The Christmas Puzzle, Part Three.

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PrawnEatsPrawn
-waller- wrote:

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;
Or close the wall up with our English dead.
In peace there's nothing so becomes a man
As modest stillness and humility:
But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger;
Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood,
Disguise fair nature with hard-favour'd rage;
Then lend the eye a terrible aspect;
Let pry through the portage of the head
Like the brass cannon; let the brow o'erwhelm it
As fearfully as doth a galled rock
O'erhang and jutty his confounded base,
Swill'd with the wild and wasteful ocean.
Now set the teeth and stretch the nostril wide,
Hold hard the breath and bend up every spirit
To his full height. On, on, you noblest English.
Whose blood is fet from fathers of war-proof!
Fathers that, like so many Alexanders,
Have in these parts from morn till even fought
And sheathed their swords for lack of argument:
Dishonour not your mothers; now attest
That those whom you call'd fathers did beget you.
Be copy now to men of grosser blood,
And teach them how to war. And you, good yeoman,
Whose limbs were made in England, show us here
The mettle of your pasture; let us swear
That you are worth your breeding; which I doubt not;
For there is none of you so mean and base,
That hath not noble lustre in your eyes.
I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips,
Straining upon the start. The game's afoot:
Follow your spirit, and upon this charge
Cry 'God for Harry, England, and Saint George!'


 

I'll hold your coat.

PrawnEatsPrawn

@ -waller-

 

Regarding post #20: You have White's fifth move wrong.

-waller-

Hmm, I suppose you can spend a couple of turns grabbing the pawn on e4 at that point.

Don't know if it helps though (or is even right); I'm still kind of snookered at the same junctures as before.

-waller-

New idea:

PrawnEatsPrawn

You need to think a while longer.

 

p.s. Yay! 10k member points!

PrawnEatsPrawn
-waller- wrote:

New idea:

 


Along the right lines.

-waller-

Ha, I probably won't be able to sleep tonight thinking about this puzzle. I'll come back if/when I have anything significantly more.

-waller-

Aha! That gives me something to work with at least.

Congrats on the 10k member points Wink

PrawnEatsPrawn
-waller- wrote:

Ha, I probably won't be able to sleep tonight thinking about this puzzle. I'll come back if/when I have anything significantly more.


I've solved the odd puzzle in my sleep. Don't remember even dreaming about it, just woke up with the key move.

Dark--Horse

I think the solution idea is to somehow win black's pawns, while preventing black from checking, then get him in a zugzwang position where any black queen move allows mate. I have no idea how to do that though.

PrawnEatsPrawn
Dark--Horse wrote:

I think the solution idea is to somehow win black's pawns, while preventing black from checking, then get him in a zugzwang position where any black queen move allows mate. I have no idea how to do that though.


Sounds like a plan. Wink

Caiello

Here's a beginning of the interesting idea ..... Qe6!

PrawnEatsPrawn
sarsaila wrote:

When you click in the original position on analyze, I thought that an analysis board should appear where you can actually play out the moves, instead of an analysis board where you can set up a position (and the original position is not set up there). Is this the way diagrams are intended to work?


I don't know whether they are intended to work this way but they do.

 

A trophy for you, as the sender of the first correctly reasoned solution.

 

p.s. If one right clicks on "ANALYZE" and then "Open in new window", one may put the analysis board next to the problem. This will greatly aid the setting-up of the analysis board.

PrawnEatsPrawn
sarsaila wrote:

Yes, I set up the board in position setup, but then it didn't let me play the moves (and back up).


It must be the way I set up the position.

 

ANALYZE seems to work perfectly in post #20 (by -waller-).

PrawnEatsPrawn
Caiello wrote:

Here's a beginning of the interesting idea ..... Qe6!


9. Qe6 leaves 9. .... Qd3 (0-1)

 

p.s. The right sort of idea though. Wink

Caiello

BIG EDIT: The Solution!

PrawnEatsPrawn

Second correct solution. (Yes, I gave too much away in post #37)

 

Nevertheless, you also get a trophy for persistence. Well done.

Caiello

Second correct solution? which was the first? am i missing something obvious?

PrawnEatsPrawn

Look out for Part Four tomorrow, when I plan to post a real stinker.Tongue out

PrawnEatsPrawn
Caiello wrote:

Second correct solution? which was the first? am i missing something obvious?


See post #34.

 

sarsaila PM'd me the correct solution about two hours ago (to allow others the chance to solve, without help).