Chess Talent Test Puzzle

[@GMIgorSmirnov]

💡Understand Chess Like a PRO. Get GM's Positional Understanding - online.chess-teacher.com/course/the-grandmasters-positional-understanding/

[@ABWEndon]

The instructor said that the knight cannot land on a square "attacked" by the queen. Also, he didn't say that the queen could not be attacked. The square (d4) is not technically being "attacked" by the queen, because she is on it. Therefore, laterally thinking, the knight could move to d3 as part of its route to c1, attacking the queen on its way. So, I went Na3, Nb5, Nxd4, Ne2, Nc1. Does that count?

[@prabhabisht9680]

Same I thought this same thing, and it happened in 5 moves and within a minute, I thought I'm next magnus ...lol

[@wuyaya7849]

Lol I did it before he even finished telling me what to do :/ tho I did the take queen method

[@Prororo]

That doesn’t count

[@joustmaster_69]

Na3,Nb5,Nxd4, Nb3,Nc1 also works.

[@bardsamok9221]

He assumed people had enough common sense to know the queen isn't a piece you can take. If you could take the queen he'd have said so. The game is about moving the knight. Pedants

[@sharpvidtube]

I did it in under 2 minutes, but in 11 moves, going all around the Queen.

[@infiniteheygtre4580]

Same

[@adriaanadriaan]

Me too, I circled the queen two times, thought it was rather cool

[@Abidos234]

I managed to find the sane solution as yours (most likely!) in about 10 to 15 sec.

[@vlaekershner7305]

@@Abidos234That probably means you have the potential to be a great blitz player.

[@Abidos234]

@@vlaekershner7305 Perhaps, perhaps...

[@GMIgorSmirnov]

► Chapters 00:00 Do you have the chess talent? 00:11 Puzzle to test your chess talent 01:10 Is this talent test legit? 02:03 Ability to visualize & calculate 02:38 1st solution: The Knight Maneuver 04:38 2nd solution: The Knight Maneuver 05:42 Your talent determined based on time taken 06:20 Improve your chess skills & talent

[@cmck362]

Got it in 5 moves. I just took the queen then went to c1. Not sure if that's cheating or not. The rules were that the knight can't go to any square controlled by the queen, but the queen doesn't control the square that she's on.

[@drizap8015]

No point finding a loophole in the rules, you know very well you can't just take the queen, the whole puzzle will be pointless then

[@namedperson1436]

The rules did only state that you can't stand where the queen can capture you. But apart from that solution it is nice to find a way to waltz around to the right square in accordance to the strictest interpretation of the rules

[@cmck362]

@@drizap8015 Actually I didn't know I couldn't take the queen. I listened to the rules as they were stated then paused it. Figured out pretty quick that the most direct path involves taking the queen then called it done. I watched the rest of the video and was baffled that both solutions avoided doing that. I actually thought that it was supposed to be simple and the time it took dictated how good you were.

[@kargs5krun]

@@cmck362 You aren't by any chance, related to one, Captain James T. Kirk ??? #startrek

[@rickdesper]

Kobayashi Maru logic.

[@westonkramer8800]

28 seconds, but I missed the part where it had to be in 9 moves, so I took a longer path around the queen!

[@SuperGlobalKiller]

Lol, 10 seconds but 11 lol

[@xaron_2513]

@@SuperGlobalKiller same lol

[@borysthecuber7339]

I did it in 3

[@pokepros2733]

@@borysthecuber7339 no you didnt lmao

[@indigochild2.098]

so u didnt do it then

[@Gesund-xi7fx]

Sie apparently I am a Chess Genius and a Future GM, solved it under 30 secs in 9 Moves. Now I just have to dedicate 16 hours of my Time Daily to study openings and tactics and go regularly to chess tournaments for the next 10 years to become a GM! Yay!

