Puzzles needed for tactics trainer

Heya everyone,

Wow, two big tests later, and it seems like a lot of action was going on here! Nice to see all of these updates and fantastic tactics.

Here's my next contribution, I also added an easy sideline with it. The position is altered from one of my games, as usual.

Here's a nice little 3-mover that's all forced

future US junior Champ Schneider misplays a Dragon and suffers the typical fate of Dragoneers after poor moves on 14 and 16.

I'd start the trainer after black's 15th, all of white's moves are substantially better and forcing than the alternatives.

This was a G/75 game, I would start after black's 15th:

LegoPirate, thankyou for a lovely puzzle. It needed only a minor easy change (removing the a pawn) to prevent a4 as an alternative advantageous move.

74th puzzle http://www.chess.com/tactics/server.html?id=453473 

Shoopi, no kidding about taking a while. I thought only +0.4 compared to 0 for the next best move, went to the toilet whilst thinking what wording to use to reject the puzzle, and on returning discovered Rdg1 +13 with the next best move Qg5=.  c5! made me feel queasy and inadequate. 

76th puzzle http://www.chess.com/tactics/server.html?id=104346

Because only very high rated puzzle solvers will be attempting this puzzle, they will be able to understand the continations quite easily (with your annotations), otherwise the problem wouldn’t be conclusive enough. 

75th puzzle http://www.chess.com/tactics/server.html?id=253765

is your easy sideline. I have put a link to the impossible so it is seen by others rather than just the gods.

100%, top of the class for your diagrams, starting with the computer move, and providing nice explanations in the text so I could just copy and paste everything into tactics trainer quickly. Thankyou for saving me so much time. 

NajdorfDefense, your last puzzle has spawned another

73rd puzzle http://www.chess.com/tactics/server.html?id=298463

hessmaster, puzzle1 has to start later to avoid ambiguity. 

77th puzzle http://www.chess.com/tactics/server.html?id=342353 

Now, let's reverse it.

do you approve this? Thanks

Hi, here's a few more. Not all that spectacular perhaps, but maybe still useful.

Black's 48th http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=30031245

Possibly continuing with 49..Rb6 50 Rxa7 b2 51 Ra8+

White's 33rd, http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=31575909

White's 16th, http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=41809413

Black's 38th, http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=20464595

Black's 12th, http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=48980462

In the last one, the difference isn't quite 2.5 compared with the second move, but white wins a piece, and I think it is clear there's no other line that gives an immediate advantage.

hessmaster 2nd puzzle. It needed a few alterations to remove advantageous alternatives.

78th puzzle http://www.chess.com/tactics/server.html?id=468499 

3rd puzzle is ambiguous. 1.Bg4 (+5)

You might of all guessed there is a limit to how fast I can look at your submissions particularly if I have to work on a problem to remove ambiguous lines or allow a problem to continue far enough. 

There will be times when I can't look at puzzles for 2weeks or more. I also need to spend more time studying openings etc. I look at each submission in turn so you can tell which one I'm working on by looking at my last post.

Perhaps the more experienced submitters could help those just starting by looking at their puzzles and sending them private messages with improvements to allow the original submission to be edited (or even deleted) before I get to it, and let me know in a message so I can wait for the edited version to appear. If you edit your post, please thank whoever helped you. Don't add a new post because I won't see it until it is too late. Keeping the thread uncluttered will help speed me up by not having to search through extra pages.

I shall spend less time explaining why a puzzle doesn't work and rely on others to answer questions, as there are now many of you capable of answering questions on ambiguity, conclusiveness etc. If the number of submissions continues to grow as it is, I will need help to make the TT problems. I would hope that some of those on this thread would be allowed to become an approver like me (and probably be a lot better at it). If you have successfully submitted at least 7 puzzles which required a minimum of alteration by me, and have shown your ability to help others, then send me a private message, and I could send a recommendation for you to become an approver (no promises). 

Najdorf,

Thankyou for these 3 submissions. I learnt a lot looking at them. They are very educational. It is a real shame I couldn’t see how to make them work as TT puzzles. I tend to delete/move pieces only when my limited tactical ability can see an easy way of removing ambiguous lines. 

Nice little 3 mover : the first move is too easy. The hardest moves of a problem should ideally be at the start. The second move would be a good start for a puzzle but it doesn’t have a conclusive continuation (white can’t be allowed to be mated so easily).

Dragon puzzle : 4.Nd5 has 4.gxh5 as a winning alternative so unfortunately the puzzle can’t continue to a conclusive finish. 3…Rxf8 also has a choice of winning moves for white. Remember no alternative better than 0-3-1.0, ideally <0.3.

G75 puzzle : unfortunately 5.Nd5 has winning alternatives. The alternatives must be given a value by Houdini of less than 1 for puzzles I’m looking for.

Hi Katonas, no problem, I didn't understand the alternative had to be <1, not just over 2.5 pts worse. Got it now.

katonas, 

I just created a self-composed problem. I edited MANY lines and removed all alternative lines. 

I haven't analyzed it using any engine, but I feel a mate doesn't have to be analyzed if it's forced and the quickest. 

Or am I missing something really important? 

modification of one of my games:

a sideline of one of my games:

sideline of the previous one:

nyLsel, thankyou for a nice endgame puzzle. It has to start 1 move later as Ng5 is mate in 4.

79th puzzle http://www.chess.com/tactics/server.html?id=198391 

The reverse puzzle is ambiguous as 1.Nc5 is mate in 7

Please try to start your puzzles with the computer move.