Rulerdo

Hi Rulerdo! 👋 Great job staying active and racking-up games.

Your rapid improvement curve is clear – your 875 (2024-11-18) keeps nudging upward and you already scored several nice tactical wins this week. Below is a focused review of the main patterns I see in your recent games together with practical next-steps.

1. Openings – pick one line per colour

• You consistently start with 1.e4 as White and meet 1.e4 with …d5 or …c6 as Black. That’s great – stick with it! Learn one simple system to handle the first 6-8 moves so you reach middlegames you recognise.
• White: Your Italian style set-up (Bc4, Nf3, d3) is fine, but be careful when you jump Ng5 too early – in the loss vs racciari your 5.Nxe5 gave Black easy counter-play. After 4…Nf6 simply castle and build pressure with c3 & d4 instead of grabbing on e5.
• Black: The Scandinavian and Alekhine wins against flow-thing and queen_korz show you enjoy unbalanced positions. Keep them, but memorise the critical idea 3…Qa5 (in the Scandinavian) so your queen stays safer than on g2/h1.

2. Tactical alertness – big strength, but watch your own king

You’re very good at spotting loose pawns and forks. The following mini-combo from your win vs nawif is a nice example:

However, three of your recent losses came from overlooking mate or big material swings against you. Train 5-minute tactics every day and always ask “What is my opponent threatening?” after each move.

3. Time management – convert won positions!

• Two defeats (vs redt08 & lud0_0) were purely on time in completely playable positions. Try the “30-second rule”: if your clock shows 0:30 you must make an instant safe move and rebuild time with increment.
• Use premoves only for forced recaptures; otherwise they backfire at this level.

4. Endgames – simplify when ahead

In the Scandinavian Daily game you reached a winning rook ending but needed eight more moves to force resignation. Practice basic endgames (K+P v K, Lucena, Philidor) so you can finish cleanly and quickly.

5. Habit checklist for the next 50 games

1. Develop all minor pieces before launching pawn storms.
2. Castle by move 10 unless you have a concrete tactical reason not to.
3. Each turn, scan all checks, captures, and threats for both sides.
4. When a piece enters your half of the board ask, “Can I chase it, trade it, or ignore it safely?”
5. With 60 seconds left, switch to increment mode: play solid but quick moves and push your clock back over one minute.

Progress dashboards

Keep an eye on when and how you win most often:

Key terms to review

Take five minutes to look up: Zwischenzug, Backward pawn, Lucena position. Understanding these will explain many motifs appearing in your games.

Final encouragement

Your enthusiasm and sharp tactical eye are your biggest assets. Blend them with a little more opening discipline and clock control and you’ll break 600 in no time. Good luck, have fun, and feel free to send me any game you’d like dissected in depth!