Hey chessdragonboge
Nice article you have written here! - As a ~1750 chess tactician, it's nice to get some advice. I do feel like we do understand the way to think about, and solve tactics equally. Perhaps this is a little misleading, and perhaps the article is better geared towards beginner players / sub 1500- tactical rating users on this website. But huge applause for the great article!
Kind Regards
Hvidbergen
Hi guys,
Here is a short guide (from my experience) on how to get your tactics trainer rating higher.
1. Don't only focus on time.
Although chess.com tactics trainer is time-based, if you only focus on time and try to quickly make a move in 5 seconds, then you will most likely get it wrong. A correct answer still always give you more points than a fast but wrong answer.
2. Assess the position briefly - the whole board
What I mean by this is basically look for material count and king position and just in general the whole board. First, if you are down a rook, going for a tactic that wins a piece will not suffice as you will still be down the exchange. Second, if the king position is really open, then usually you should go for a king attack. Overall, you should look at the whole board as there could be threats and ideas that connect both sides of the board.
3. Look for threats
Look for threats from both sides. These can give you an idea of what your plan might be.
4. Look for forcing moves
When calculating, these moves often prove to be the strongest as your opponent is forced to respond to your moves. Forcing moves include any of the following: checks, captures, double checks, capture checks, etc.
5. Gains
Remember that checkmate is always the most desired result. Then usually the queen, rook, and so on. So, look for the moves that usually result in the most gain. This does not mean that every position yields a checkmating attack, but if your pieces are pressuring a destroyed castled king, those are usually the signs that you should go for an attack.
6. Simple Ideas
Many tactics at higher levels (1800-2000) involve a simple idea, whether it is geniune or just a simple trick. For example, if you see a free bishop, make sure that you briefly make sure it is a safe capture, then make sure that you don't have anything better. Also, make sure that a free bishop even gains anything for you (if you are down a rook for example).
7. Queen traps (and other piece traps)
Many tactics are based on these pesky queen traps. If the opponents queen is deep inside your camp, then usually it means that the queen could be trapped. If the queen can escape or there is a checkmating threat, then do not go for the queen trap but 9 times out of 10 a lonely queen on your side of the board means death for her.
Overall, have fun and keep doing those tactics! Remember, "chess is 99% tactics" - Richard Teichmann. Keep working on those tactics: www.chess.com/tactics
Thanks for reading,
chessdragonboge