Questions tagged [chess]
A puzzle related to chess, a two-player board game with white and black pieces of varying ranks.
514
questions
2
votes
0answers
93 views
How old is Grandfather?
This position has been used in hundreds of chess problems for various reasons by a plethora of problemists over many, many decades. It is known as "Vielväterstellung" in German, or "The ...
6
votes
3answers
1k views
One-sided chess: Self stalemate revisted
An old self-stalemate puzzle has been popping up in my feed lately. I was unable to do better than the existing answers, so I created a different puzzle from it. For reference:
One-sided chess: Can ...
1
vote
1answer
98 views
Puzzle storm to infinity
I have been playing Puzzle Storm on Lichess lately. Essentially it involves solving chess puzzles within a given time limit. Additionally, the player gets a time bonus for a certain number of moves. ...
3
votes
3answers
299 views
Chess Construction Challenge #9: Two Eggs & A Flood
I have an odd idea for this challenge. It involves a very specific proof game construction. So pay attention!
Given that:
White and Black cannot move more than one pawn each throughout the entire ...
3
votes
2answers
171 views
Chess Construction Challenge #D: 8 moves
Since I "burnt" the complete question elsewhere, let's start with "D" (I counted up in hex) and 8 moves. The position in the answer there can be improved by far!
OK, to ...
3
votes
1answer
122 views
Chess Construction Challenge #8: Three Times The Charm
On a chessboard, a piece has a set number of legal moves. It can range from 0 to 27. However, this amount can also restricted. My previous questions have covered n=1 and n=2, it is time for n=3!
Given ...
6
votes
1answer
562 views
Flat share share
This is a sequel to Gentrification in Chessshire.
Due to the febrile state of the Chesster housing market you and your flat mates are forced to rent out half your place to another group of sharers.
...
7
votes
3answers
497 views
Chess Construction Challenge #7: Double The Fun
Many thanks goes to @Retudin in a comment on my last question for this idea.
In a chess position, pieces can be restricted as to how many moves they can legally make in theory. Since my previous ...
9
votes
5answers
1k views
Chess Construction Challenge #6: The One Move Royale
In chess, it is possible for a piece to have only one legal move. For example, in this position, the Black king can move only to h2.
Given that:
All 32 pieces are available for use.
Construct:
A ...
-3
votes
1answer
114 views
Room Puzzle, containing chess and ciphers. Can someone help? [duplicate]
I Have to force checkmate black king in two moves only
its white turn.
And the keypad
Someone also asked this question here like a month ago, but the answer was wrong i tried alot of things but ...
10
votes
2answers
323 views
Gentrification in Chessshire
You can skip the back story and directly jump to the question.
Capitalism has arrived in suburban Chesster the community most famed for The Game, and with a vengeance. Rents have trebled in less than ...
15
votes
1answer
326 views
Chess A Knight's Journey
You'll need to know about:
A game that has existed for over 1500 years
A game that doesn't exist
♞ → I → II → III → ...
Answer = Xxxxxxxxx
1
vote
2answers
109 views
Checkmate Puzzle [closed]
I had a chess position today, in which my last position had 5 possible moves to checkmate. This seemed like a lot to me, and I immediately thought of the puzzle: Which position would yield the maximum ...
3
votes
0answers
209 views
One vs many. Can white force a draw?
On an infinite chessboard there's a single white king and N black kings. The nearest black king must be K moves away from the white king. Given N, white dictates the value of (finite) K, then black ...
-1
votes
1answer
237 views
Chess-based escape room [closed]
You go into a room, and the door closes. Some sign says:
You must find a forced checkmate on the black king in two moves. The key for the Vigenere is ONLY your moves. In other words, if you played ...
11
votes
3answers
1k views
Swapping 3 knights in a 4x4 grid
Can you swap black and white knights in this 4x4 grid? There is one important constraint: at no point can a knight be under attack by an opponent knight. Knights move using standard chess moves (L ...
