pablo_mt

Quick summary

Nice run — your rating and recent slope numbers show steady improvement. You’re winning with sharp, tactical play (good use of forks and knights) and comfortable in open, gambit-style positions. At the same time a few recurring types of mistakes (loose pieces and tactical oversights) are costing you games. Below are focused, practical steps to keep the upward trend going.

What you’re doing well

• Strong tactical sense: you’re finding forks and concrete continuations (example: the quick knight jump to c7 in your win vs samdoeplum). That shows good calculation in sharp positions.
• Opening aggression: you play active, unbalancing openings (Scotch, some gambits) that score well for you — keep using lines that lead to the kinds of positions you handle best. See Scotch Game and Elephant Gambit.
• Momentum and psychology: you convert practical chances and your opponent flagging/tactical misses often. You’re getting value from initiative and complexity.

Key weaknesses to fix (with concrete fixes)

• Loose pieces / hanging pieces
  • Symptom: picking up material or making an aggressive move without checking opponent tactics. Fix: before each move, do a 3-question blunder check — what checks does my opponent have? What captures? What threats will appear?
• Tactical oversights on checks and forks
  • Example: in the loss to cuccycuc you allowed a knight capture that ended the game quickly. Train by solving fork/pin/skewer puzzles (10–15 puzzles daily).
• Opening familiarity vs opponents who know theory
  • If you play gambits, study the most common defensive replies so you don’t get surprised. Focus on typical tactical motifs and the safe king squares after trades.
• Endgame technique & conversion
  • Many of your wins come from decisive tactics, but long games that reach endgames require clean technique. Practice basic rook and pawn endings and king+pawn vs king fundamentals.

Short annotated example — a recent win

Here’s the key tactical sequence from your win where you converted nicely by forcing the opponent into collapse. Study the pattern (knight sacrifice/fork on c7) and memorize the tactical theme.

Takeaway: when your opponent weakens with pawn moves and piece trades, look for leaps into weak squares (c7, d6, f7). That’s where your knight jumps excel.

Practical training plan (30 / 90 / 180 days)

• 30 days
  • Daily: 10–15 tactical puzzles focused on forks, pins, and discoveries.
  • Review your last 20 games: tag every game where you lost material to "Loose Piece" or missed tactic. Fix patterns, not just moves.
  • Play 10 rapid games (10+0 or 10+5) and practice the 3-question blunder-check each move.
• 90 days
  • Build a short, reliable opening prep: choose 2 main openings for White and Black — keep the ones with best win rates (you do well in Scotch Game and Australian Defense).
  • Endgame: complete basic rook endgames and king+pawn practice (20–30 exercises).
  • Weekly game review with engine + human filter: find a coach or stronger friend to point out recurring strategic errors.
• 180 days
  • Targeted rating goal: your recent 1–6 month slope shows you can continue improving — set a reachable target (e.g., +80–120 over 6 months) and measure weekly.
  • Work on positional play: study a simple model game with small advantages and learn how to convert (pawn structure, outposts, improve worst piece).

Practical game habits

• Before every move run the “Checks / Captures / Threats” routine. It costs 3–5 seconds and saves longer backtracking.
• When you see a “free” pawn or piece, pause and ask: is it safe? What tactics allow my opponent to get compensation?
• Use increments (if available). If you play 10|0 on Chess.com try 10|5 or 5|3 to reduce blunders in time trouble.
• After each session, annotate 2 losses and 2 wins — what decision made the result swing?

Opening and repertoire advice

• Keep the lines that score well for you (Scotch, Australian, Elephant Gambit, Philidor). Double down on typical plans, not memorized move strings.
• For the Scandinavian Defense — your win pattern is lower than your favorite lines. If you still play it, study the main defensive replies and traps so you don’t get out-theoried.
• Work on transition plans: after an opening imbalance, ask “where does my king go?” and “which minor piece should be traded or improved?”

Short checklist to use after each game

• 1–2 tactical mistakes? Mark for tactics practice.
• Loose piece caused loss? Add “loose piece” to your error tags.
• Opening surprise? Add the line to your opening todo list.
• Endgame issue? Add a 10-minute endgame drill to the week.

Motivation & next steps

Your recent rating trend and win/loss record show consistent progress. Keep the tactical training and the blunder-check habit. If you want, I can prepare a tailored 2-week tactics set (forks + pins) and a short annotated opening sheet for your top 3 openings.

Would you like a focused tactics pack or an opening crib sheet next?