[@octojofoJR]

I did it very quickly, about 20 seconds but I went completely around the queen in a circle, COUNTER-clockwise (in other words starting at the end square) with a little bit of a zig zag in the third quadrant to land on the proper square... 11 moves totally though. I then re-traced it twice forward to double check my work but those times were only about 5-7 seconds each. All of this while just looking at the board, no touching with the mouse.... I felt pretty proud of myself - and surprised, honestly. My visualization has improved greatly in the last year or so... I hadn't realized by how much. 😃

[@octojofoJR]

My notation ability is really lacking, QUITE slow! If I had to write it down it would probably add 5 minutes! lol... Well, at least a couple... 😏

[@GMIgorSmirnov]

Awesome! Great hear. Thanks for sharing. I am sure it will be very useful for other chess players.

[@vaclavkolar5892]

Same, but I didn't go around, instead went similar to the first method: B1, A3, C2, E1, F3, G5, F7, H6, F5, G3, E2 and C1. Also the first thing I did was backtracking from C1 to some 4 moves and than went from start, knowing where I need to end up

[@Huwskie]

I figured it out! Na3, Nc2, Ne1, Nf3, Nh2, Nf1, Ng3, Ne2, Nc1. I’m so happy I was able to figure it out. Took me a good 6-7 minutes of analyzing the board(kinda bad) but I did do it!

[@bryanvanduck]

I got the knight there in five moves. A3, B5, D4, note that the knight can't be captured by the queen because the queen has been captured. From there, just E2 and C1, and you arrive on the fifth move.

[@jaybingham3711]

Alright Captain Kirk...enough already.

[@ywik4925]

It can be done in seven moves as well. A3 , b5 ,a7 , c6 ,a5 , b3 , c1

[@dr.destroy_clash_royale4279]

A7 covered by queen

[@jimkyle8008]

I found the first nine-move solution about two minutes. After that, I found an 11-move solution by starting with a3 and b5 and circling clockwise round the Queen, but didn't look for a quicker solution after these opening moves.

[@philipallen1505]

Darn it! i did it in 5 moves in about 10 seconds and assumed I must be a genius. This is because I attacked and then captured the queen as you said the Knight couldn't go on a square attacked by the queen, but nothing about the square she was on. Now I know the solution so can't try it properly 😭 love you videos though, thanks for the tips !

[@KiloMinx]

SAME 😭

[@joeytoofly5139]

I did the exact same thing my killer instincts kicked in lol

[@Chaosmite]

You didn’t specified we can’t take the queen or the queen couldn’t move. So I first said it’s impossible if the queen moves because after a3, queen moves to d3 and no matter where white moves, queen takes. Then I thought if the queen can’t move, then in 5 moves since you’ll take queen in move 3, then next two moves will get you to c3.

[@NotPublicAegis]

38 seconds, with a3, b5, NxQd4, b3, c1 but I wasn't sure if that was allowed and I wasn't able to get a solution before you showed it

[@andreaskampmiller7756]

B1-A3-C2-E1-F3-G1-E2-C1 : 7 Moves, the Merry-go-around on the right side is not necessary...

[@petetaylor9758]

G1 is attacked by the queen; sorry.

[@michaelsanchez7798]

I am not that great at the game but I did it in less than 3 minutes with 5 moves. I took a more literal interpretation of the rules, "not controlled by the queen." a3, b5, d4(occupied by queen but not controlled by her), e2, c1.

[@kargs5krun]

Go "round the clock" was first instinct once quickie way was not doable.

[@teambellavsteamalice]

yeah, my instinct was it was some sort of trick question and you had to find a way around the queen. But I moved from the end square (two moves) and around the queen trying to end there. But I forgot or doubted I had the right squares a few time so I kept retracing my steps when they didn't match up right away. I think it took between two and three minutes. 😕

[@chewy560]

Is also possible in 9 moves

[@kargs5krun]

@@chewy560 "round the clock" also in 9 moves.

[@PhyFlame]

The presentation of the puzzle appears to have a flaw. On my first solution I took the queen on my way, as a piece never attacks the square it is standing on. (1.Na3 2.Nb5 3.Nxd4 4.Ne2 5.Nc1) During my second attempt I solved it in 13.37s (Yes I timed it because of curiosity), but noticed afterwards I stepped on an illegal square. (1.Na3 2.Nb5 3.Nc7 4.Ne6 5.Ng5 6.Nf3 *7.N.g1* 8.Ne2 9.Nc1) On my third try I got it right after 10.13s. (1.Na3 2.Nc2 3.Ne1 4.Nf3 5.Nh2 6.f1 7.Ng3 8.Ne2 9.Nc1) I looked on the position on the board without the red arrows.