9
votes
1answer
157 views
Interchanging knights and rooks… again!
Is it possible to interchange the positions of the the two black knights and two black rooks with those of the two white knights and two white rooks? Movements allowed are those of the corresponding ...
24
votes
2answers
1k views
The Knight's Romp
Recently I was messing around with a singular knight on a chess board, and I came up with an interesting dilemma.
Can you move a knight, from starting on any square, such that its path covers every ...
10
votes
2answers
695 views
Never kill your king … without first seeking proper legal advice!
This is a follow-up to (Almost) all hands on check by @loopy walt.
The task (mate in one with as many essential pieces as possible) stays the same, but you are to go about it more cunningly.
Recap of ...
8
votes
3answers
976 views
(Almost) all hands on check
Historical note (skip if you like):
In this interesting puzzle @TSLF asks for the "maximum number of black and white pieces that are involved in a checkmate position".
Originally, they left ...
2
votes
5answers
365 views
Checkmate in Last Move
What is the maximum number of black and white pieces that are involved in a checkmate position? That is, if any piece were removed from the board, the position would not be checkmate because that ...
6
votes
3answers
453 views
Only kings and horses
This is the fourth entry in my decentralised or "Swiss" chess mini series. See bottom for a recap of the modified rules of Swiss chess.
Enough warm up! It is time for a proper Swiss chess ...
4
votes
2answers
225 views
Fools in Switzerland
This is the third question of my mini series on decentralised chess, or Swiss chess.
In Swiss chess, the advantage in terms of mobility of a centrally placed piece over a piece in the corner is ...
1
vote
2answers
206 views
Four pacifist queens
Earlier, I introduced the beautiful game of Swiss chess.
These are animated gifs. You may have to click on them to make them move.
Unlike the peace-loving Swiss, we are interested in "domination&...
5
votes
1answer
266 views
Four queens on public transport
The enlightened but, sadly, fictional country of Switzerland has it all: A strong democracy that resists centralism, a reliable public transport network and its own version of chess.
Swiss chess ...
5
votes
1answer
490 views
Chess - Knight Mate
What is the fastest, in terms of moves, for a legal game to come to a checkmate, either black or white with a Knight and such that both all other cases of the checkmated King are attacked by an ...
12
votes
1answer
208 views
Three white queens, two white knights, and one rook on a chess board
On an 8 x 8 chessboard, place three white queens, two white knights, and one white rook so that every cell of the board is under attack by at least one piece not standing on it.
Source: https://www....
4
votes
1answer
344 views
Two knight tours on a 4x4 grid
Two knights are placed on opposite corners of a 4x4 grid. Can you move* each knight 7 times, such that each cell of the grid is visited exactly once by exactly one of the knights?
*Note that a knight ...
1
vote
2answers
233 views
Minimize the longest King chain on a 6x6 ternary grid
This puzzle is an extension of this one: Minimize the longest King chain on a 5x5 binary board
Given a grid filled with numbers, we define a King chain to be a path on the grid such that:
The path ...
0
votes
1answer
128 views
Minimize the longest King chain on a 7x7 binary grid
This puzzle is an extension of this one: Minimize the longest King chain on a 5x5 binary board
Given a grid filled with numbers, we define a King chain to be a path on the grid such that:
The path ...
4
votes
1answer
151 views
Chess - I will eat!
Suppose that you are playing White, and your aim is to eat a black piece (pawns qualitfy) in the fewest moves as possible and Black are not cooperating at all, and, even more, Black's aim is to ...
1
vote
1answer
99 views
Reverse Engineer Chess Software Calculations
TLDR Just the Puzzle
Given a number n and a weight w the function f will result in a weighted number r as follows.
f(n, w) = r
n can be a number from 0 to 200
w can be a number from -100 to 100 (...
2
votes
0answers
99 views
Selfmate In How Few? #3-Unknown Limits
I dug up the below old position when going through a Google Docs document today. I know that it's supposed to be a somewhat winding, clearly dualed, selfmate. To be honest, I genuinely don't know the ...
