APetelin

Quick recap

Nice run — you converted two clean wins today and showed solid technique in the rook & pawn endgames and in creating passed pawns. Your loss vs blackcatromeo was tactical and instructive: it highlights a few repeatable issues to clean up. Below are concrete, focused suggestions to turn those strengths into consistent rating gains in blitz.

Games & key moments (placeholders)

• Win vs vinnythegreat5555 — built a passed c‑pawn and used piece activity to force resignation. Review the final pawn run and knight forks that won material.
• Win vs Yans Richard Girones Barrios — excellent rook activity and correct simplification into a winning pawn endgame; you marched the a‑pawn and used the king actively.
• Loss vs blackcatromeo — lost after a decisive penetration (Qd8+). The tactical finish came from weakened squares and a strong enemy queen on the back rank.

Replay one of the wins here (final position included):

What you're doing well

• Conversion in the endgame: you simplify at the right moment and activate your king (seen in the Ruy Lopez win). Keep doing this — it’s a major strength.
• Creating and advancing passed pawns: in the French game you got a dangerous passed c‑pawn (c6) and pushed it decisively.
• Opening preparation in certain lines: your results in the French Defense: Exchange Variation and Ruy Lopez are very strong — you’re comfortable in these structures.
• Quick tactical spotting in middlegames — you find forks and penetrations (Nxf7, Nxd5 ideas) that win material.

Where to improve (high impact items)

• Watch for back‑rank and mating motifs. The loss ended with a decisive queen infiltration (Qd8+). Before trading pieces or pushing pawns, check your back‑rank safety and escape squares for the king — Back rank issues are common in blitz.
• Pawn structure & weak squares: in the loss you let a strong enemy c‑pawn and central queen activity decide things. Try to prevent enemy pawns from becoming mobile passed pawns or supported by piece activity.
• Time management in critical moments: keep at least a small time buffer for the late middlegame/endgame. You often have enough time early but get tight later; use the increment wisely (move faster on routine moves, slow down when the position is sharp).
• Line accuracy in the Slav/Exchange structures — your Openings Performance shows more losses in the Slav. Drill the typical pawn breaks and ideal piece placements for the side you play there.

Concrete drills & study plan (this week)

• Tactics: 25–50 tactics/day (focus: forks, skewers, back‑rank mates). Use mixed time puzzles and force yourself to calculate 2 extra plies before answering.
• Endgames: 3× 20‑minute sessions on rook + pawn endgames and king + pawn vs king. Practice opposition, cut‑offs and the Lucena/Philidor basics.
• Openings: spend 30–45 minutes on the Slav Exchange and its common traps (both sides). Make a short one‑page checklist of plans for move 10 and move 20 in those lines.
• Blitz practice: play 6–8 games at the same time control, but after each loss write a 2‑line note of the decisive mistake (tactical miss / positional error / time trouble).

Blitz checklist (in‑game)

• First 10 moves: follow your opening plan; avoid random pawn moves — keep piece coordination.
• If you’re ahead materially: trade pieces (not pawns) and simplify toward a won endgame.
• If you’re behind: create counterplay — activate rooks and your king; look for checks and perpetual resources.
• Before every capture or queen trade ask: “Does this create back‑rank or infiltration threats?”
• Use pre‑moves only when safe; avoid pre‑moves in tactical, unclear positions.
• If increment is small, keep 10–15 seconds for complex moments (don’t burn whole clock early).

Goals for your next session (measurable)

• Reduce losses in the Slav by 15% over the next 50 games — study the top 3 problematic positions and make a simple plan.
• Complete 350 tactics this week and 3 rook‑endgame positions to mastery (repeat until you win from the defending side).
• After every game this week, spend 2–4 minutes reviewing the decisive error and log it (tilt, time trouble, opening mistake, tactic missed).

How I suggest you review the loss vs BlackCatRomeo

• Walk through move 28–33 slowly without engine first; look for safe king squares and whether you can trade queens or block checks.
• Ask: could I have prevented the queen invasion or given my king an escape square earlier? If yes, add that defensive idea to your opening checklist.
• Then check with an engine to see the tactical refutation(s) and memorize the pattern (this is high ROI).

Final note

Your rating trend is positive over 3–6 months and your opening win rates are excellent in lines you know well. The gap to reduce is mostly tactical oversights and a couple of opening/structure blind spots (Slav). Keep the endgame and tactics practice consistent — you’ll convert more of those good positions into wins and climb steadily.

Want a short personalized 30‑minute study plan I can generate for you (tactics + two endgame drills + one opening checklist)? Reply “Yes — study plan”.