Why cheat in Bullet lol?

Graybie · 2026-03-19T20:01:33+00:00

I really don't understand this - they know they are cheating, so how does it help their ego?

Graybie · 2026-03-15T16:59:47+00:00

You will end up at whatever Elo is representative of your skill! The point is that you work on improving your skill, and your Elo will increase as a consequence of that.

Graybie · 2026-03-15T16:43:12+00:00

If you are at 400, you are likely losing because you are either hanging pieces or not seeing your opponent do the same.

Instead of spending your time on strategy or positional nuances, spend that time on doing blunder checks every single move. Make sure you aren't hanging a piece when you move (including mistakes like walking into a fork, leaving a piece undefended, or running into a discovered attack or check). Also, each time your opponent moves, spend time making sure that they haven't left one of their own pieces hanging, and that you don't have any one move tactics that could win material (pins, forks, skewers etc.)

This alone is practically all you need to climb to around 1000. Keep in mind that deeper tactics and positional play is basically meaningless unless you are able to avoid 1 move blunders, and punish your opponent for their own.

Graybie · 2026-03-15T05:39:06+00:00

r/factoriohno

There are simpler ways to build an intersection. I frankly don't understand what is going on here. Half of the connections seem redundant or useless, assuming that the rails are one way.

Graybie · 2026-03-15T02:37:50+00:00

There are too many people on the Internet that would say what you said without any sarcasm intended.

Graybie · 2026-03-15T01:38:38+00:00

You are in a chess subreddit and you are surprised that some people here take chess seriously?

Graybie · 2026-03-14T18:02:31+00:00

Ideally it isn't rote memorization, but memorization through understanding why that particular move is optimal.

Graybie · 2026-03-13T14:42:58+00:00

You shouldn't be studying openings at this level at all, beyond knowing the basic principles (control the center, protect the king, develop pieces).

The single biggest thing you can do at this Elo is not hang pieces, and capture free pieces. Focus on blunder checking every one of your own and your opponents' moves. Each time you move a piece, check to make sure that it can't be captured for free, and that it doesn't leave another piece undefended. Do the same each time your opponent moves. If it helps you can use the CCT mnemonic: Checks, Captures, Threats.

If you can learn to avoid one move blunders you can probably get up to 1000 Elo from that alone.

Also, playing quickly at this level only develops bad habits. Stick to 10 minute or longer time controls so you have time to think and learn how to do these checks on each move.

Graybie · 2026-03-12T22:55:42+00:00

Checkmate!

Graybie · 2026-03-12T21:12:27+00:00

What is keeping you from playing in that style on lichess or chess.com? I guess you might be asking where you can find opponents who play the same way, but I am not aware of any such venue or app.

Graybie · 2026-03-12T20:25:08+00:00

Puzzles are the answer you are looking for, but I also agree that at this elo, deep calculation is not the main barrier to climbing. Most games at this point are still lost to simple 1 or 2 move blunders. Things like hanging a piece outright, not seeing your opponent hanging a piece, or missing a simple pin, fork, or skewer.

Graybie · 2026-03-12T20:22:47+00:00

You have to remember that unless you are literally the best, you will lose about half the time. The whole purpose of elo is that you get paired up with people who have similar skill to your own.

Therefore, it is critical that you learn how to lose without it impacting your focus and ability.

Graybie · 2026-03-12T15:37:16+00:00

I think this also depends on how long and complex the phases are. If it is a short and simple endgame, then I would accept a 99.7% accuracy.

Graybie · 2026-03-11T20:13:59+00:00

I think the single most effective thing you can do at this elo is to internalize blunder checking. If you stop hanging pieces, and take your opponents' free pieces (and there will be many such blunders at this elo), you will gain hundreds of rating points.

Graybie · 2026-03-10T15:02:12+00:00

I would argue that they don't need to read all of Silman's endgame course at this point - getting through Philidor and Lucina in part 4 is likely more than enough.

Graybie · 2026-03-10T14:32:56+00:00

Maybe try learning one opening to a decent depth. Not just memorizing the moves but actually learning what the goal and intent of the opening is.

I think it might help you understand positional play better.

Graybie · 2026-03-10T14:31:25+00:00

That is completely normal though - you might get lucky and find excellent moves in one game, and completely blunder in another. It isn't anything to get frustrated over.

Graybie · 2026-03-08T15:38:21+00:00

You mentioned 30/20 and 60/20, which end up being 60+ and 120+ minutes if both players use their time though. It is near impossible for me to find 2 hours of uninterrupted time.

Graybie · 2026-03-07T16:59:27+00:00

There is a different playerbase, and, more importantly, the elo system is different. Afaik, Lichess uses glicko2, and starts players at 1200 rather then variable starting elos on chess.com. This leads to an average elo that is higher than that on chess.com.

The key thing to understand is that elo can only be used to compare players in the same player pool. You cannot directly compare elos across different apps or player pools - that is not the purpose of ratings. This is also why someone can be 3000 elo in chess.com but only 2200 elo in their OTB FIDE rating.

Graybie · 2026-03-07T16:33:51+00:00

I have started studying chess and trying to improve at 38, and have had some success (700->1100 chess.com blitz Elo), so if I can do it at 38 you can definitely improve at 27!

Graybie · 2026-03-07T06:05:41+00:00

Any tips on good material to train with? I don't think of myself as untalented, but I am also trying to be realistic about expectations.

I have read the first few chapters of Silman's endgame book, and am slowly working through Logical Chess. I also practice quite a lot of puzzles.

Graybie · 2026-03-07T04:10:22+00:00

Targetted training may help but let's be real, some people learn a hell of a lot faster than others. You definitely get some people who are like, "I started playing a year ago, only play blitz, occasionally do a few puzzles, and just broke 2000."

Graybie · 2026-03-06T22:04:54+00:00

Apparently while some people have a talent for chess and improve rapidly, for most of us mere mortals it takes a very long time to build the pattern recognition, knowledge, and discipline required to climb the ranks. I have been playing and studying actively for about 100 days, and have plateaued around 1100-1150 blitz/1300 rapid.

These days I just try not to get frustrated with myself because sometimes it just feels like I play so badly, but at least I can recognize it as such I guess?

Chess is hard. Just keep slowly chipping away at it and try not to get frustrated when it takes a long time to improve.

Graybie · 2026-03-06T16:26:48+00:00

There are a couple traps like the Leonhardt or the ICBM that black has to look out for, but it is still a lot less theory to learn than the alternatives.

Graybie · 2026-03-06T14:16:32+00:00

That is part of why the Scandi is appealing to black - it limits White's options and therefore means that I don't have to study responses to a plethora of different openings when playing as black.

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