How To Get Your First Brilliant Move: The Complete Guide
There's just something satisfying about seeing those two white exclamation points on a brilliant teal background. It's even more satisfying to see a move - YOUR move - light up in teal and see a little brilliant symbol show up on your screen. Many people have experienced this pleasure, this sense of accomplishment, and others haven't. So whether you're trying to get your first or trying to add to your portfolio, you're in the right place. Let's jump in!
Intro: How Brilliant Moves Work
As someone who's played more than a few brilliant moves, I can safely say I know a thing or two about how they work. Brilliant moves are sacrifices that the ordinary player your level would likely not see. Therefore, while a sacrifice might be brilliant for a 400-rated player, it might not be for a 1100-rated player that played the same move. Thus, getting a brilliant move gets harder the higher rated you are. It's also important to note that a sacrifice that can lead to any, even a hard-to-see consequence, is not brilliant. In fact, this would likely be a blunder. Remember, a brilliant move has to have a 100% chance of success, so calculate every possible outcome. Stockfish analyzes based off of algorithms that delve many moves ahead, so ANY risk taking would likely disqualify you. Also, a sacrifice in a position that you are winning in is not brilliant.
So, How Do I Get One?
Glad you asked! There are many ways to get a brilliant move. The easiest way is to analyze your position.
1. Analyze Your Position
Take a look at your position. Are there any attacks you can perform? Is there a piece that is getting in the way? Try sacrificing a piece to lure it away. It just might be brilliant! Are there some temporary sacrifices that can win material later on? Try them! In an endgame, especially for lower-rated players, sacrificing a pawn to create a passed pawn can be brilliant as well.
Can you spot the brilliant sacrifice I (965-rated) played against my opponent?
2. Use Some Textbook Sacrifices
Another way to get a brilliant move is to try some common sacrifices. These sacrifices stem from common positions and include:
1. The Greek Gift
The idea of the Greek Gift is simple: Sacrifice a bishop to expose a castled king. To my knowledge, this is brilliant at least up to 12-1300 elo but it definitely could be more.
2. Deflection Sacrifice
In this sacrifice, you sacrifice a piece to deflect your opponent's piece and win material.
Above is an example of this sacrifice. White sacrifices its rook, forcing black to capture and promoting.
3. Use a Gambit
There are plenty of gambits that will get you that brilliant. I have linked one below and will explain the other.
1. The Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Gambit
(CLICK LINK TO SEE GAMBIT^ )The Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Gambit involves sacrificing two pieces to win a queen and can lead to up to two brilliant moves! While I encourage you to read the whole thing, as there are many sneaky responses, the uninterrupted gambit can be found in the conclusion of the linked article.
2. The Alien Gambit
