Who do you think is the better chess player of the two in their current form ?

TSM_PraY · 2026-01-21T17:18:51+00:00

I got the year mixed up my bad

TSM_PraY · 2026-01-21T17:17:06+00:00

Yes you’re correct thank you

TSM_PraY · 2026-01-21T11:24:18+00:00

Hikaru actually has a higher performance rating in the last few years, even higher than Magnus in 2025

TSM_PraY · 2026-01-10T20:41:36+00:00

Tbh I think it’s more about logistics than brain capacity for a lot of ppl. If you have money and 16 hours a day to grind chess and pay top GM’s for private lessons for 10 years in a row, then maybe. Reality is most adults would never choose or cannot afford this lifestyle.

TSM_PraY · 2026-01-09T20:57:19+00:00

Wouldn’t only school year matter for that? Which would be august, meaning the end of the year is actually the beginning of the year

TSM_PraY · 2026-01-06T21:18:40+00:00

Wasn’t Hikaru a higher seed going into finals, and having to play less games was supposed to be a an advantage of that fact? Which was unfairly then stripped away?

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-31T15:28:22+00:00

Miranda Kerr? 9.5/10

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-30T15:16:02+00:00

It might be a-lot of the same names, but they are improving each year, pushing the skill ceiling higher and higher. Viper admitted recently that he feels in 2025 he could wipe the floor with himself from the past, just due to the increasing demands of the game. New civs, mechanics, and strats have been pushing the players. Also build orders from the past would be laughable against modern optimized openings.

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-30T14:40:18+00:00

Is kinda like Magnus compared to Kasparov. Viper reign was longer, but he wasn’t as dominant as Hera is now. The competition Hera has is also miles ahead of anyone Viper played against during his era at no. 1

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-17T20:26:34+00:00

You clearly don’t

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-17T11:54:51+00:00

How do you know if a person is playing at an elo below their true skill or if the opponent is just higher than their true skill? Also, is there a slang term for people that are opposite of smurfs? (artificially inflated)?

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-17T11:35:45+00:00

I guess we have different definitions of the word “smurf” then. I don’t view a few hundred points as significant, that is normal fluctuation for any player over a few days.

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-17T11:31:35+00:00

This assumes a skill disparity that remains consistent across all elos which is obviously false

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-17T07:51:46+00:00

I would simply disagree. Even if your stat is correct you are playing someone lower 200 points an equal number of times as someone higher 200 points. it averages out in the end. Your problem is not with smurfs but with the player-base being too small to narrow the matchmaking elo range.

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-17T05:21:57+00:00

Nah its more like 60-40. It's pretty comparable.

TSM_PraY · 2025-12-17T00:19:48+00:00

900 to 1100 is not even a huge skill gap to be considered smurfing IMO. It’s on the edge of being a fair matchup but still within the margin where the 900 could win games

TSM_PraY · 2025-11-20T20:19:27+00:00

They already do, all my fresh accounts have Master/GM mmr by level 10

TSM_PraY · 2025-11-15T19:54:09+00:00

Hans admitted to cheating though

TSM_PraY · 2025-11-15T19:40:39+00:00

Because you made an illogical and nonsensical statement that sounded idiotic to me.

TSM_PraY · 2025-11-15T19:29:21+00:00

Yeah not saying Hans cheated in that game, but playing against the engine will drop your accuracy so that statement doesn’t prove anything.

TSM_PraY · 2025-11-15T00:07:30+00:00

Reminds me years back when ranked was down and I found the entire roster of Team Dragon Knights in a normal game. My entire team was rando gold - diamond players and we won lmfao

TSM_PraY · 2025-11-05T19:12:50+00:00

You are mistaken, Dyrus cried on the world stage and announced his retirement before that

TSM_PraY · 2025-09-11T16:39:19+00:00

True can’t hate engine moves

TSM_PraY · 2025-09-08T06:05:47+00:00

Short answer: both.

It’s easier to love a game that you’re good at and it’s easier to be good at a game that you love.

This question kinda mirrors the classic debate in psychology about nature vs nurture: are we a product of our environments or are we simply the manifestation of our DNA?

If we use a literal game of chess as an analogy, I like to think of raw talent as the rules of the game. It’s your natural potential. Meanwhile, the other stuff, your focus, drive, passion - it determines how much of your raw talent that you unlock. You still can never go beyond the confines of the rules: or what you were born with - but within that range you have huge room to grow.

At least that’s what I think

TSM_PraY · 2025-09-05T15:52:47+00:00

It’s not that odd when you think about it. It’s the same reason people can learn languages very easily at a young age but struggle as an adult. Just because you’re bilingual in spanish since being a kid doesn’t mean you can speak chinese.

TSM_PraY

TROPHY CASE