A super-subtle opening shot, followed by a couple of cute finesses, to get you in the mood.
[Note that the diagram will defend tenaciously against your attempts to win – unless you find the one surprising and unexpected first move to bring it to its knees.]
A nice decoration anyway, with a couple of “flying horses”. (Or are they angels, to go with the baroque design?) White to move and mate in two.
As this is an older problem, it’s okay to start with a check or a capture (or both!) if you wish. Plenty of near-misses, and the key move isn’t easy to spot.
[Here we have the engine switched on, so you can explore all the lines – as well as the key moves that do not work.]
And the gifts keep coming! Perhaps not everybody’s idea of a Christmas present, unless the recipient owns a horse or likes the odd flutter on the gee-gees, but anyway here’s a well-crafted Equestrian Ring to brighten up your day.
[Can you find the pretty key move? We have switched off the diagram engine, so you can explore all the black defensive moves yourself. Can you find them all? Click the "notation" button – second from right – for an overview of the lines you input.]
Please do not post any results in our discussion section below – just notes on how hard or easy you think the problems were or how long it took you to solve them.
The above Christmas Puzzle Quiz is reproduced from Chess Magazine January 2025, with kind permission.
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