[@elektron2kim666]

After a lot of games it might be a thing you want to learn better. Finding a path for the knight for 1 square is certainly something. We can also detect a checkmate plan earlier.

[@KeithDCanada]

9 moves in 35 seconds: A3, C2, E1, F3, H2, F1, G3, E2, C1 I initially started by going to the target square, C1, and locating the three squares that would allow me to finish there, then worked out a quick route along the bottom of the board that would end me in one of those squares.

[@shadowsama585]

Puzzle 2 moves - 1. Nb5 , 2.Na3 , 3.Nc2 , 4.Ne1, 5.Nf3, 6.Nh2, 7.Nf1, 8.Ng3, 9.Ne2, 10.Nc1 I did it without seeing and my age is 11years , is it good ?

[@amusik7]

It took about a minute or two to solve - first I tried a few different paths and always seemed to end up in the starting square, so instead I decided to trace the route in reverse: I asked myself "In order to land in this square, where could I have come from - aha - and then where did I come from to get here.. etc." and then the puzzle solved itself automatically.

[@capaldi328]

Third solution - 9 moves, found it in under two minutes. (a3) (b5) (c7) (e8) (g7) (h5) (g3) (e2) (c1)

[@Want2Laugh2]

I did it in slightly over 24 seconds but I know for a fact I could never reach the GM level, at best after years of dedication id be an IM so idk if this is a good way of determining talent

[@tomtoss2463]

I did it in 11 moves: Na3, Nb5, Nc7, Ne6, Ng5, Nf3, Nh2, Nf1, Ng3, Ne2, Nc1. 30-60 seconds.

[@nwstraith]

Hmm, I figured it out in about 30 seconds. Started by considering if this was a kind of funky puzzle where the knight has to do some crazy acrobatics around the board to get there. Quickly realized I just needed to look at how to get to the final square and connect the forced first move with one of the entry paths to the final square. Easy after that.

[@namedperson1436]

Damn. I found a solution in 13 moves in about 2-3 minutes. The idea was to maneuver the knight to where I had most space to maneuver which was north east of the queen.

[@vancebocas7626]

Yeah, I did something similar to his 2nd version, but I went all the way to f8 and then came back to b3.

[@patrickfinney2623]

This was great! Is their a book with more of these type of puzzles?

[@voidusername7384]

I had found an 11 move answer in between 15-30 seconds, didn’t even notice the other 9 move versions.

[@LackOfBrain]

I did it in 5 moves: a3, b5, xd4, b3, ctook me around 1.30 minutes

[@Rmason3156]

solved it in 2 ways first was in 5 moves a3, b5, d4xQ, b3, c1. but i felt like capturing the queen was not part of the real solution, then was b3 , c2, e1, f3, h2, f1, g3, e2, c1

[@TruthSurge]

I have no chess talent but I solved it in 2 tries. You have to jump LEFT at the upper left when you have 2 choices then go around clockwise. Okay, I tried to retrace it and realize that I suck at chess and should move on with my life!

[@thanos5105]

hey i know you would think i am lying but i think i found the first solution in 13 seconds so now what do i do?

[@Chraan]

Buy some chess books, read them, and become world champion in 2023

[@kalistadrake5226]

I believe you. It took me about that long too.

[@yehiazaglol6170]

Me too it was too easy

[@kalistadrake5226]

@@yehiazaglol6170 For a little bit tougher of a puzzle, try the one with four pawns and a Queen. That one is good too.

[@yehiazaglol6170]

@@kalistadrake5226 thanks I tried it It was a bit harder but I managed to solve it

[@mcwolfbeast]

I found an 11-move solution very quickly (20 seconds or so) which I don't know where that lands me in talent? I didn't look for other solutions once I completed the task.

[@Hawke301]

It can be done in 5 if you take the queen (a3, b5, xd4, b3, c1). You didn't say we aren't allowed to capture the queen.

