Shortest-proof-game challenge

#940

tygxc, you've been shortening a lot of positions. Why haven't you done anything with this one? At 78 moves, you should find it easy to shorten.

https://www.chess.com/forum/view/more-puzzles/shortest-proof-game-challenge?page=43#comment-61200569

Here is a hard one:

#943

It looks hard. I'll try to solve it if you'll try to shorten the one I linked at #942.

#944
Here it is already

1 move shorter...

I knew you could do it. Maybe you could shorten it a little more. Here's a proof game for your position, to prove it's legal. I won't be trying to shorten it. The trick to this position is finding the right black piece to block the back-rank check of the white king. The missing black knight seemed like the obvious choice, but I couldn't make it work--that way left White without the needed waiting moves. When all other choices fail, the one that remains must be right. I guess I have a thing for 78-move games.

#947

#946
Kudos on finding this. 78 is probably the shortest: I could match it in different ways, but not make it any shorter. That king on e8 may look lazy, but he did a lot of workout. In fact this position was composed to be a draw. The last pawn move or capture is 27...g6, so on move 78 white can claim a draw by the 50 move rule.

I can surely shorten #945 by a few moves, but it has 77 moves and many interactions and every time I work on it, I seem to get interrupted and have to start all over again.

#951

#945
Another move shorter

I'm glad people stopped interrupting you so you could work on this position. I posted it on May 20 here

https://www.chess.com/forum/view/more-puzzles/shortest-proof-game-challenge?page=29#comment-60550737

and for two months couldn't get anyone to even try making a proof game, or to shorten it after I posted an unoptimized proof game..

#954

#955
You do not know if people tried and failed or did not try in the first place.
It is not that people interrupt me less, it is that I changed to a more modest strategy just aiming for one move shorter instead of trying for the shortest game in one try.
Here is another move shorter

This legal double-stalemate position (neither side has a legal move) was posted in the Illegal Position thread, but no attempt has been made to shorten the 53-move proof game given there.

#959
50 moves