Tomislav B: The Goblin's Best Friend
Some players dabble in openings. Tomislav B (known on the board as tomislav1992) has entered a long-term, committed relationship with one: the Dresden Opening: The Goblin. With well over two thousand rapid games played from this quirky 2.Nf3 system, Tomislav has turned an offbeat opening into a personal brand. Opponents see 1.e4, 2.Nf3 and sigh, knowing exactly what is coming. Knowing is not the same as stopping it, though. The Goblin has delivered a solid winning record across thousands of battles, making it one of the most successful pet openings you will ever see at this scale.
The Climb
Tomislav's rapid journey is a genuine grind-it-out success story. Starting out in the 900s in late 2021, he put his head down and played, and played, and played. Tens of thousands of games later, the rating curve tells the tale: steady, relentless improvement year after year, culminating in a rapid peak of 2338. That is not talent alone. That is mileage, scar tissue, and an almost supernatural tolerance for long games. His average win stretches past 70 moves, which means Tomislav is perfectly happy to out-walk you in the endgame while you slowly lose the will to live.
Style: Grind, Grit, and Early Resignation Culture
The numbers paint a vivid portrait of Tomislav as a fighter rather than a flasher of brilliancies. His comeback rate sits north of 86 percent, meaning if you win a piece against him, congratulations, you have merely made the game interesting. He rarely collapses in one-sided fashion, and with an early resignation rate of 56 percent, he knows when a lost position is genuinely lost and shakes hands without dragging it out. His weapon of choice when delivering checks? The queen, by a landslide. Subtle? Not always. Effective? Usually.
- Average winning game length: over 72 moves. Endurance is his superpower.
- White win rate nearly matches Black win rate plus a stubborn refusal to lose hope with the black pieces.
- First move: 1.e4, essentially always. The c4 and d4 pawns live quiet, unplayed lives.
- Peak form arrives around 2:00 in the morning, which says something beautiful and slightly concerning about his sleep schedule.
Rivals and Nemeses
Every grinders' journey has its villains. Enter antonio9000, who has haunted Tomislav's dreams with a record that reads like a horror story: one win against fourteen losses. Somewhere in Croatia or wherever Tomislav hangs his hat, there is a phone that buzzes every time these two are paired, and it is never good news. On the brighter side, ante pandzic serves as the designated punching bag, with Tomislav winning 23 of their encounters. Fellow grinder titin_pionir provides the perfect balance: 29 games, nearly even, pure spite chess.
The Daily Chess Double Life
While rapid is his main arena, Tomislav's true calling may be daily chess, where slow, thoughtful maneuvering suits his grind-everyone-down personality. His daily record is remarkably lopsided in the best way, and his taste in daily openings is gloriously chaotic: the Blackburne Shilling Gambit, the Amazon Attack, and the Fegatello Attack have all produced perfect scores. Apparently when given time to think, Tomislav becomes not just solid but genuinely dangerous. Whether that involves trappy gambits named after shillings is between him and his conscience.
The Bottom Line
Tomislav B is proof that chess improvement is less about lightning bolts of genius and more about showing up, playing 1.e4, wheeling out the Goblin one more time, and outlasting whoever dares to sit across from you. A 16-game winning streak at his peak, a rating approaching the 2300s, and a nemesis list longer than a Colle-Zukertort variation. Respect the grind. Respect the Goblin. Respect Tomislav.