[@MattrickBT]

I figured it out in about 20 seconds. But my solution had 11 moves, not 9 like the other 2. Since there was no stated stipulation on fewest moves possible or specific number of moves, what does that say? I went: 1.a3, 2.b5, 3.c7, 4.e6, 5.g5, 6.f3, 7.h2, 8.f1, 9.g3, 10. e2, 11. c1

[@baldurorlygsson6193]

It¨s also 9 moves if you move all the way around the queen. 20 sec.

[@edreusser4741]

Knowing how to solve problems in general really helps here. We can tell it's going to be 8 or 9 moves within a few seconds by noticing that the queen splits the screen into quadrants, each of which will have to be visited. At that point, it only takes a few seconds to map the required moves.

[@Bob94390]

Except, of course, that a solution doesn't need to involve all quadrants. Feel free to watch the video. And except of course that we can see immediately that the solution cannot be 8 moves, because in each move you switch colors so therefore in 8 moves the knight will be standing at the same color as it started.

[@larsdahl5528]

I may admit I used a little over a minute (finding the first of the later shown solutions), something that did cost more time for me was that I was slow to understand the question, and I got stumped a bit due to I did not feel anything prevented me from using the square the queen was on, only the assumption "that would be too easy" made me look for another solution.

[@eldsflamma8094]

na1, nc2, ne1, nf3, ng5, nf7, nh6, nf5, ne7, nc6, na5, nb3, nc1 about 1 minute

[@danielwang2405]

b3, c2, e1, f3, g5, h3, g1, e2, C1!!! are there multiple solutions beside the 2 you mentioned?

[@carolinejoybarnhart3717]

Number of moves weren't specified and the first solution I found was roughly 45 seconds dancing around the queen. So less optimal but totally fit the conditions.

[@gametheus1306]

Took me about half a minute. A3, C2, E1, F3, H2, F1, G3, E2, C1. Really just did the mental trial and error one move at a time

[@iantimmis651]

I spent like 25 seconds figuring out my solution (didn't even pause video), but it was a bit longer. Went to A3, B5, C7, E6, G5, F3, E1, C2, A3, B1. Had the knight running laps like a race horse

[@Chesstastic5000]

hmmmm, idk if this problem is a good one for calculation. Because you can just look for the endpoint and solve to get the knight there. Because all you have to see is that the only way to get the knight to c1 is by getting the knight to e2 or a5. The a5 route is probably the most deceptive though. But maybe that is part of calculation. I wouldn't know hehe.

[@maverick627uk]

Honestly, I don't play much chess and don't have experience of playing regularly, but in my head it took under 2 mins. How does that fare with the average etc? Great channel and very easy to understand. 👍

[@GoofierFella]

It’s more like memory

[@gamerzmusic7115]

Na1 Nb5 Nc7 Nf5 Ng5 Nf3 Nh2 Nf1 Ng3 Ne2 Nc3 11 move For the Puzzle number 1, That's the solution i found Forgot to count the time😅

[@kalistadrake5226]

It took me 15 seconds on the 1st solution. After that, I didn't even look for the 2nd solution. Then I thought "Why not just take the Queen?" ha ha! Seriously, nice puzzle and thanks for sharing. It's nice to know I'm a genius! :) Keep the puzzles coming! They are a lot of fun!

[@flyingmonkey3822]

Haha, a3,b5,kxd4,b3,c1 5 moves

[@kalistadrake5226]

@@flyingmonkey3822 Right!! :)

[@borysthecuber7339]

Queen only moves if she can capture your knight, you are the knight. Under 1 minute, FOUND THE BEST SOLUTION 3 MOVES 1: Na3, 2: Nb5 OR Nc2, 3: Nxd4#.

[@TomBarrister]

I can do it in one move by pretending that the Knight is an Empress.

[@treasurehunt1705]

Took me right around 15 seconds id say after trying to go around the queen i tried again. I'll notate in an edit but thanks for the puzzle. Edit NA3 Nb5 Nc7 Na6 Nb8 Nc6 Na5 Nb3 and finally Nc1

[@virtualDon]

"Your knight can never stand on a square ATTACKED by opponent's queen" Therefor the simplest and quickest solution is Na3, Nb5, Nxd4, Nb3, Nc1 - 5 moves! d4 is OCCUPIED by the queen, not attacked by the queen!