13
votes
7answers
848 views
Minimize the longest King chain on a 5x5 binary board
Given a grid filled with numbers, let's define a King chain to be a path on the grid such that
the path can be traversed with chess King's moves (moving to one of 8 adjacent cells at a time),
the ...
5
votes
1answer
221 views
Chessdoku Level 1 (beginner)
I just tested out a new type of puzzle here (sorry if there's any confusion with the titling) called Chessdoku! Welcome to level 1. Here's the grid:
Your goal is to get one black and one white piece ...
13
votes
1answer
407 views
Chessdoku Level 0 (trial)
Welcome to Chessdoku! It's like Sudoku but chess! This is level 0, so it's a trial run and will be fairly simple to solve (level 1 has been posted here). This puzzle is just for the concept. Here you ...
10
votes
1answer
847 views
How many queens so every unthreatened vacant square traps a knight?
How many queens does it take at minimum to occupy an empty chess board, so that whichever vacant and non-threatened square you put a knight on, the knight won't have a square to go to that is not ...
10
votes
2answers
464 views
Sixteen chess pieces on a square board
It is well known that the eight main chess pieces cannot cover a chess board.
Suppose I have two sets of the eight main pieces. What is the size of the largest chess-like square board all of whose ...
48
votes
4answers
4k views
What was I supposed to do?
An entry in Fortnightly Topic Challenge #49: Pub Quiz Camouflage
I've had the strangest day. Today I was invited to play in a chess tournament (or so I thought). As a keen (and pretty good) chess ...
5
votes
1answer
181 views
Anti-Chess Squares
Playing regular rules for both white and black try to eliminate all the square formations by black and/or white. From the above starting setup all rooks form a square. Also white's queen rook pawn, ...
4
votes
1answer
103 views
How many queens are needed to attack all white squares?
This question: How can 3 queens control the white squares? got me thinking...
What is the fewest number of queens needed to attack every white square?
Rules:
Only queens allowed
Every white square is ...
14
votes
2answers
2k views
Three queens and two rooks covering the chess board… again!
Three queens and two rooks can be placed on a chess board so that all empty squares are under attack, as has been shown here: 3 queens and 2 rooks covering a 8x8 chess board.
What if we require that ...
7
votes
2answers
907 views
21 knights covering a 11x11 chess board
Can you place 21 knights on a 11x11 chess board, such that every empty cell is under attack? Good luck!
Here is a similar question for 10x10: Knights covering a 10x10 chess board
5
votes
1answer
833 views
3 queens and 2 rooks covering a 8x8 chess board
Can you place 3 queens and 2 rooks on a 8x8 chess board, such that every empty cell is under attack? Good luck!
6
votes
2answers
450 views
May White Castle?
Quite simply, may White castle in the below position? There is much more than what meets the eye! For the record, White pawns move up and Black pawns move down.
Nikita M. Plaksin & Michel Caillaud,...
2
votes
1answer
188 views
Piercing Bullets
Under 30-secs. bullet time control the above position results after n moves. What is the fewest number of moves possible?
30
votes
5answers
5k views
How can 3 queens control the white squares?
It is well known that there is no way of arranging 4 queens on a checker board in such a way that every square is occupied or threatened.
Now consider a slight variation where we only need to cover ...
16
votes
9answers
3k views
A fun lateral-thinking Chess puzzle [closed]
Which famous movie is suggested by the following chess position (by Trevor Tao)?
4
votes
3answers
177 views
Experts at failure
Construction challenge:
Find a position with the longest sequence of unique losing moves, i.e. white to move has one and only one move that will lead to a lost (for white) position. White makes this ...
9
votes
1answer
268 views
Chess Endgame Study
I came across this puzzle-like endgame study. Usually, opposite color bishops are draw-ish. Here's an absolutely extraordinary counter-example. Enjoy!
White to play and mate in 8.
Source: Winning ...
