Australian Junior Chess Championships 2015 Guided Chess Problem Composing Competition Submit your entry to peterwong{at}ozproblems.com by 7th December 2014. Please include in your email entry: 1. Full name 2. Year of birth 3. Male/Female 4. Street address 5. Email address 6. Do you expect to compete in the 2015 AJCC chess playing event? 7. How did you hear about this event?

Task 1

Mate in 2 (unsound) The position shows a mate-in-two problem, but it is unsound. There is no solution because the intended key 1.Qxc3! can be defeated by a particular black move. 1. What is the black move that defeats the key by stopping White from mating on the next move? 2. Give White’s mating threat that follows the key, and the resulting four variations (black defences and white mating replies). 3. Fix the position in the simplest possible way, so that the same key is not foiled by any black move. The four variations should work exactly as before.

Task 2

Mate in 2 (incomplete) The diagram shows a nearly completed mate-in-two problem. All of the pieces on the board are placed correctly, but it is missing two pieces: a white queen and a white bishop. Add these two pieces on the right squares to finish the composition. The resulting problem should be solved by one key only. When the key is played, White threatens a queen mate on d5, and the main variations are 1…Bc4 2.Ng4, 1…Be4 2.Nc4, and 1…Kd4 2.Nd1. You must work out the remaining variations which stem from other black defences. More than one arrangement of the white queen and bishop is possible for creating a sound problem. These various settings have different keys but the subsequent variations are the same. Pick the best setting based on the idea of a provided flight. A prominent black king move like 1…Kd4 (i.e. accessing the flight-square) should preferably have a white mating reply provided for it, even before White has played the key. In other words, 1…Kd4 2.Nd1 should work as a set variation in the initial position of the completed problem. 1. On what squares do you place the WQ and WB? 2. What is the key? 3. Give the remaining variations.

Task 3

Mate in 3 (with a dual) This mate-in-three problem is solved by 1.Qg4! White threatens 2.Qe4, and Black has three defences that create the following variations. 1…c4 2.Qf5+ Kd4 3.Nb5, or 2…Kc6 3.Qb5. 1…Kc6 2.Qa4+ Kd5 3.Qe4, or 2…Kb6 3.Qb5. The third defence 1…Ke5, however, leads to flawed play because White has multiple ways to continue:  2.Nc8+ Kd5 3.Ne7, or 2…Kf6 3.Qg6.  2.Kg7 (threat: 3.Qe4) Kd5 3.Qe4.  2.Kg6 (threat: 3.Qe4) Kd5 3.Qe4. Such alternative white moves that work equally well – known as a dual – are usually undesirable in the solution of a problem. Fix the position so that the dual is removed, i.e. after 1…Ke5 only one white move will force mate on the third move. The other variations (after 1…c4 and 1…Kc6) must be preserved. 1. Modify the diagrammed position to ensure that only 2.Kg7 works. 2. Modify the diagrammed position to ensure that only 2.Nc8+ works. 3. Which of the two modified positions would be the better problem, and why?

Task 4

Mate in 2 (matrix) The position shows the matrix or scheme for a mate-in-two problem. Imagine that the black king has been immobilised, and that White has played the key-move which threatens a particular mate. Now Black has three moves that prevent the threatened mate, but they also unpin the white queen, leading to these variations: 1…c3 2.Qe4, 1…Nd3 2.Qb7 and 1…Ne3 2.Qf8. The unpinning of the queen in a variety of ways is thus the main idea or theme of the problem. Complete the construction of the problem so that these main variations work as planned. Add the appropriate pieces to the board to achieve a sound position, using them to confine the black king, arrange a white mating threat, and so on. You can also move the existing pieces of the matrix, though that may not be necessary. Ensure that:   

Only one key forces mate in two moves. The key creates a threat that is stopped by the main defences, 1…c3, 1…Nd3 and 1…Ne3. Each main defence allows only one queen mate, e.g. after 1…Ne3, 2.Qf8 should mate but not 2.Qb7.

The completed problem should also have additional variations that do not involve unpinning the queen. Preferably, these less important variations will utilise white pieces that are already required for other purposes. This problem can be completed in more than one way; choose the best one you can find. 1. Provide the position of the completed problem. 2. Give the key and its threat. 3. List any additional variations.

Feedback Please send us your feedback, either now when sending your work, or afterwards when you have seen the answers, which will be made available later: 1. Did you know what was required, that is, did you feel that you understood the questions? 2. Was the amount of work required about right for you, or was there too little work, or too much work? 3. Was there a good range of levels of difficulty, from easy to hard? If not, suggest how this could be changed in the future. 4. Please make any other constructive comments.