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Frosted Board

Puzzle #35: Four in a Row

  • DifficultyHard
  • To moveLight
  • TaskWin in 4
  • Main line7 half-moves

Light to move after 13 discs, with 0 columns already full.

Connect four within 4 of your own moves. Exactly one column starts the win; any other lets the opponent off.

What the position is about

  • quiet move — The key move threatens nothing directly; it prepares a threat that cannot be met.
  • horizontal four — The four that wins lies flat, along one row.

Finding the way in

In four-move wins, track which spaces become playable after each forced block; the final double threat often appears two rows above where you start.

Before you touch a piece, list every forcing move you have and every threat the opponent has; the answer is almost always on that short list.

Show the first move

Start with e3. Played out against the stiffest resistance, the whole line goes: e3 a3 a4 d5 b2 d6 b3.

Solve it and the next puzzle of the same game is one tap away. Your solved puzzles are ticked in the list, in this browser only.