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Tactics

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dpnorman

I am not a good player because my tactical skill is very low. I attack sometimes but if i didnt blunder and miscalculate things all the time then i would be a good player. I suck.

Heres an example:

MoonlessNight

chesstempo.com has free tactics if you want to train. Aside from move 9 however, you were doing well gaining space, controling the center, and developing your pieces.

dpnorman

Heres another one. I feel like such an idiot

MoonlessNight
dpnorman wrote:

Heres another one. I feel like such an idiot

That is what your problem is. If you feel like an idiot then you'll play like an idiot. Be confident in yourself!

dpnorman

Well i think the opposite is the problem. If i keep playing like an idiot then i will feel like an idiot

dillydream

You are not an idiot, you're just like all the rest of us.  You just need to slow down your moves, and really think them through first, looking for all the bad things that might happen next.  You don't have to be very clever to do it, it just takes practice.

chapablanca2000

Maybe you just need to ask yourself the right questions (always a good approach to learning and to solving problems, I think.). After every move, you should ask yourself, "Why did my opponent play that? Can he capture anything? Does he have any checks? How can I defend against that?"  Or more subtely, "Do I actually NEED to defend against that?"  

Also, with a little practice, you will learn to quickly spot themes that help you find the right moves. 

dpnorman

Well just asking questions like that on every move is so tedious that i cant force myself to do that

GhostNight

First of all, you are not an idiot, Just the fact that you like playing chess tells me different!  What I see first from your games, you are not afraid to be aggressive! When its premature, then you will be punished, sometimes it is wiser to retreat then to hold your minor piece being attacked. Try to think development and not try to attack too soon, even if your opponent is on the attack early in the game because it is also premature and you can build off this with a strong defence which will equate to stronger calculated attack further on in the middle game.  

dillydream
dpnorman wrote:

Well just asking questions like that on every move is so tedious that i cant force myself to do that

That's what I thought when it was suggested to me, but if you give it a good honest try, you will find that it becomes so automatic after a short while that you don't even know you're doing it ... and your chess will improve.

dpnorman

No thats impossible. I cant make myself play that way. Grandmasters dont, so why should i?

ChaoChinKun
dpnorman wrote:

No thats impossible. I cant make myself play that way. Grandmasters dont, so why should i?

But they do.

Irontiger

In fact every one of White's move from move 6 weren't great. On move 9 I would have played hxg3 (nothing seems better) but I think Black can take the exchange and survive.

The fact you did not notice the hanging rook will go automatically better. Better chess players do not have to think to see which square is under which piece's control. Grandmasters don't even consider blunders when thinking, exactly as casual chess players don't even consider rooks moving diagonally - that's almost subconscious.

AnnaZC
chapablanca2000 wrote:

Maybe you just need to ask yourself the right questions (always a good approach to learning and to solving problems, I think.). After every move, you should ask yourself, "Why did my opponent play that? Can he capture anything? Does he have any checks? How can I defend against that?"  Or more subtely, "Do I actually NEED to defend against that?"  

Also, with a little practice, you will learn to quickly spot themes that help you find the right moves. 


Sometimes, I ask myself questions but cant seem to figure out why my opponent did that, sometimes I do, but I ask the wrong questions

it is not always about being an idiot when we blunder,

a. there are times where moments of lethargy creeps in

b. not willing to see the whole board when we getting too confident or too fearful,

c. getting distracted by public warning systems, other peeps moving around, unnecessary roadworks, smell of food (happens to me often), those who keep slurping on an empty Big Gulp knowing full well that there is nothing left

d. and finally anger management issues 

Smile

ivandh

Only an idiot refuses a little work if he really wants to improve.

waffllemaster
waffllemaster
dpnorman wrote:

No thats impossible. I cant make myself play that way. Grandmasters dont, so why should i?

Certainly, you're right.  You don't have to ask yourself questions.

But to get better it's absolutely required to stop and think about the position.  You don't have to repeat the words "why did he do that" but you do need to critically examine your opponent's last move, every move.  Otherwise as in game one, he may hang a knight and threaten a rook all in one move and you'll ignore both.

Also as others have said, this becomes more natural over time.  Also you're not stupid :p

AAA117

You should completely give up on chess for the rest of your life.

StrategicPlay

Thanks for being honest. 

boglejubo

on youtube they have the old tv chess series from 1982, where it actualy shows you the gms talking about what theyre thinking about, and they think like everyone else has too, just more accuratly and clearly.