Learn How to Mate in 3: Exposed King Fork
This middlegame puzzle shows how an exposed king can be punished when the defender’s pieces are overloaded and the king’s shelter is weakened. The key idea is to use forcing moves to drag the king into a mating net, often with checks that also create a fork or remove a key defender. Even if material looks balanced, king safety can outweigh everything when the attacking pieces are coordinated and the opponent’s back rank or escape squares are limited.