Red moves and mates in 1
Mate in 1, proven against every defence.
Red is to move and forces mate in 1. Black is not helpless: there is a advisor still on the board, and every legal defence has been tried against this solution. All of them lose.
The position
Red attacks with 3 cannons, and Black's General stands on d9. Black's defenders: a advisor.
- Mate in 1
- Cannon finish
- Rating 1226
Red moves first. Find the move that forces mate whatever Black replies, then open the solution below.
Show the solution
炮 g4–d4 is the only move that wins. Look at what it does: it removes 2 escape points from the General.
The line
- Red炮 g4–d4Checkmate.
Mate is immediate: no flight square, no capture and no block.
Why it is mate
Two cannons on one line, the front one screening the one behind it. That is 重炮, stacked cannons, and it cannot be blocked: any piece that steps in simply becomes another screen.
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 to play, mate in 2x3589 · rating 1794
- Red moves and mates in 2x3587 · rating 1790
- Red to play, mate in 1x3590 · rating 1196
- Red moves and mates in 1x3586 · rating 1149
- Find the mate in 1x3591 · rating 1162
- Red to play, mate in 1x3585 · rating 1340
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.