[@atharvatripathi9919]

found a solution of 13 moves in 25 seconds also found a way to trap the knight in 1 move by playing Qd3 by black even if its white play only safe move for white will be Na3 you can still trap it with Qd3

[@BigDBrian]

the moment I saw the board I thought the idea was to trap the knight with queen d3 lmao. interesting that the exact same move works if the knight moves first.

[@stargazer2042]

I found it in 30 seconds, but lost it on retrace, then found it again.

[@Dmitriy_D]

Did it under 1minute. Good puzzle, thank you!

[@TurkishKS]

11 moves, just under a minute and a half. After figuring out I needed to do a knight loop, I just went clockwise around the board, looped in the top left corner and kept going clockwise. Didn't even consider doubling back. Ugh.

[@vilectro]

I solved it differently in 11 moves in about 3 minutes: B1 A3 B5 C7 E6 G5 F3 H2 F1 G3 E2 C1 Not optimal, but solved nonetheless

[@KasperVandenBranden]

I did in like 20 seconds but with another series of moves: Na3, Nb5, Na7, Nc6, Ne7, Nf5, Ng3, Ne2, Nc1. So there are 3 options. I hope you will see this comment.

[@tkmdota1102]

a3, c2, e1, f3,g1, e2,c1 seven moves and 15 secs

[@Sifo_Dyas]

I was between 15-30 seconds but I went completely around the queen and it took 11 moves, so how many seconds penalty do I get? (a3 b5 c7 e6 g5 f3 h2 f1 g3 e2 c1)

[@lukastux3024]

in the worst case, that would count as "not solved", because you didn't check for anything better. 15-30s is very impressive however even for the 11 move solution, so definitely you have got something!

[@jasoj4918]

you sure this test legit? i found the answer in 19 seconds exact this is an easy manuever with Na3, Nc2, Ne1, Nf3, Nh2, Nf1, Ng3, Ne2 and Nc1. Easy

[@pablogc2008]

Went all around the board in a different solution to the one you showed: a3-b5-c7-e6-g5-f3-h2-f1-g3-e2-c1. 11 moves. 31 seconds, but I still loose every game

[@richcline3355]

Nevermind, I lost in 4 moves

[@Logan-ck6ni]

Knight a3 to kb5 to kd4 taking the queen and then going ke2 and finally kc1

[@pedropiata648]

I did a visualization training who required a similar posicion and now i did 16 seg in the same move count

[@jacquesmainguy1]

Cool, I got a little a bit over 1 minute, in 9 moves. I actually simply went around the queen without even trying to backtrack. First obvious thing was that it would have to be an odd number of moves. Without the queen, it would have been 3, in a kind of circle. So I tried a bigger circle.

[@deadpoolchannel3353]

1.ka3 2.kb5 3.kc7 4.ke6 5.kg5 6.kf7 7.kh6 8.kf5 9.kg3 10.ke2 11.kc1 puzzle is solved

[@simonemazza3950]

For me it was 25 seconds, but by taking the queen (which technically cannot be "defended by itself" on d4)

[@АлександрМедведев-м9й]

I spent 30,6 seconds. Pretty good, eh? But it raises a question. I re-discovered chess less than a year ago and it became my passion. I went from 500 to 1100 in 10-minute games in something about half a year. Can I become a pro chessplayer? The thing is, I'm 33. Is it possible at this age?

[@mrblablablabla]

I solved it right as you were explaining it and did it in 5 moves.

[@MrRickkramer]

9 if you go around, 5 if you take the Queen. Not too hard to figure out the path on this one if you know how horse’s hop around…

[@SharkBaguette23]

12.28 seconds. na3 nb5 nc7 ne6 ng5 ng1 ne2 nc1. Is that it?

[@CamronPR377]

Just go all the way around the board. 1:34

[@averagebro413]

I did it in 4-5 minutes, because i started chess late my visualisation skills are not great, but i am still 2200 on lichess and improving a little bit

[@soresa1]

Haven’t played chess except maybe a few times in my life. Got a slightly different answer than these two but also took 9 moves in about 5 minutes.

