10 zugzwang positions rated between 1200 and 1399, averaging 1279. Each position below is from a real game, with the solution given underneath — so you can check yourself immediately rather than guessing whether you were right.
Zugzwang is the state where every legal move worsens your position — having to move is itself the disadvantage. It is almost exclusively an endgame phenomenon, and it is the mechanism behind most king-and-pawn wins.
These are pitched at 1200-rated players. Puzzle ratings work like player ratings: a puzzle rated 1200 is one that players around 1200 solve about half the time, so if you are getting most of these you should move up a band.
Solving from a page is good for pattern recognition but not for tracking progress. The rated puzzle trainer serves puzzles matched to your own rating and adjusts as you solve, and the Mistake Trainer builds puzzles from positions you actually got wrong in your own games.
Kg3 Kg6 Kf4 Kf6 Kxe4 Kg5 Kf3 h5 gxh5
Kg5 Kf7 Kh6
Kb5 Ke5 Kc4 Kd6 Kxc3
Rxe7+ Kxe7 Ke3 Ke6 Kd4 Kd6 g3 Kc6 Ke5
fxe5+ Kg7 g5 hxg5 Kxg5
Kg4 f5+ Kg5 Ke3 Kxg6 Kxf4 h5 Kg4 h6 f4 h7 f3 h8=Q
Kxf6 gxf4 gxf4 Kg4 Ke5
Ke3 b5 cxb5 Kxd5 b6
Kd5 Kc2 Kd4 Kd2 c4 dxc4 Kxc4
Bxe3 Kxe3 Kc4 d5 Kxd5
Train zugzwang puzzles at your rating →
Zugzwang is the state where every legal move worsens your position — having to move is itself the disadvantage. It is almost exclusively an endgame phenomenon, and it is the mechanism behind most king-and-pawn wins.
Puzzle ratings work like player ratings. A puzzle rated 1200 is one that players rated around 1200 solve roughly half the time. The puzzles on this page average 1279, so they suit 1200-rated players.
Yes. Every puzzle on this page, including its solution, is free to view with no account. The rated trainer that tracks your progress and serves puzzles matched to your rating is part of Chess Ramp Premium.