Thanks!!
i can call myself a "Hyper-aggressive tactical prophylaxer" now!
Types of Chess Players
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I think you're really making an error when you assume that player style has anything at all to do with strength. I mean come on, hyper-aggressive players are weak and prophylactic players are gods on Earth?
You just have to look at all the chess world champions throughout history to see that style doesn't reflect strength.
I don't think you can really say what style someone has because unless they make a bad move, they will only choose the best/most accomplishing move out of the candidate moves. And practically everyone at a good level is able to play most openings well. so i suppose you could try to categorise styles by openings but then there are millions of variations.
On the other hand if a person tends to make a certain type of move inaccurate or not, i suppose you could categorise styles.
CalamityChristie wrote:
Thanks!!
i can call myself a "Hyper-aggressive tactical prophylaxer" now!
Should I ever play against you it will be extremely helpful to know that!
dinker9 said:
Prophylactic - This is a rare breed of player. They make a lot of "Zwischenzug's" as in: They always try to get another piece rolling out before they do anything. They are usually a mix of defensive and positional while slightly tactical. They are VERY strong players and believe it or not, Magnus Carlsen is this playstyle.
Karpov is another person who plays like that. Whenever I'm playing OTB chess, that's my style of play, except for I have a little bit of methodicalness in me.
How bout' the conservative? - Too lazy to go through more than two variations.
Carlsen may have studied with kaspy briefly but his style is a mix of both tactics and positional. Mostly positional. He was also STRONGER than Kasparov at the time they trained together. He could've won a serious match against him even then. Kasparov has
spoke of carlsens amazing positional understanding numerous times. History will tell.
Positional understanding != Positional player. Kasparov was speaking of Carlsen's ability to beat his opponents in the middlegames. Carlsen would make positionally better moves, even in very tactical middlegames.
Carlsen is good at all styles, that's why he's so good. He's a flexible player who can adapt his play based on the situation and can evaluate any position correctly (like Karpov), that may be why he's never lost to Nakamura.
VectorGambiteer wrote:
Positional understanding != Positional player. Kasparov was speaking of Carlsen's ability to beat his opponents in the middlegames. Carlsen would make positionally better moves, even in very tactical middlegames.
Carlsen is good at all styles, that's why he's so good. He's a flexible player who can adapt his play based on the situation and can evaluate any position correctly (like Karpov), that may be why he's never lost to Nakamura.
I've always wondered why Nakamura hasn't beaten him a single time. Makes him look like a pretty bad player for some reason since Carlsen is well-known for these wins.
During my relatively short 7 months of play I have noticed a few things about chess players. There are a set number of playstyles. Atleast until you become a GM then it's really hard to let your own playstyle shine. Here are the types of players I have seen during my play:
Hyper-Aggressive - The player that is always looking for that attack or the flashy sacrifice. These players are good, but only up to a point. Once you learn how to defend, these players really are not a problem anymore, they are only an annoyance.
Defensive: This is the player who is not usually looking for the win they are either learning how to defend better or trying to win a game methodically (a.k.a win in the endgame) They usually do not see tactics or attacks as well as other players. Yet they are very difficult to beat in longer time controls.
Tactical- This is the player that makes you think, or learn up on tactics. They are very dangerous to beginners and can cause serious serious head trauma. They are usually rather strong players as they see your potential tactics as well. However, they are vulnerable to attacks if material will not be regained in a short amount of time.
Positional - This is my own play style. They like to have as many of their pieces doing as best they can. Trading off the ir good bishop for the opponents bad bishop, or placing a knight on a weakened square. These types of players do give the opponent some trouble in creating any play while they have all the options right in front of them. However, I am a rather poor defender as I am usually up a rook and 5 pawns and end up losing somehow.
Prophylactic - This is a rare breed of player. They make a lot of "Zwischenzug's" as in: They always try to get another piece rolling out before they do anything. They are usually a mix of defensive and positional while slightly tactical. They are VERY strong players and believe it or not, Magnus Carlsen is this playstyle.
Methodical - Doesn't really prepare for anything and is a mix of everything. They don't have a set playstyle and aren't trying to decide the game in the middle. They are hoping to reach the endgame where they are the strongest.
These are really all of the playstyles that I can think of. I know there are more but i just haven't really seen them. I've only ever seen one prophylactic player in my time playing and I got CRUSHED. I was so constrained I could do nothing. Anyways, if you can think of any other playstyles let me know.