Best Opponents

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Jklenear

I may be doing a blog soon about what kind of opponents one should play while learning but wanted to hear some thoughts here. Is it better play someone similar style but stronger than you  (say +200) or play a peer who has the exact opposite style ? I am asking for someone between 1800-2200 because below that a typical player is weak at everything or a certain level but above that players "style" depends mostly on their openings since they have a good grasp of everything.

General_McHorser

I think you should play something a bit higher rated than you like between 2000-2400 because they have lots of experience in chess and can adapt to lower rated players so they don’t just beat the heck out of you or you can play a chess coach

Jklenear

playing someone stronger does not automatically mean you will get better unless they are willing to help

General_McHorser

Yeah so just play a coach

General_McHorser

They are pretty good

General_McHorser

Or you can practice with a chess bot, i find them to be pretty useful

Jklenear

A chess coach isn’t in my budget and bots are a decent option but it still leads me back to the question of what style of bot should one play against

Thordelvalle

Bots Do Not Give You Elo.

MaestroDelAjedrez2025

The best player I've ever played against was IM Johnathan Han. He's 16 years old and has a classical FIDE rating of 2402

General_McHorser

Yeah i know bots don’t give you elo but they are for practice, also you can play against engines, they let you choose between like beginner to advanced

Jklenear

I prefer bots as you can have more consistent training. Against humans an interesting game can be ruined with a blunder & they play inconsistent in general.