abcdefgh

Final position — Black is winning

Philidor's defence

Fischer trap

Black wins in 12 moves with a decisive material gain. (50 Opening Traps,Part 1 - Fischer trap - C41 - https://lichess.org/@/CHESSLUCAFD)

The moves

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bc4 Be7 4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4 Nd7 6.Bxf7+ Kxf7 7.Ne6 Qe8 8.Nxc7 Qf8 9.Qh5+ g6 10.Qd5+ Kf6 11.Bg5+ Kg7 12.Ne6+
1.e4e5
2.Nf3d6
3.Bc4Be7
4.d4exd4
5.Nxd4Nd7
6.Bxf7+Kxf7
7.Ne6Qe8
8.Nxc7Qf8
9.Qh5+g6
10.Qd5+Kf6
11.Bg5+Kg7
12.Ne6+

How the Fischer trap works

The Fischer trap is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Philidor's defence. In this line Black wins decisive material by move 12, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from White.

The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bc4 Be7 4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4 Nd7 6.Bxf7+ Kxf7 7.Ne6 Qe8 8.Nxc7 Qf8 9.Qh5+ g6 10.Qd5+ Kf6 11.Bg5+ Kg7 12.Ne6+. Each move looks reasonable, which is exactly why the trap is so effective over the board — White walks into it while trying to play "normal" developing moves.

This pattern is well known from master and correspondence play (50 Opening Traps,Part 1 - Fischer trap - C41 - https://lichess.org/@/CHESSLUCAFD). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as Black or sidestep it as White.

Practice this trap move-by-move

Open the Fischer trap in the Trapsterapp to play it out on a live board, drill it in practice mode, and learn how to avoid it when it's set for you — along with the full library of chess traps and gambits, fully offline.

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