Red to play, mate in 1
Mate in 1, proven against every defence.
Red to move. There is exactly one winning first move here, and it mates in 1 against anything Black tries. Black's remaining force: a chariot, a advisor and a elephant.
The position
Red attacks with 2 chariots, a horse and a soldier, and Black's General stands on d9. Black's defenders: a chariot, a advisor and a elephant.
- Mate in 1
- Horse finish
- Rating 1250
Red moves first. Find the move that forces mate whatever Black replies, then open the solution below.
Show the solution
It starts with 傌 e10–f8.
The line
- Red傌 e10–f8Checkmate.
There is nothing to try. The General cannot move, the checking piece cannot be taken, and nothing can be interposed.
Why it is mate
A horse delivering mate beside the palace is the shape players call the trough horse, 卧槽马: it checks and covers escape points at the same time, and because a horse cannot be blocked by a piece in its path once it has landed, only capture or flight would help.
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 1 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.
Next puzzles
- Red moves and mates in 1x0606 · rating 1133
- Red moves and mates in 2x0604 · rating 1775
- Red to play, mate in 2x0607 · rating 1803
- Find the mate in 1x0603 · rating 1111
- Red to play, mate in 1x0608 · rating 1287
- Red moves and mates in 2x0602 · rating 1785
New to mating patterns? The glossary names the ones that come up again and again, the piece guides explain what each piece can do, and the rules page covers everything from the start.