Checkers Puzzle for 25 October 2026 — Red to move

The idea

A shot uses a sacrifice to change the arrangement of the opposing pieces. Offering a capture can draw a defender away, clear a diagonal or place a target where a second piece can reach it. Captures are compulsory, but that does not mean the opponent must take the particular piece you offered: another capture or another branch may be available. Check every legal reply before calling a sacrifice forced. Then follow your intended recapture to its final landing. Count what both sides have given up, and check for crowning or another compulsory capture before deciding whether the combination has paid off.

Red to move. Red has 8 men on 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 12 and 19; Black has 5 men on 20, 22, 27, 28 and 29. Red has 3 more men than Black. Red has a man in Black's half of the board against 0 coming the other way. Red has 10 legal full turns to compare: 0 capture lines and 10 quiet choices. A capture chain is one turn, even when the piece changes direction. Look at its final landing square before committing to the first jump.

Solution: 19-24 28x19 11-16 20x11 7x16x23x32. Red plays 19-24, offering the man on 24. Black must take 28x19. Red plays 11-16, offering the man on 16. Black must take 20x11. Red jumps 7x16x23x32, removing the men on 11, 19 and 27 and crowning on 32. After this combination, Red has 5 men and a king and Black has 2 men. The game continues from this position. One continuation from the search is 29-25 1-6 25-21 12-16.

Alternative 1-6: one sample line is 1-6 27-24 19-23. The board then has 8 men for Red and 5 men for Black. Alternative 5-9: one sample line is 5-9 27-24 19-23. The board then has 8 men for Red and 5 men for Black. Compare these sample lines with the solution and check other legal replies before judging the resulting position.

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