THE THREE QUESTIONS Improving play and move selection criteria. 10-questions reduced to three questions for brevity and memory association in a real game The original 10 questions 1. What does my opponent want? 2. What happens if I pass ? 3. What's the least I must do to stop it? 4. Improve my worst piece. 5. Restrict their counterplay . 6. Control key squares . 7. Avoid helpful trades . 8. Prepare my plan safely. 9. Check hidden tactics . 10. Does my move help them? The reduction to 3 questions 1. What is my opponent trying to do, and what happens if I ignore it? This merges: What does my opponent want (1) What happens if I pass (2) Does my move help them (10) Check hidden tactics (9) Avoid helpful trades (because trades often help their plan ) (7) This becomes the entire prophylactic awareness module. 2. What is the least I must do to limit their plan and restrict their counterplay? This merges: What’s the l...
Posts
Outlining Initial Position Strategy steps
Outlining Initial Position Strategy steps Purpose: Establish the strategic logic before calculating. You cannot properly assess a position without answering the three questions. This makes you look at the position differently by not trying to "solve" it with moves but to familiarize yourself with the strategic characteristics of the position in an abstract way. This is vital for understanding and will eventually lead to better decision-making, better play, and a higher quality of games. Freeze - Identify - Key - Compare - Hero - Square - Check - Move ✔ Q1: Strategic Aim - What is the position demanding? - Attack • Defend • Improve • Restrict • Transform ✔ Q2: Direction - Where must the plan occur? - Kingside • Queenside • Center • File • Diagonal ✔ Q3: Color Complex - Which color of squares matters? - Light squares or dark squares? - Which side controls which color? Step 1 — Freeze the position Step 2 — Identify the dominant color complex Step 3 — Find th...
How to study Openings
Here is a well-known method to study openings, assuming you are serious about it. First, Experiment in rapid and blitz to see what you like. You may be able to skip this having past experiences with openings, but it might be useful. Note: No opening book. Once you have a working framework, you want to familiarize yourself (refresh) with the openings by playing through about 40-50 pro games in that opening, not really going through the annotations, but more at a decent pace. This will give you a refresher on how the middlegames and endgames come about from your opening, and give you an idea of the main lines and what is being played. Note again: no opening book. Next, try the opening(s) out in friendly or club games and experiment with them yourself. Even against a chess computer will be fine. The idea here is to experience the opening "under fire" and get more comfortable with it. Make note of where the game goes sideways in the opening. Note again that you...
Karpov's 7 timeless reference points for evaluating a position
Karpov's 7 timeless reference points for evaluating a position Stage one: Comparative analysis. Material relationship between the forces Presence of direct threats Position of the kings, their safety Possession of open lines Pawn Structure, weak and strong squares The centre and space Development and the position of pieces Stage two: choosing a plan. The choice of an attacking or defensive plan in any situation is determined by an objective evaluation of the position. And although these positions are different in terms of their specific features, for each of them there are defined rules about the methods of battle in better (1), worse (2) and equal (3) positions. 1 In better positions – with an advantage in development – you should try to prevent your opponent from completing the mobilization of his forces. To achieve this you should choose, as the opportunity arises, moves that present concrete threats, forcing your opponent to waste time and energy deflecting ...
Priyomes
What is a Priyome? First the definition. Priyome ( Russian : приём ), also spelled " priem ", is a Russian noun that is used directly and generically in English to represent some sort of typical maneuver or technique in chess . For example, a typical defensive technique ("priem") in rook endings is to use the king to attack the opponent's pawns . [1] The Russian word "Priem" is used more generally to refer to typical maneuvers used in positions with certain pawn structure or other defining characteristics. The term is pronounced "pree-YOHM" in both Russian and English. ~ Wikipedia
Black/White to Move and Win Here is a good exercise I lifted from a recent book I read. I've started doing this with the The Week in Chess files I download every week, located at The Week in Chess Downloads . Load up the TWIC pgn file into your favorite database. Fire up a decent chess engine. Go through GM games (both sides) that are a win result (i.e., skip draws), starting about 10 moves or so back from the end. Note the victor - White or Black - that is who you will be playing. Find the point in the game where your chess engine shows the victor being up > 2.00. (This can be adjusted to a lower or higher value depending on how you want to set up your practice: +/- of 1.00 would more difficult to win, and higher values would be easier to win.) Here is an example. (26) Agdestein,S (2565) - Bacrot,E (2710) [E73] FIDE World Cup (1), 2013 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Be2 0-0 6.Bg5 Na6 7.Qd2 c6 8.Nf3 e5 9.0-0 exd4 10.Nxd4 Nc5 11.f3 Nfxe4 12.Nxe4 Nxe4 13.f...
Specialization #6
Specialization #6 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 g6 4.0-0 Bg7 5.c3 Nf6 6.e5 Nd5 7.d4 cxd4 8.cxd4 0-0 9.Nc3 Nc7 10.Bg5 h6 11.Bh4 * Black has a couple choices here: a) 11....Nxb5 12.Nxb5 a6 13.Nd6!? - What does white respond with after 13...g5. or b)11...g5 12.Bg3 Nxb5 13.Nxb5 a6 14.Nc3 d5! This is a fun position to play against your computer from both sides.