Sebastien Joie (aka Aariow)
International Master Extraordinaire
Meet Sebastien Joie, the International Master who has made chess battles look like an art form mixed with a sprinkle of tactical wizardry and a dash of relentless grit. Known in the online chess circles as Aariow, Sebastien’s games are a thrilling rollercoaster where opponents often feel like they entered a labyrinth with no exit.
A Career of Peaks and Pawns
Since 2017, Sebastien has blitzed through ranks with a peak Blitz rating soaring up to 2639 in September 2023—a rating that could probably solve quantum physics if given the chance. With over 2,600 Blitz games under their belt, this player doesn’t just play chess; they practically live it. Bullet chess? No problem. That peak Bullet rating of 2537 in late 2023 proves lightning-fast reflexes and razor-sharp intuition are core to Sebastien’s style.
Playing Style & Brainpower
Sebastien’s playing style is a marvel of patience and precision: an average of about 73 moves per game—whether winning or losing—shows an affinity for epic battles that unfold like chess novels. Known for a steady win rate (~56% in Blitz), they effortlessly juggle early resignations at a mere 3.6% (because why quit early when you can dazzle?).
With a remarkable 84.6% comeback rate, Sebastien has turned more lost positions into victories than a magician pulling rabbits from hats. Losing a piece? No sweat—there’s still about a 54% chance victory is around the corner.
When and How Sebastien Shines
Chess fans will find Sebastien to be a morning bird—playing best around 5 AM with a perfect 100% win rate recorded at 5 AM and 2 AM. A mysterious power hour, perhaps fueled by caffeine or quiet inspiration. The player prefers white with a 57.5% win rate, but black fights fiercely too at 54.25%.
Friday through Sunday are prime days for success, with win rates hovering around or above 60%. Strategic planning or weekend warrior spirit? We’ll never know.
Records, Rivals, and Reputation
Across thousands of games, Sebastien’s signature “Top Secret” opening repertoire has yielded a solid ~56% win rate in Blitz—enough to keep opponents scratching their heads. Fierce rivalries with usernames like sebthebest1 and speedluxus08 have crafted some of the most intense, sweat-inducing games around.
The Recent Gladiator
Just recently, on December 28, 2024, Sebastien wrapped up a stunning checkmate victory against a formidable opponent (with an elo of 2415!) in a grueling English Opening encounter. The game highlighted Sebastien’s unwavering focus and tactical awareness, ending with a flourish that screams “IM-quality!”
Off the Board
When not dismantling chessboards or collecting wins, Sebastien is probably concocting new strategies or marveling at the beauty of a well-executed queen sacrifice. One might say that the chessboard is less a battlefield and more a playground for their creative genius.
All in all, Sebastien Joie is the kind of chess player who makes learning opening theory, endgame tactics, and battlefield resilience a thrilling adventure. Whether a seasoned player or a keen enthusiast, keep an eye on Aariow — because the game is never quite safe when Sebastien is on the clock.
Sebastien, here’s your personalised post-match report
1. Quick Snapshot
- Current form: high-2200/low-2300 blitz with a peak of 2639 (2023-09-26).
- Typical session pattern: see and for your “hot” hours.
- Preferred structures: English/1 Nf3 systems as White, French & Semi-Indian setups as Black.
2. What you’re doing well
- Proactive pawn storms against fianchettoed kings.
In the 2024-12-28 win you launched …h5–h4 and exploited the weakened light squares with Bf3 and a mating net. Excellent feel for when to switch from slow manoeuvres to a direct attack. - Piece coordination in minor-piece endgames.
Your 2024-10-10 game showed flawless conversion of an outside passed a-pawn. The Rc4/Rc6–a7 plan is textbook. Keep nurturing this strength; it will pay off at higher levels. - Opening flexibility.
You comfortably alternate between classical (French, Ruy) and hyper-modern lines (Modern, English). This makes you tough to prepare for.
3. Main improvement themes
- Early-move resilience & connection checks.
Two recent losses ended after move 1. Even if these were connection glitches, always hit “Abort” or play a few safe moves before resigning. Free rating gifts matter at the 2400+ bracket. - Crisis management in sharp French positions.
In the 2024-09-24 loss (Ruy López → French-style structure) your …f5 break was courageous but premature; the resulting dark-square weaknesses were fatal. Before pushing the f-pawn, ask: “Do I control the e6–g6 complex?” A one-move pause with …Qd7 preparing …f5 would have kept the centre intact. - Time-handling in won positions.
Against wild3000 you were material up yet flagged. Train the habit of making a “safe” pre-move when your clock dips below 15 s, even if it’s a waiting move like Kg1–h2. Bullet-proofing technique turns 97 % into 100 %.
