Coach Chesswick
Hi frogster1997 – keep up the good work!
You have made solid progress recently (current peak: 886 (2025-06-20)), and your attacking instinct is clear from the checkmates against farelemir and Robotic Pawn. Below are a few priority areas that will help you push beyond the 900-range.
1. Opening habits
- Central presence first, fancy ideas later.
In several losses (e.g. versus vadimexplorer and eddyjesus) you allowed …d5/d4 or …c5 to seize the centre while your own pieces were still on the back rank. Try a “three-step checklist” in the first eight moves: develop minor pieces, castle, connect rooks. Everything else is optional. - Queen adventures = early vacations for your pieces.
6.Qg4? in the VadimExplorer game walked into …Bxg4 and the game was basically over. Promise yourself: the queen won’t leave the first three ranks until I’ve castled unless there’s a concrete tactic. - Simplify your repertoire.
• With White: switch from 1.d3/1.e3 to 1.e4 followed by Nf3 and d4, or play the London (1.d4 2.Bf4) – either way you’ll get an instant share of the centre.
• With Black: your mix of Pirc/Nimzowitsch is ambitious but sharp; if you like it, study one thematic game each week. Otherwise try 1…e5 against 1.e4 for the next 20 games – the plans are simpler.
2. Tactical alertness
- You convert attacks nicely (24.Qxh7# vs abduzcan08 was clean), but pieces also hang in many games (17.Nb3?? left an entire bishop en-prise against coppyboi).
Training tip: do 15 “Rated” puzzles a day and double-check every candidate move for loose pieces, checks, captures, threats (CCT).
3. King safety & pawn storms
- Moves like …h6/…g5 in the opening (loss vs h3noch62) weakened dark squares around your king.
Before pushing flank pawns ask: “Have I castled? Are opposite-side kings castled? Do I control the centre?” If any answer is no, postpone the pawn push.
4. Endgame basics
- Your rook technique versus RoboticPawn was excellent – you activated the rook, created a passed pawn and mated. Repeat that!
Homework: practise the “Lucena” and “Philidor” rook endings once a week; they appear constantly at our level.
5. Time management
- You often reach move 15 with 9+ minutes left. Borrow 5 seconds per move for a quick blunder-check; even two fewer blunders per game will raise your rating fast.
6. Suggested weekly routine (≈60 min/day)
- 25 min tactics (Chess.com puzzles or similar).
- 15 min review of one of your own games with the analysis board, asking “why did I lose/win?”
- 10 min opening study (pick one line and note the first 8 moves).
- 10 min endgame drill (rook & pawn vs rook, king & pawn conversion, basic mates).
Progress trackers
Monitor when you play best and schedule your sessions accordingly:
Stick to these fundamentals, keep the king safe, and your tactical eye will do the rest. Looking forward to seeing you break 900 soon – good luck and have fun!