My Latest Composition

Edited:  After some more work, this looks ready for use but still isn't perfect by any means. I've tried to reduce the number of superfluous lines to an absolute minimum but can't get them down any further.

Anyway, see what you think     

       White to move & mate in 4 moves...

{ FEN String: R4nk1/2p2n1p/2P4p/2P4P/3B1p2/1B5K/1PN2P2/8 w - - 0 1 }
* Please note that the above is a diagram only - I'll post the solution later.

[edit again, sorr, I'm going blind in my old age :)]

What are we supposed to achieve here? mate in # moves, I suppose, but what is #?

rooperi - good to see you but it does state just above the diagram:

  White to move & mate in 4 moves

This is the first time I've posted in this group - do you have a format for laying out member's puzzles that we should follow?

Sorry, I ran it through problemiste, and there are 4 solutions for mate in 3

[edit: sorry, I had the FEN wrong, I missed a charachter copying]

Problemiste finds multiple (19!) first moves that lead to mate in 4

Don't worry because I've had to re-post the diagram anyway. You know when you think you've ironed out every snag & then you find another one..?

As far as I can be certain, there's now only one keymove that gives mate in 4 moves.

Getting these to work is harder than it looks   

This is actually an amazing position to test engines with......

Problemiste(Problem solving, testing and editing software) finds all 19 almost immediately, but so far, after more than 5 minutes, stockfish has only 9

19, seriously?  The DSB was mis-located & I've moved it to e5, so hopefully that will eradicate a lot of those.

still 4 solutions, Bc3, Bf6, Nc3, Nf4

Back to the drawing-board  

lol, try dowloading the free version of problemiste (google search should find it) to test. I used to be proud of about 20 compositions till problemiste showed me how flawed the were :)

Thanks rooperi - I'll have to do that because doing it by brain-power clearly isn't working.

The #x problems held in high regard by magazines have the following properties:

- contain minimal material to show the idea(s), no superfluous pieces

- contain "tries": (thematic) attempts that fail because of a cute defense by black

- some pieces may play different roles in the solution depending on black's defense (in other words, black has several possibilities to defend -- the more, the better -- and each defense is thwarted by a different and unique mate, if possible; and all mates have the same length x, if possible)

Now, to be specific to the problem in progress, the idea is cute, but it is much better suited for studies than for #x problems. (Also in studies you bypass the idea that all mates have the same length x)

rooperi - I downloaded the Problemiste software as you suggested & I've got it working. The latest position (in my edited diagram in post#1 above) shows just one solution, so I seem to be getting there although there are a few more variations than I'd like.

You describe your version of Problemiste as free (freeware?) but the only version of it I could find is shareware, so I assume that's what you meant. Do you have the 'demo' version as well?

Yeah, sorry, demo version. As far as I can tell, it's fully functional, except it limits the size of files you can save, I think up to 20 problems per file.

Yeah, that fen gives 1 solution, I must have messed yp last time, well done

Cheers!

Does the demo version have an expiry date? Sometimes shareware is set up like that or so I've heard.

LOL, I dont think so, I've had mine for years.

On the site there are also huge collections of problems you can download, inc mate in x, helpmate, selfmate etc. Problemiste can handle all those.

I haven't composed very many puzzles, but I have made a forum where people can post their own-composed puzzles. All sorts of puzzles are welcome (even unorthodox ones)!
https://www.chess.com/forum/view/chess-com-community/post-your-own-created-chess-puzzles-here-104506397#:~:text=Post%20your%20own%2Dcreated%20chess%20puzzles%20here