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RACK YOUR BRAIN - Zugzwang 1 - Immobilize the king, Force to promote

RACK YOUR BRAIN - Zugzwang 1 - Immobilize the king, Force to promote

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INTRO
Hi everyone! Here is a zugzwang puzzle I created that you might enjoy. How to trap the king and force your opponent to give way for the rook pawn? Don't scroll down until you have finished the puzzle! 

SOLUTION

As you can see, the pawns are stuck and cannot develop. If black plays b5, White promotes faster than black. Kf2 immobilizes the king as the white king and the bishop help to control the surrounding squares of the black king. Black has to either play h2 or sacrifice the pawn on b6. If h2, white simply moves its bishop - a waiting move. Black is forced to play b5, followed by axb5, a4, b6, a3, b7, a1, b8=Q, finally, a1=Q. White delivers checkmate to the trapped king with Qb7#. Alternatively, if black promoted into another piece such as a knight, white can also deliver checkmate with Qa8#, Qb1# or Qb7#. Notice white should not promote into another piece such as a rook, a bishop, nor a knight. Black will promote into a queen and black would likely win the game. 

CONCLUSION

I hope you enjoyed this zugzwang puzzle. Try to find zugzwangs in your game to obtain advantage. Don't forget to share it to your friends and, see you on the next post!