And this should be a win for black as white will eventually be forced to give up the rook just to keep black from queening the pawn.
So, I think white must just concede the h-pawn immediately and attempt to keep the king in the better position at move #2. From the top:
1. …..Nf4
2. Ke4! Ng2 (anything else here?)
3. Rb6
Not sure if this is best, but seems obvious to me. Continuing:
3. …..Kd7 (or allow threefold)
4. Ke5 Nh4 (now or never)
5. Kf6 Nf3
6. Kg7 Ne5
White was threatening to just sacrifice the rook for the pawn and bishop if black captures at g5, so both black pieces must protect it. If the black knight goes to h4, then white just draws by keeping the rook on the 6th rank, and out of reach of the king. The only plan here for black is to block the rook’s attack on g6 with the knight at some point and get his king into a better position, but I think this hopeless now. Continuing from move 6 above:
7. Rf6
Should draw, too, with Ra6, or even Kf6, but this seems clearer to me. Continuing:
7. …..Kc7
8. Kh6
Don’ know how many drawing moves here, but the one move I would avoid is Ra6 since this allows black to cut the 6th rank off with Nc6 (though I still doubt that line could be won, but give black the most play). With 8.Kh6, I don’t see how black can make any progress.
In my last comment, I will discuss 1. …Ke5.
In my previous comments, I outlined how white draws after black plays either 1. …Be2 or 1. …Nf4. The last I idea I can see is 1. …Ke5:
1. …..Ke5
Pins his own knight, but because of the combo of the bishop and the knight, the white king is sealed off from the e-file, and Kc4 is just losing after 2. …Be2 skewers to give a winning ending. Continuing:
2. Ra5 Bf3
What else here? Black needs to move his king in, but the knight must be protected first. Continuing:
3. Kc4
I don’t know what is actually best, but this leads me to a classic drawn K+P vs K ending. Continuing:
3. …..Kf4 (what else makes prog.)
4. Rd5 Bd5
5. Kd5 Kg4 (Or lose, I think)
6. Ke4 Kh4 (what else?)
7. Kf4
Here, white can draw with Kf3, too. Continuing:
7. …..Kh5
8. Kf3 Kg5
9. Kg3! with a classic drawn ending.
I don’t see a win here for black, so if there is one, I am just dying to see it.
I looked this game up on the tourney website. Black did play 1. …Be2, and white resigned immediately- incorrectly in my opinion.
Attraction, fork
1… Be2+
2. Kxe2 Nc3+
3. (any) Nxb5