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?