Black to play. White mates in 3 against every move on the board but one, and finding it only buys the next one. There is no take-back.
About Defend
Defend is a free daily chess puzzle from Mind Loft, and it is the other half of a mate puzzle. You are Black, White is threatening checkmate, and your job is to find the one move that survives. Tap a piece and its legal squares light up, so you never need to know chess notation to play.
On every board, every legal move loses to a forced mate except one, checked by three independent solvers. At least five of them answer the immediate threat, which is what makes the board hard: the moves that look like a defence mostly are not one. Then you play the position out, and White's answer leaves exactly one move that survives again, because finding the save is not the same as holding the game. Any legal move can be played and none of them are taken back.
A new position drops every day at midnight Eastern, and Sundays step up to a hold for four. No app, no signup, play free in your browser, keep a streak, and race the daily leaderboard. More dailies: Mate, the same puzzle from the attacking side, Check, our daily checkers shot, and Four, our daily Connect Four position.
Defend, in short
How do you play Defend?
White is threatening mate. Five moves look like they answer it and exactly one does, and finding it only buys you the next one.
Is Defend free to play?
Yes. Defend is free to play in your browser on Mind Loft, with no app to install and no account required.
When does a new Defend puzzle come out?
A new Defend arrives every day at midnight Eastern time, and Sundays bring the Sunday Edition, the biggest or hardest board of the week.
What kind of puzzle is Defend?
Defend is a daily endgame puzzle from Mind Loft: black to play and survive. Puzzle type: chess: defend the mate. It is part of the daily chess puzzles lineup.
Can I play past Defend puzzles?
Yes. Every past Defend board is in the puzzle archive, a tap away by day.
What other daily chess puzzles does Mind Loft have?