[@davidquinn9676]

I took about a minute and did a similar maneuver, but in the upper right corner rather than lower right corner. Longer because all the way there and all the way back.

[@SevenTheJester]

I took the path up and down the left side of the board, and it took me 19 seconds. I really love these puzzles, though.

[@Abu_momo]

What about A3, C2, A1, B3, C1 5 Moves and I did in less than 20 sec.

[@MrDac0964]

Got it in 39.56 sec on my iphone and did it exactly as shown by GM Smirnov. 😀 Pretty proud of myself!

[@Inforza]

the movement with the knight was shorter then in my solution. I went to the upper left corner, where i did that manouver to get on the correct square and then i moved around the queen towards the upper right, bottom right and to the correct square

[@witheringhs7766]

took less than 30 seconds, i just realized where i'd have to be for the final jump and visualized the line backwards

[@premiumnewt9297]

I did it in 1:44.05 minutes, in 11 moves, going around the Queen.

[@braddrac]

About a minute in 9 moves, but looping around top of the queen instead of going up and down. I've had a couple drinks though, not sure if that helped or hindered.

[@MYPSYAI]

I could do this in time only by starting at the end and working backwards in my head

[@WaroqueB]

1:30 , same as first solution shown here

[@flinkultur989]

I did it in five moves. You didn't say the knight couldn't take the queen. 😄

[@petersmythe6462]

My immediate instinct is to just go Na3 Nb5 Nxd4 Nb3 Nc1 but that sounds like it's probably breaking the rules.

[@corny-mation9222]

About 40 seconds and I got it in 9 moves, first I quickly worked backwords from the square it was supposed to be in and found out 11 moves to get there and then later in like 12 seconds found out what I was doing wrong with the knight!

[@joepangia4413]

Well you didn’t declare at the start that part of the problem was to do it in the least number of moves possible so I found the 11 move solution a3 b5 c7 e6 g5 f3 h2 f1 g3 e2 c1 in about 50 seconds is that still good for a 54 year old :)? Somehow I doubt the Russian coaches will have any interest lol

[@liftiez9410]

I got a different solution, A3,B5,C7,E6,F8,H7,G5,F3,H2,F1,G3,E2,C1 which is three more moves than your two but still, took me about 40 seconds

[@lo_olblah8007]

So what does it mean if I solved it in 11 moves on my first try in 36.28 seconds? I did it in my head staring at a video paused immediately after you explained the rules. B1, a3, b5, c7, e6, g5, f3, h2, f1, g3, e2, c1.

[@lo_olblah8007]

I may have missed the part about 9moves in the rules

[@lo_olblah8007]

I originally paused the video at 0:58

[@AE86TruenoBurr]

I did it in 24 seconds, Its like easy because I focus on the squares where the queen will attack and find where I'm gonna be force to square

[@atifashhabatif8391]

I did it in a bit more than 30 seconds, but took me 7 moves. Is it the fastest? Na3 Nc2 Ne1 Nf3 Ng1 Ne2 Nc1

[@saimon174666]

Well, 5mins. I never manage to quickly visualize knight moves

[@sharpvidtube]

Same here, I find knight's so tricky. Often lose games to knight maneuvers. Thinking of every square it can land on in a sequence of moves, is tricky. I find it a lot easier to visualise with straight lines

[@GMIgorSmirnov]

You will get better with practice.

[@Nickanew]

I found Na3 because that's the only legal move Nc2, Nxd4, Ne2 then Nc1... I found this is in 13.41 seconds

[@lukastux3024]

Nxd4 isn't intended

[@sce2aux464]

Did it in 44 seconds...and in my next online game, I executed a brilliant checkmate along the d-file...with my bishop. 😳

[@di3gostars282]

I took about one minute and the path is Na3 Nc2 Ne1 Nf3 Nh2 Nf1 Ng3 Ne2 and Nc1

[@user_rt3g94t4jx]

Na3, Nc2, Nd4, Nb3, Nc1 It took me like 20 seconds