4. Targeted exercises for the week ahead
| Theme | Drill | Goal |
|---|---|---|
| French dark-square defence | Load 15 puzzles where …f7-f5 is playable and not playable. Identify the difference. | Slash blunders after …f5 by 50 %. |
| Conversion with +2 pawns | Play 20 engines at depth 15 from move 30 of your 2024-10-10 win. | Finish each in < 30 seconds without dropping eval below +5. |
| Pre-move safety net | Bullet ladder: only pre-move king, rook, or pawn pushes when ≤ 5 s. | Zero losses on time this week. |
5. Opening corner
You’ve scored well with the English but the statistics show a dip on the Black side of the Ruy. Consider adding the solid Berlin-in-one: 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 Nf6. It keeps theory light and avoids the early d4 → Qxd4 tricks that cost you against sha6rath.
6. Practical checklist before each game
- Connection stable? If unsure, open a new tab and ping chess.com.
- Mindset: decide “positional squeeze” or “dynamic fight” before move 1.
- 30-second rule: when ahead on material and the clock dips under 30 s, simplify immediately.
7. Inspirational finish
Replay the final attack of your best recent win (
). Remember that feeling of everything clicking—our training aims to make that your default.Good luck in your next session, and feel free to send fresh games for review. Keep pushing!
🆚 Opponent Insights
| Most Played Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| SEBTHEBEST1 | 44W / 23L / 8D | |
| speedluxus08 | 19W / 1L / 21D | |
| mazetofonias | 16W / 7L / 0D | |
| x-3738459472 | 10W / 12L / 1D | |
| Mihai Ionescu | 6W / 7L / 1D | |
Rating
| Year | Bullet | Blitz | Rapid | Daily |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2382 | 1991 | ||
| 2024 | 2456 | |||
| 2023 | 2362 | 2469 | 1766 | |
| 2022 | 2581 | 1740 | ||
| 2021 | 2489 | |||
| 2020 | 2316 | 2475 | ||
| 2019 | 2410 | 2428 | 1739 | |
| 2018 | 2265 | 2489 | 1995 | |
| 2017 | 2029 | 2373 | 1906 |
Stats by Year
| Year | White | Black | Moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 0W / 4L / 1D | 3W / 2L / 0D | 46.0 |
| 2024 | 15W / 13L / 3D | 12W / 12L / 2D | 73.1 |
| 2023 | 19W / 24L / 4D | 23W / 25L / 1D | 82.5 |
| 2022 | 6W / 3L / 1D | 5W / 4L / 1D | 73.2 |
| 2021 | 1W / 1L / 0D | 1W / 0L / 0D | 77.0 |
| 2020 | 65W / 17L / 2D | 58W / 9L / 12D | 63.5 |
| 2019 | 22W / 12L / 16D | 25W / 10L / 10D | 60.1 |
| 2018 | 341W / 220L / 43D | 316W / 251L / 35D | 75.9 |
| 2017 | 386W / 206L / 65D | 365W / 250L / 56D | 75.4 |
Openings: Most Played
| Blitz Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hungarian Opening: Wiedenhagen-Beta Gambit | 140 | 92 | 36 | 12 | 65.7% |
| Petrov's Defense | 93 | 40 | 42 | 11 | 43.0% |
| Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation | 91 | 54 | 27 | 10 | 59.3% |
| QGD: 3.Nc3 Bb4 | 84 | 41 | 35 | 8 | 48.8% |
| King's Indian Attack | 81 | 47 | 22 | 12 | 58.0% |
| London System: Poisoned Pawn Variation | 69 | 37 | 29 | 3 | 53.6% |
| Indian Defense: Przepiorka Variation | 66 | 39 | 22 | 5 | 59.1% |
| Amar Gambit | 63 | 32 | 17 | 14 | 50.8% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 62 | 43 | 12 | 7 | 69.3% |
| English Opening: Caro-Kann Defensive System | 56 | 38 | 15 | 3 | 67.9% |
| Rapid Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hungarian Opening: Wiedenhagen-Beta Gambit | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Unknown | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| QGA: 3.e3 c5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0% |
| QGA: 4.Nc3 a6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Bullet Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amar Gambit | 33 | 21 | 8 | 4 | 63.6% |
| Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation | 25 | 10 | 13 | 2 | 40.0% |
| Unknown | 23 | 18 | 5 | 0 | 78.3% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 16 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 75.0% |
| Hungarian Opening: Wiedenhagen-Beta Gambit | 15 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 53.3% |
| King's Indian Attack | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 50.0% |
| Italian Game: Two Knights Defense | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 50.0% |
| Four Knights Game | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 28.6% |
| Slav Defense | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 71.4% |
| Australian Defense | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Daily Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnes Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| King's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Delayed Fianchetto | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Catalan Opening: Closed | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| QGA: 3.Nf3 Bg4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| KGA: 3.Nf3 g5 4.Bc4 g4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Amazon Attack | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| English Opening: Agincourt Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Benoni Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Scotch Game | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0% |
| Four Knights Game | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
🔥 Streaks
| Streak | Longest | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Winning | 22 | 1 |
| Losing | 9 | 0 |