Quick summary
Nice long-term progress — +285 over six months shows you're learning and improving. Recent form dipped (‑88 in the last month) but your Strength Adjusted Win Rate (~0.52) and overall record (454W / 413L / 28D) show you are competitive in rapid. Below I highlight concrete strengths from your recent wins, the main leaks that caused losses, and a short, practical plan you can start today.
What you did well (recent wins)
- Promotion awareness and pawn play: in your win versus luffy_07_el you pushed connected pawns to promotion successfully — excellent eye for passed pawns and creating a decisive queening threat.
- Converting material and calm endgame play: in the game that finished with Qa7# you turned a material/tactical advantage into a forced mate instead of hunting risky re-checks — good conversion technique.
- Opening choices that suit you: your Philidor lines score well — keep using the setup that gives you comfortable middlegame plans. See Philidor Defense.
- Active piece play: you often place rooks and knights on aggressive files/ranks (rook on seventh / passed‑pawn support) which forces opponents into passive defence.
Recurring leaks to fix (high impact)
- King safety in the middlegame — several losses and close positions show the king coming under fire (queen checks, infiltrations). Prioritize quick, safe castling and avoid weakening pawn moves in front of your king unnecessarily.
- Loose pieces and early queen sorties — you’ve had games where the queen wandered (or opponent’s queen invaded) and created tactical problems. Before moving a major piece ask: is it defended? Any forks, pins, skewers available to the opponent?
- Endgame passivity vs passed pawns — opponents converted passed pawns against you (and you successfully did the same in wins). Study methodical king activation and opposition in pawn endgames; don’t leave a distant king when pawns race.
- Time & tilt management — month-by-month shows a recent dip. When you’re down in rating or on a losing streak, tighten your pre-move checklist: one tactical scan, one safety check, then move.
Concrete patterns & examples
- Promotion technique (from your win vs luffy_07_el): you created a passed pawn chain and used rooks to clear the last files — this is repeatable. Pattern: create pawn majority → gain tempo with checks or sacrifices → support pawn with rook/king.
- Watch out for queen forks and back-rank tactics — in some losses the opponent used checks that won material or forced resignation. Always evaluate enemy checks and flight squares for your king before simplifying.
- Openings: you perform especially well in the Four Knights and Three Knights lines (Four Knights WinRate ~57.7%, Three Knights ~64.3%). Lean into these—they give you solid piece development and clear plans.
Replay the final phase of the Luffy game below to study the queening sequence and final tactics.
Opening advice (practical)
- Keep what works: your Philidor Defense performance is strong — continue studying typical pawn breaks, the important d4/d5 breaks, and standard piece maneuvers. Reference: Philidor Defense.
- Exploit your strengths: play Four Knights or Three Knights when you want quieter, strategic games — both suit your conversion style.
- Avoid sharp tactical traps in openings where your winrate is lower (Scotch and Barnes Defense lines show mixed results). If you pick a sharp line, study 5–10 model games and memorize one safe “escape” plan when things go wrong.
Practical training plan — 4 weeks (daily 45–60 minutes)
- 15–20 minutes tactics: focus on forks, pins, skewers, and queen/rook tactics. Do mixed sets but finish with 5 puzzles where you solve slowly and write down the idea.
- 10–15 minutes endgames: rook vs rook, basic queen endings, Lucena / Philidor ideas and king + pawn races. Practice one motif per day.
- 10–15 minutes opening + model games: pick one Philidor line and one Four Knights line. Learn 6–8 moves and 2 typical middlegame plans for each.
- Review 1 recent loss every day: do a 10–15 minute post‑mortem. Write down the turning move and what you missed. Try to find recurring mistakes over a week.
Short checklist to use over the board (5 seconds before you move)
- Are any of my pieces hanging or undefended?
- Does my king have immediate checks or mating threats against it?
- What was my opponent threatening last move (tactical and positional)?
- If I trade pieces now, who benefits — me or opponent?
Three specific next steps (start today)
- Pick one loss from the last week and annotate it move-by-move (5–10 minutes). Identify the first mistake and whether it was tactical, positional, or time management related.
- Do 10 focused endgame positions (king + pawn races, rook endgames) this week — practice queening technique and opposition.
- Play 10 rapid games where you deliberately choose the Four Knights / Three Knights to practice converting quiet advantages into wins.
Notes on your rating trends & mindset
Your six‑month slope and rise (+285) show strong improvement; short term dips happen — the important part is learning from each game. The 1‑month fall (‑88) is an opportunity to tighten the routines above. Keep the process: small, steady practice beats short bursts.
Want me to dig deeper?
I can do a move-by-move annotated analysis of any single game you choose (tactics, missed opportunities, and alternative plans). Tell me which game (use the opponent name or paste the PGN) and I’ll produce a short annotated report.
Final encouragement
You have clear strengths (passed pawns, conversion, solid opening choices). With a focused short training routine and a daily quick post‑mortem, you’ll recover the recent rating loss and continue the upward trend. Ready to pick one loss for me to annotate?