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Frosted Board

Puzzle #9: Reversi

  • DifficultyEasy
  • To moveDark
  • TaskCorner in 2
  • Main line3 half-moves

Dark to move. There are 18 dark and 26 light discs on the board and 20 empty squares.

Force your way onto a corner square within 2 moves. The opponent sees it coming and will defend.

What the position is about

  • corner — The fight is about a corner square: once taken, it can never be flipped back.
  • edge square — The key move is on the edge of the board, where discs are harder to flip.

Finding the way in

Look for a move that leaves the opponent only replies that open a corner for you, or a disc that, once flipped, gives you a diagonal into the corner.

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 f8. Played out against the stiffest resistance, the whole line goes: f8 h1 h8.

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.