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Don't mate in one

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Phssthpok

I recently came across this puzzle by Karl Fabel. It had me foxed - see if you can work it out.

White to move and NOT checkmate!

RichColorado

I apologize for being blind.

It seems that he can't put that rook any where, only on that location on the sixth rank. so that bishop check is blocked when the rook move to take.

Very good

Phssthpok

No, if he moves the rook anywhere else, black's rook is pinned by the bishop on a8.

AnnaEA

Cute.

Phssthpok
BorgQueen wrote:

Bf3.


What !?

LlordLlama

That's funny. I posted this same puzzle here several hours before you did. Rook c6

Phssthpok

How bizarre. I promise I didn't copy it from your posting but I admit I didn't check the forums before posting it.

Having checked now, it's been posted at least twice before.

Great minds think alike, obviously Laughing.

LlordLlama
Phssthpok wrote:

How bizarre. I promise I didn't copy it from your posting but I admit I didn't check the forums before posting it.

Having checked now, it's been posted at least twice before.

Great minds think alike, obviously .


:) I'm not offended. It's just odd. I "discovered" that puzzle in a book last night

Phssthpok
LlordLlama wrote:

I "discovered" that puzzle in a book last night


Curiouser and curiouser. It wasn't a book of articles by Martin Gardner was it ?

Frankdawg

This has 3 answers really, other than Rc6 you could also Resign, or offer a draw, and not checkmate them, and if it is timed, u could let your clock run out for a 4th way to not win.

cobra91

I've seen this puzzle several times before, but am curious about helpmate possibilities. I wonder, what's the fewest number of moves in which the White king can be checkmated? The best I can do is 5 moves (see "analysis" below), but 4-movers may exist :)

LlordLlama
Phssthpok wrote:
LlordLlama wrote:

I "discovered" that puzzle in a book last night


Curiouser and curiouser. It wasn't a book of articles by Martin Gardner was it ?


Why yes it was. An annoyingly hard and improbably solvable book!

Conflagration_Planet

Why did the rook have to be in the c file? I put it in the d file, and got it wrong.

Phssthpok

The rook has to move to c6 in order that the black rook on b7b is no longer pinned by white's a8-bishop. Otherwise black cannot move it to capture the h7-bishop.

Conflagration_Planet
Phssthpok wrote:

The rook has to move to c6 in order that the black rook on b7b is no longer pinned by white's a8-bishop. Otherwise black cannot move it to capture the h7-bishop.


 Leave it to me to miss the obvious.

draughts92

white has two light squared bishops..

GSlowik
beardy93 wrote:

white has two light squared bishops..

pawn promotion

draughts92

ah, good point :)

Casual_Joe
Frankdawg wrote:

This has 3 answers really, other than Rc6 you could also Resign, or offer a draw, and not checkmate them, and if it is timed, u could let your clock run out for a 4th way to not win.

Not true.  The problem statement is "White TO MOVE and not mate Black".  If you don't make a move, then you haven't followed the instructions.

kontoleon
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