A king strangled by its own pieces
A knight delivers check; the king cannot move because every escape square is occupied by its own pieces. Nothing can block a knight check; knights jump over. The classic setup is a queen sacrifice that drags a defender onto the king's last flight square. Then the knight finishes.
Only knights deliver smothered mate; any other check could be blocked.
2 more clean runs (at any point) to reach Recall.
Black king walled in by its own pieces. Knight and queen ready.
Only knights deliver smothered mate; any other check could be blocked.
2 more clean runs (at any point) to reach Recall.