Caro-Kann Smothered Mate
Spot the mistake, then find the punishment
Starting positionWhite to move
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The temptation
5...Ngf6 is the move that springs the trap. Developing the g8 knight and attacking White's central knight looks natural. Black overlooks the change Qe2 has made to the e-file.
Why it works
6.Nd6# checks the king on e8. The e7 pawn would normally capture a knight on d6, but Qe2 pins it to the king: moving it would expose an e-file check. Every flight is occupied by Black's own queen, knight, bishop or pawns. The mate depends on that absolute pin, not on the knight being geometrically unreachable. A normal developing move becomes a blunder because Black has not answered the threat introduced by Qe2.
The pinned pawn cannot capture
Qe2 pins e7 to Ke8. The pawn attacks d6 but cannot legally move; Nd6 is therefore mate against the king surrounded by its own pieces.
How to avoid it
After 5.Qe2, break the pin with 5...e6 before developing ...Ngf6. Alternatively, choose 4...Bf5 instead of the ...Nd7 setup.
The opening behind it
Learn the sound version of this line and the trick stops being tempting.