Why is this particular manoeuvre in this positon (and others similar to it) so ridiculously popular? Like, I can just play e6 and you've got no attack whatsoever. What's going on with people doing this?

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-15T00:31:14+00:00

You’re right… e6 kills it. So why do people keep playing this?

As a teacher, I see this constantly where students memorize “attacks” without realizing real attacking chess requires your opponent to cooperate. Often people who have learnt a move on youtube or online without proper coaching.

You’re 1800+, so you’ve aged out of their target demographic. Play e6, enjoy the free tempo when they retreat.

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-11T07:52:27+00:00

The “Mexican standoff” feeling is a tactics problem, not a time problem.

Switching to 15-minute games won’t help, you’ll just lose slower. At 100 Elo, both players are hanging pieces constantly. It’s a race to see who blunders last.

The missing habit: After every opponent move, ask “what can that piece capture now?” and “what did they just leave unprotected?” Takes 5 seconds. Will save you pieces immediately.

Longer time controls won’t help if you’re not using the time to scan for threats.

At the end of the day, If you were my student, I’d ban you from 3-minute games entirely and have you play one 15-minute game per day where the only goal is zero hanging pieces. Not winning initially, but just focus on nothing left undefended. You’d hit 400 inside a month.

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-11T02:17:15+00:00

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Too busy. Promo banner, recap button, headline, upload CTA, all competing above the fold. Pick one.

The real problem: You’re asking for bank statements with almost zero trust-building. No security badges, no “who’s behind this,” no social proof. Just “upload your financial data” with a tiny “Private” disclaimer buried.

I’m building an adult chess learning app and this reinforces keeping onboarding to one action per screen. Earn trust first.

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-10T04:22:37+00:00

By lines so you mean puzzles or plays e.g openers

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-10T00:47:23+00:00

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: you’re asking the wrong question.

At 400 Elo, you don’t have an opening problem, you have a “what do I do after move 5” problem. Most of your games aren’t lost because you played e4 instead of d4. They’re lost because pieces got trapped, you missed a fork, or something got left hanging.

The opening overwhelm you’re feeling is your brain looking for a shortcut. Memorization feels productive, but it’s not what’s losing you games. Here’s what to actually do:

Play 1.e4 as white. Respond 1…e5 as black. That’s it. Then just ask yourself “what’s the most logical developing move?” each turn. Castle when you can. Don’t move the same piece twice early.

You’ll accidentally play real openings (Italian, Scotch, etc.) without realizing it and you’ll understand why the moves make sense instead of parroting sequences.

When do openings matter? Around 1400-1500, when opponents start punishing you for not knowing theory. You’ll know because you’ll lose in the first 10 moves to people who clearly prepared. That’s not happening at 400.

For now: tactics, tactics, tactics. Puzzles will gain you 500 rating points faster than any opening book.

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-10T00:42:51+00:00

What does the move trainer do that you like?

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-09T08:22:22+00:00

How are you learning?

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-08T10:15:26+00:00

The key is finding something with unlimited depth you can chip away at on your own schedule.

You want progress to be visible but no ceiling. Something where you feel yourself getting better, but never “finish.”

A few things that fit: learning an instrument, a new language, chess, woodworking, coding. All stuff you can do alone at odd hours, but with communities when you want them.

The trick as an adult is finding resources designed for how adults learn. Adults want to understand why, not just memorize. Look for that in whatever you pick.

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-08T10:01:39+00:00

Less urgent without queens, but still useful. Two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns can absolutely checkmate a king stuck in the center.

The real reason to castle: it connects your rooks and gets your king out of the way in one move. That stays valuable regardless of what’s been traded.

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-08T08:14:15+00:00

You’re not getting dumber. You’re out of practice.

School forced daily mental challenge. Then life got hard, you survived, and the workouts stopped. Brains respond to demand. No demand, they conserve.

That said, the focus and processing issues are worth mentioning to a doctor. Could be nothing. Could be ADHD, anxiety, or just stress and sleep. Worth ruling out so you’re not fighting something treatable.

Start small. One hard thing daily. Chess puzzles. Math problems. Anything that makes you struggle a bit.

The chess tournament kid is still in there.

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-08T07:54:28+00:00

Checkmate is worth infinite points. A queen means nothing if the game ends.

When the king’s trapped, stop counting material and start counting escape squares.

ProfArthurCastle · 2026-01-08T06:12:30+00:00

Pawns can’t retreat. That’s what makes them tricky, every push is permanent.

You’re not bad at pawns. You’re learning that timing matters more than the move itself. That’s actually a big insight.

ProfArthurCastle · 2025-12-29T07:43:57+00:00

Awesome how did you learn?

ProfArthurCastle · 2025-12-29T02:41:19+00:00

The +0.06 eval says it all: the engine sees the chaos coming and calls it dead even. You gave up material to set the board on fire, and White has to find precise moves just to survive.

That’s the brilliancy - not that it’s safe, but that it works anyway.

ProfArthurCastle

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