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I just played over this game with the Lasker book. <Helloween> describes the overall course of the game quite well -- I just wanted to focus on the diagram above, which arises after 33...Kd7. White has been storming the kingside for some time, but his attack seems to have come to an end. Black is a piece down but threatens mate, and 34 Kh2 Qe2+ 35 Kg1 Qe3+ 36 Kf1 Qf3+ leads to perpetual check.

If you play over the game to this point without knowing what's going to happen (as I did), a draw seems like the most legitimate outcome. Instead Lasker plays 34 Bxf5+! Qxf5+ 35 Qg4! Qxg4+ 36 Kxg4 Nxd5 37 Bd2!!

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(The obvious 37 Bg7 is met by 37...Ne3+ 38 Kh5 Nf5.) Lasker has combined his way into an ending where he is a pawn down and seemingly has a bad bishop. But his further-advanced kingside pawns and king, mobile bishop and (as it turns out) his extremely well-placed b-pawn give him a very superior ending, which he wins.

Two things strike me about the combination:

1. It takes real vision to see it -- not only are the tactics hard (for me) to work out, the idea of getting into an ending which looks so bad, and is at best incalculable, wouldn't even occur to me. For these reason this combination impresses me as much as any queen sacrifice.

37...Ke7 38. Kh5 Kf6 39. Kxh6 Kf5 40. h5

(40. Kg7 Nf6 41. g4+ Nxg4 42. h5 Nf6 43. h6 c5 44. Bc3 Nh5+ 45. Kf7 Nxf4 46. h7 Ng6 47. h8=Q Nxh8+ 48. Bxh8 d5 49. Ke7 Ke4 50. Kd6 d4 51. Kxc5 d3 52. Bc3 Ke3 53. Kb6 d2 54. Bxd2+ Kxd2 55. b4 Kc3=)

Lasker was more concerned with specific targets. He can see targets at g7 and h6 but he knows that he created a target for Black by leaving his a-pawn unprotected. To play 16.Rae1 he had to assure himself that 16...Qa4 would not be strong.

Black apparently agreed, seeing Q-traps after 17.b3!, e.g. 17...Qxa2?? 18.Ra1 Qb2 19.Rfb1 Qc3 20.Nb5 Qb4 21.Ra4 or 17...Qb4? 18.c3 Qxc3 19.Nb5 Qb4? 20.Bd2.