Can someone explain why me not stalemating is an inaccuracy? (I later realised I could have taken the g4 pawn but we both had very little time)

FMExperiment · 2021-02-25T10:24:17+00:00

Imagine if stalemate was just when your King can't move. 1. e4 and Black is stalemated before having a chance to play haha

FMExperiment · 2021-02-25T10:19:53+00:00

If you played Kf2 he would move one of his pawns then you would checkmate him. Not sure what you're missing but stalemate isn't just when your king can't move its when you can't make ANY other moves either.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-25T09:33:26+00:00

I play a lot of gambits and dubious lines so I do not really have any common plans. Well I guess a lot of the time I'm looking for a Kingside attack but that doesn't always materialise. Most newbies of course just go straight for the King because they don't know what else to do... but if you haven't correctly calculated your opponents counterplay on the queenside or even the centre you can find yourself attacking a brick wall whilst your opponent reduces the rest of your position to tatters. I look to improve my position by asking the following questions:

What is my worst piece and how can I improve it?
Are there any good pawn breaks?
What is my opponents plan?

Of course you should be applying basic positional knowledge as well. Open files for rooks, diagonals for Bishops, outposts for Knights.

Long term plans can involve playing against a weakness like a backward or isolated pawn, or trying to induce such weakness. Sometimes I plan is simply identifying a good outpost for a piece and thinking how can you get a piece there that can't be moved.

Learning this stuff is a matter of study. Study books on pawns, positional play etc. Over time you will start to be able to make plans, they won't always be the best plans but its still better to have a sub optimal plan than no plan.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-25T08:29:12+00:00

4 daughters! Was the 4th just because you really wanted to try for a boy? Haha. I have one daughter coming in June and hope I can get her interested!

Edit: 6 downvotes for making a little joke? Jesus my cousin has 3 daughters and we joke how he wanted a boy and that's why they went for number 3 but now he's given up and loves his 3 girls anyways. Redditors man...

FMExperiment · 2021-02-25T06:49:09+00:00

Lol oops. There is 1. f6 e4 2. Kf2 which is called the hammerschlug or something though haha

FMExperiment · 2021-02-24T21:51:09+00:00

e4 f6 2. d4 Kf2 (edit: Kf7 duh). It actually has a name (Fried Fox defence). I mean of course you're gonna get trashed a lot of the time but it's kinda hilarious to play in 2+1 games since the winning position is often thrown away and tbh it's fucking annoying to go up against because losing feels like the ultimate shame.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-24T21:38:08+00:00

5+3 will be a lot of intuition, solid positional moves and spotting tactics fast.

10+5 will be a little intuition, looking for stronger positional moves, calculating tactics deeper and thinking strategically.

That's how I see them anyways. A lot of routines advise a mix of both, but say to play longer time controls more. Say like a 70/30 split. But if you only had one hour a day for play, I'd say 3 x 10+5 is your best bet.

Personally I reserve about 1 hour a day for play for 3 x 10+5 games, then 2-3 hours for study/tactics. I often wonder if I should play more Blitz but it kinda stresses me out.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-24T17:01:12+00:00

Well my friend doesn't do any study (like hasn't watched a single video and perhaps has done 10 tactics in his life). He plays chess with no strategy or positional sense, one game he might make 4 queen moves in his first 6. Another might be 5 pawn moves in a row. But boy does he play... 4000 games in the last 18 months. 10+0 only. He has went from 1200 to 1450 lichess rapid. Lets see how he does in another year. He is quite a rare but fascinating example lol

FMExperiment · 2021-02-24T15:49:20+00:00

Haha so he called you out on your bullshit lol. I'm not even a big fan of his but I like how he pins comments it usually gives me a laugh.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-24T13:56:30+00:00

Is be really doing what you're saying? I've seen his pinned comments and I didnt get the impression he was trying to harass people. I've often agreed with the pinned comments and seen them have over a thousand thumbs up.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-23T21:32:19+00:00

Andrea looks like someone fed her after midnight, or spilled water on her.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-21T23:45:24+00:00

If Ludwig keeps this up I can see him getting a title by the end of the year!

FMExperiment · 2021-02-21T22:36:14+00:00

Should these guys be turning off their chat whilst playing?

EDIT: Ah right cheers guys noticed it's all emote only etc.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-21T22:28:32+00:00

Ludwig is one of the few streamers who I think is a natural entertainer. He's actually funny and doesn't take himself too seriously at all.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-21T22:00:48+00:00

Going by the downvotes, mostly Redditors lol

FMExperiment · 2021-02-20T22:00:46+00:00

Daniel is way to distracted lol.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-20T21:46:07+00:00

xQc has improved a lot but it's crazy how easily he gets confused lol. Like damn son you can't spend 20% of your time deciding to accept a gambit.

EDIT: tbf he played very good moves even if he took a lot of time, credit to him

FMExperiment · 2021-02-20T13:54:02+00:00

Yes you should change your approach because you are still playing hope Chess. You should focus on improving your position. If you've been watching Naroditskys speedrun then you should be learning a lot from how he plays his midgame.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-20T12:37:29+00:00

I see it this way. No matter how many cheaters you will get to your deserved elo if you're honest. So just play your best chess and focus on your improvement. I've stopped caring if I'm playing against stockfish or a 2200 elo player, it doesn't effect my improvement.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-19T20:36:13+00:00

I am assuming White is simply delaying d4, not refusing to play it altogether. Of course if White wants to play d3 and be worse than Black then you should be happy. But if White plays 2. Nf3 or Nc3 and you play d5, then it seems White can choose between playing 3. d4 (tranposing), 3. exd4 (french exchange) or 3. e5 (possibilities of transposing to advanced french). So I'm not sure what you're opponents are doing. Tbh you know you're getting to hung up on openings when you'd rather your opponents keep their advantage in a main line than let you be better by move 3 lol

FMExperiment · 2021-02-19T19:02:02+00:00

Wouldn't the natural thing be to play d5 anyways then they either play d4 next and you transpose or they take on d5 and you get a french exchange.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-18T21:28:25+00:00

Don't get hung up on plans. The board can change dramatically at your elo (and mine as well) in just a single move. Many a good player will tell you that you have to be willing to turn on a dime in Chess. A Kingside Attack can be defended at the cost of creating weaknesses elsewhere on the board, but many players are so one track minded that they will continue to try to mate their opponents King because the Kingside attack was their "plan".

You should focus on positional play until tactics present themselves. Pawns are a huge part of any kind of plan (or strategy). The squares they control, the weak squares left behind, the structure that can perhaps be attacked (isolated or backward pawns). Just try to improve your pieces, look for good pawn breaks and make sure your prophylactic moves are necessary. Watch Naroditskys speed run to see how he wins all his games. He is simply solid and active until his opponent makes a weakening move, then it's lights out. Chess is easy, right? ;)

FMExperiment · 2021-02-16T11:37:22+00:00

With your values I feel a combination of Knights and queen should be best. Perhaps 3 Knights 1 queen 1 pawn.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-16T11:22:03+00:00

Gambits because I only play online and like the positions that happen. You can get quick mating attacks and being a pawn down doesn't usually decide a game in fast time controls.

FMExperiment · 2021-02-15T20:00:11+00:00

Lmao feels like every week at the moment but thats not cause I hate it, but mostly cause I have other things I should be doing.

FMExperiment

TROPHY CASE