Coach Chesswick
Quick summary
Good instincts: you spot tactical shots, use knights aggressively, and convert advantages by invading with rooks and queen. Recurring problems: king safety after pawn moves around the king and missing defender counts before captures. Fixing those two items will raise your consistency quickly.
Win — what went right (vs fuenfsternedeluxe)
- You seized space with the advanced e-pawn and developed actively instead of drifting pieces — that made your pieces coordinate quickly.
- Nice tactical sequence with the knights: you jumped into enemy territory (Nxa5 → Nxc6 → Nxa7) and converted material while keeping threats alive.
- Good finishing approach: doubled rooks/rook invasion and a final queen check created decisive pressure. Replay the key sequence here: .
- Keep doing: hunt loose pieces, create direct threats, and when ahead look for simplifications that maintain the initiative.
Loss — concrete lessons (vs hutdiggity)
- King safety: advancing pawns near your king (g, h, f) opened lines that White exploited. Before such pawn pushes, double-check the weaknesses you create.
- Count attackers/defenders: after tactical captures (like Rxf5 lines in that game), you were hurt by a coordination swing. Before every capture ask “who recaptures and what forks/attacks appear?”
- Reacting to forcing moves: when the opponent sacrifices to open your king, calculate the forcing line rather than relying on intuition.
- Study target: work on king-hunt tactics and puzzles where a sacrifice opens files/diagonals toward the king.
Other recent losses — quick takeaways
- Against active minor pieces: prioritize trades when an enemy knight or bishop lands on strong central squares and threatens forks or tactics.
- When behind on activity, avoid passive pawn moves — seek simplifications or concrete counterplay rather than waiting to be squeezed.
Practical drills (daily)
- 15–20 tactics puzzles focused on forks, pins, discovered attacks (especially ones that open the king).
- 5 position checks per day: pick a move and always run the simple "attackers vs defenders" count before committing.
- One short endgame lesson per week (basic rook endings and king+pawn) to improve conversion technique when you're ahead.
7-day plan (actionable)
- Days 1–3: tactics and counting routine (write one sentence after each missed puzzle explaining why).
- Days 4–5: play two slow daily games; annotate only the critical 3–5 moves where the evaluation swung.
- Day 6: 30 minutes reviewing king safety motifs and typical sacrificial ideas against castled kings.
- Day 7: pick one loss and generate a 5-move “what I should have played” plan; test it in practice.
Simple rules to apply right away
- Before any capture, count attackers and defenders and scan for checks and forks that follow.
- Don’t push pawns around your king unless you’ve checked the opening of files/diagonals and available enemy checks.
- If opponent creates a strong outpost (knight on d4/e5), ask: can I trade it or blockade it? If not, chase it or change the pawn structure.
Want a deeper post-mortem?
Tell me which game to annotate (I recommend the Hutdiggity loss or the recent win). I’ll provide a move-by-move short analysis, three specific improvements, and practice tasks tailored to that game.