Hey guys! 

When playing chess I am sure there are certain things that you look at in the game before you decide on a move. There are questions we ask ourselves before we decide on a move. As a joke we often say what would gary kasparov do (WWGKD)?

But kidding aside, please share some of the questions you ask yourself during a game. I am sure we can all benefit from you contributions. Maybe from this thresd we can develop a perfect algorithm for chess play!

Allons-y!

who is david?

One must know what is generally "good" i.e. two bishops on an open board or exchanging a knight for a rook, and what is generally "bad" i.e. doubled pawns or a trapped knight. Then understand how those element work in hamony.  For example, I may know that letting my pawns get doubled is bad, but the game I'm playing might be more about a swift kingside attack, making the doubled pawns inconsequential. go ahead and double them... checkmate.   I try to juggle the principles I know in my mind all the time.  almost letting myself "dream" of possibilities.  Then comes calculation.  Identifying new ideas and themes as they appear... that's PART of how it's done... so one must become familiar with more and more themes and standard possitions...  as far as "questions" go... it might look something like this...

1. What phase of the game am I in?

2. What " kind" of game is it? (open?, closed?, sharp and tactical? Slow and possitional?

3. What is the bishop/knight situation (and other pieces!) relative to the pawn structure/game?

4.  What about the exchanges?

4. Do I belive my army stands better, or worse? Why?

4. where are the pawn breaks?

4. Why did my opponent make his last move?

5. Are any pieces hanging  (in danger of being captured)

I'm sure this list could be almost endless...

than you for your contributions sir. I like the one about why the opponent did his last move. It is heartbreaking to know that the list is endless, but hopefuly we can find a few good ones that can help improve our game.

Bon chance mon ami!